HOW TO CREATE a NEW PHOTO FOR a DESKTOP ICON

If you are like me, you probably have a large number of desktop icons on your computer's desktop, and you use them to quickly access various files and programs. However, many of the photos that accompany the files that I have chosen to populate my desktop are unattractive and irrelevant. Well, I have just discovered how to customize those icons and replace them with photographs from my own files! For those of you who feel like I do about those ugly Icons, this is how you can change them I am now using Windows 10, but this method should work on earlier versions, too)>.

Step 1: START BY OPENING YOUR "PAINT" FILE

1. Open Paint
2. Click on "File," and open a photo that you would like to use to replace one of your desktop icon photos
3. Once the photo you have selected opens, click on "File" again, then on "Save As" "BMP Picture."
4. Give the file a new name and "SAVE" (I renamed the photo "FRANGIPANI"
5. The file will then reappear with the file name "FRANGIPANI," and with the BMP file type listed below the file name. Place your curser at the end of file name and add the extension .ico to the File name as pictured here.

Step 2: NOW GO TO BACK TO YOUR DESKTOP

Right Click on the Desktop Icon Photo that you want to change and select "Properties" at the bottom of the list.

Next, select "Change Icon," then "Browse" for the photo that you renamed in the previous step

Once you have located the new photo that you want use, click "Open" followed by "OK," followed by "Change Icon."

When the next window opens, select "APPLY," then "OK" again.

Exit Paint and check your desktop; the new Icon photo should have replaced the old one.

GOOD LUCK . ..I hope this as well for you as it did for me!

Comments

[NicoleD4]

Anyone know how i stop my icon changing to black? In the image is purple but then when uploaded to icon turns black :(

[humboles]

I had the same problem of an all-black icon. But I found a website, "IcoConvert.com", to do the job right.

A. Open their homepage, and use "Browse" to home in on the location of your JPG. (They don't need you to make a BMP, unless you happen to have one anway.)
B. Hit the "Upload" button on their page.
C. At their Steps 2 and 3, you'll see the image displayed, and will be offered various cropping and format options.
D. Once you are happy with those options, go to their Step 4 ... select ""ICO for Windows 7, Windows 8, Vista and XP", to opt for the default size.
E. At Step 5, hit the "Convert ICO" button.
F. Finally, hit "Download your icons", in blue, to download the file they have created for you from your JPG, which can then be used for the shortcut on your Desktop.
(As you see on their webpage, you can even run the process on several files at once.)

[nilisan]

So easy to do thanks to your super clear instructions!! Very much appreciated :)

[runit711]

Thank you for your tip online was very easy to follow your step-by-step guide and now I change the folder file to what I wanted to see thank you so much again very much obliged

[31jugue01]

i need help

[griffnut]

Great , this is what I wanted to do , but icon is so small I can barely see it. I know how to make all icons larger- but the ones I just created stay small.