Deskscape locks up displays go blank and the blue circle mouse pointer constantly runs

Deskscape static choices

from Stardock Forums

Hello. The past couple of weeks I noticed my mouse pointer will keep spinning on the desktop. After trying to figure out what app was causing this, it was Deskscape. I have to Alt CTRl Delete to task manager, end Windows Explorer to get it to stop. Even if I click on the desktop, the monitors go blank with no picture, and it starts the spinning cycle again. Sometimes it comes back, and other times I have to reboot. This is annoying, as it is happening all day long. I click on Display and Monitor settings and/or go back into Deskscape, and the static pictures I selected are blank, even though others I downloaded are there, and also newer selections show as images. 

Please advise me on what to do, or I will have to stop using the program. I have a paid version. I have version 11.02 2024. It says my version is up to date

Thank you. 

Jo

moderator edit: please do not post your email on a public forum

Stardock Software DeskScapes Type: Bug Report
383 views 2 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top

The update check is telling you the truth about the wrong thing. 11.02 shipped on 6/13/2024 and that is where the DeskScapes 11 line ends, so 11 will keep reporting itself current forever. The shipping version now is DeskScapes 2026 (26.0.1.1, released 7/27/2026), and being a major release rather than an update, it does not come down through the updater in 11.

Whether it costs you anything depends on how you bought it. Active Object Desktop clients "will receive new releases at no extra charge". A standalone lifetime licence covers minor updates for the version you bought, so 11 to 2026 would be a paid major upgrade, with any upgrade discount shown on the DeskScapes product page. Order History under store.stardock.com/myaccount will tell you which of those you have.

I am pointing at versions rather than at a setting for a reason. The only Windows accommodation listed in the 11.02 changelog is "Updated DSHost.exe to better account for Windows 24H2". If your machine has taken a Windows feature update in the last few weeks, that gap is the first thing I would look at, and there is no later 11 build that closes it.

On the static pictures coming up blank, there is a check worth running either way. Select one of the blank ones in DeskScapes and read the file path listed to the right of the thumbnail. If those paths point somewhere the files no longer live (a folder you moved, a cleared downloads folder, OneDrive relocating a folder under you), that explains why your older picks are empty while anything you added recently still shows.

If you do move to 2026, do not install it over the top. Neil Banfield's instruction for a machine that ran DeskScapes 11 first is to uninstall, reboot, and then install 2026, since otherwise you can be left with mismatched files from the two versions. The reboot is the step people skip.

If you would rather stay on 11 for now, the DeskScapes purge tool is at https://cdn.stardock.us/support/uploads/DSPurgeNew.zip

Run it as administrator, which on Windows 11 means picking "Show more options" in the right-click menu first, then reboot and reinstall from your account page.

Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top

Thank you .  I figured I needed to see about upgrading. I will see if since I was paid for subs before for different things to see if I get any discount.  I will def uninstall and reboot before the new download.

 

Jo

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