I would like to re-submit a question that I asked a little while ago, but never did recieve a solution.  The thread got a little side-tracked.  If there is no solution, then so be it, but I find this rather annoying.  I have an HP Pavilion a1220n desktop with XP service pack 2.  About half of the time, the balloon tips to my start button, the time, and my icons in the notification area are hidden BEHIND the taskbar.  I can see just the top of these balloon tips, but am unable to read them because a considerable portion are "behind" the taskbar.  This does not happen on a consistant basis, and I cannot determine a single clue as to when this does happen, versus when it does not.  Any thoughts would be appreciated.  Thank you.  P.S.  I have attempted to describe this problem to the best of my ability, but please don't hesitate to request further information.  rlprlp.......  This is just a shot in the dark , because of your description , but do you mean the "tip of the day" , which would be displayed down at the bottom of your screen ...if you have the tip of the day in the explorer bar ticked?  If thats it , simply grab the top edge of the tip window and drag it up a little bit and you will be able to see the whole tip ........

dl65  You could just switch 'em off...  Check out >this page<.Right click on the Task Bar, select Properties & tick the 'Always on Top box'.Goodness; thank you for all the responses!  Let me try to answer them all.  No, I'm not referring to the
"Tip of the day".  Here is a specific example:  the balloon tip that reads "Click here to begin" when the mouse pointer is hovered over the Start button.  Turning off the balloon tips altogether would defeat my purpose; I WANT to be able to read them.  I'm especially interested in being able to read the balloon tips that are generated by my security program icons in the notification area, as they give quick tidbits of information regarding the status of the program, and that they are up to date. (That is, when I CAN read them!)  "Keep the taskbar on top of other windows" is checked in my Taskbar Properties dialog box.  Thank you again to all.I would like to add that what puzzles me is the inconsistency of this behavior.  This morning, right now as I type this, the balloon tips are acting correctly.  They are appearing on top of the dark blue taskbar.  Who knows when, but they will (they always do!) eventually begin to pop up behind the the taskbar, and then (once again, who knows when!) they will go back to normal.  Back and forth, back and forth...  I seem to have about a 50/50 shot at getting a balloon tip that I can read.  How about a screen shot so we're sure of what the problem is?Well, to be honest, I don't know how to make a screenshot.  I'm sure I could learn.  But even then, you would have to "stand by" until the next time it starts acting up.  (At the moment, balloon tips are working normally.)  I know we're not getting side-tracked again, because this is directly related to my original question:  Is this the proper procedure to make a screen shot in CH?  http://ask-leo.com/whats_a_screen_shot_and_how_do_i_make_one.html  

Thank you.  Yes, that link explains how to make a screen print.  If you can, I suggest trimming the image to the portion that SHOWS your taskbar with a balloon tip partially hidden.  If you do not trim, you'll have a very large image to post and we don't need to see your entire monitor display.  Also, the image file SIZE is going be directly related to the physical size of the image.  By trimming and using JPEG as the file format, I made this image which is 21,260 bytes:



By the way, I understand your problem.  I've seen that on my system, too, but not for quite a while now.  I recall a spell when it happened quite frequently, but it has not done that in recent months.  I don't recall discovering a specific solution to it.  So, I can't say why it stopped.Understood.  Now I just have to wait for it to act up.  (Still normal.)  Will this be like taking your car to the mechanic?  Watch it never happen again, now!!  Will return to this thread with a screen shot at first chance.  Thanks to all.   rlprlp..... If it's of any consolation , on one of my pcs, the hide icon button will simply disappear for no apparent reason ...and a few hours or days later it reappears . It seems it's something in windows ...... and doesnt effect anything.
Perhaps you just learn to live with it ............ lol

dl65   Quote

 "Keep the taskbar on top of other windows" is checked in my Taskbar Properties dialog box.  Thank you again to all.