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Please consider the following screen shot from Win 7 Windows Explorer:

enter image description here

I'm puzzled by "rcook", particularly by the little figure in front of the yellow folder. The figure resembles one Windows uses to represent a "user" on the system. It is also at the same level as Libraries, Computer, etc. under Desktop, but it does not show up as an icon on my desk top, only in Windows explorer.

'rcook' is my username; I'm sure I created this at some point, but I don't remember. It represents a folder, and the contents of the folder are exactly the same as a normal folder under 'Users' on my disk.

If I right-click on this and select delete, will it delete the files in the folder that it represents? I'd like to get rid of this (which appears to me to be some kind of link file to the real one), but I don't want to delete all the files. If I can't do that, is there some other way to get rid of whatever this is?

As a side issue: is there a list of Windows Explorer icons somewhere so I could look up things like this? I looked for one of those and didn't find one.

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This is the same as the folder under 'Users' on your disk. The desktop icon acts as a shortcut to your account's "home" directory; it is similar in purpose to the "My Documents" icon in XP and earlier releases, or to the "home directory" on Linux.

Just like "Computer" and other icons, it can be enabled to show up on the actual desktop, and it will always show up under the "Desktop" folder.

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  • Well, at least I didn't delete it. I guess my real problem is that, if the last time I used W Explorer I had this folder expanded (which, of course, would happen any time I accessed any of its subfolders), then the next time I use windows+e to open windows explorer, it opens with this folder expanded and the default selection below that at "computer", and I find that annoying. What I want is almost always above that point. Can I set Win+E so that it does the same thing as clicking on the windows explorer task bar icon, so that it opens at "libraries"?
    – rcook
    Dec 17, 2014 at 1:29
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Had the same confusion regarding the "system folder" icon of a head/bust in front of an open folder, with the users name (in your case 'rcook') beside the icon. I don't believe you can get rid of it... you can only hide it. If that's all you would like to do, open a windows explorer window (like the screenshot you posted earlier), click on 'Organize', select 'Folder and search options', 'General' tab, 'Navigation pane' area, remove the checkmark from 'Show all folders', then click 'OK'. This should result in just 'Favorites', 'Libraries', 'Homegroup', 'Computer', and 'Network' main icons on the left side pane.

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