Desktop Icons Keep Moving

Right click on the desktop and go to the auto arange menu and make sure that the suitable option is ticked ...

Right-click the desktop, put the cursor to "Arrange Icons", look at the fly-out menu and make sure 'auto-arrange' is unchecked. This will allow you to arrange them yourself, otherwise windows will always put them back in a certain place.

I received two answers to my question, but I don't know how to respond to those answers. My original question was, how do I keep the icons/shortcuts on my desktop from automatically being arranged....I already know about right-clicking, and making sure Auto Arrange is not selected. In my case, Auto Arrange is NOT selected, yet, when I reboot sometimes, my desktop icons/shortcuts still get all jumbled. There must be another way to fix this problem.
Thank you.

dfxdesigns answer and mine are the same thing dfxdesigns gave you a more descriptive answer.

Are you using a single login to Win98? Also you mention that the problem occurs sometmes ... Check to make sure you have no desktop utilities that are storing information about previous logons or such

I think what you want is a wonderful little shareware program called EZDesk. You can find it at the author's web site here:

http://members.aol.com/EzDesk95/

What is does is remember the position of each icon on your desktop at each screen resolution. Then if Windows moves your icons around, you simply tell EZDesk to put them back where you had them. I know of no way to prevent Windows from messing up the location of those icons every so often. This often happens when you change screen resolutions, perhaps because you run an application or game that uses something other than what you use by default.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys and Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it.
Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK

Open regedit and backup your registry.
Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
and in the right column delete the NoSaveSettings key. Close regedit.

Great answers, thanks very much! I will try EZDesktop and fixing the registry...carefully...

I did not see a NoSave setting key in the registry file that you indicated. Since this key isn't there, I wonder why the desktop icons are getting rearranged?

There is no key called NoSaveSettings as you indicated, in the registry file. If that key is not there, why do the icons get rearranged?

You don't need to fix the registry. It isn't broken.

I suppose I should have posted my comment as an "answer" but I thought I'd give ChiptheMan a chance to tell us first if it works.

Chip,
Feel free to give bparnes the points for this question - even though his response was a comment, it was probably meant as the answer.  After all, I was beat by 1 minute, and fair is fair.

From what I've learned here, everyone is expected to post as a comment (we all think we have the right answer) rather than answer. That way the question is not locked. The questioner then picks which comment is the best answer.

Mike, I am not sure how to assign points to someone else....

Another fix for the problem that you have and/or had which you will not need to install something for is a different registry hack.

***You can access the registry by going to the START menu, clicking or the run icon and entering "regedit" without the "".***

goto the key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Desktop\Old WorkAreas

You should see two (2) values; "NoOfOldWorkAreas" and "OldWorkAreaRects".

Delete the "NoOfOldWorkAreas" and then close the registry. When you either log off or restart, the icons should be in the same place that they were.  If there are multiple users on the network or computer then you will have to log on as each user and do the same thing.

A faster way to do it is by going back to the regitry in the same key that you were in and click "file" then "export registry file...". you can save it directly in the C: drive folder and then log on as each user seperatly and open it, it will overwrite the registry key that is in their settings which will fix the problem.

I have made ONE folder and named it DeskTop and put it on my, where else?, DESKTOP!
I then drag all of my shortcuts into it and when I need to access something, I open my DeskTop folder and there, in alphabetical order, are all of my shortcuts and I don't have a bunch of visual clutter on my desktop.  Works fer me!!