Copy Firefox desktop/startup icon to the Quick Launch.

Display the desktop with WinKey+D or restore it later with same shortcut (don't know it that will work on Win XP but it has worked on Win 2000, Vista and Windows 7. Click on the WinKey to bring up the Windows Start menu Click on "All Programs" at the bottom Look for you Mozilla Firefox icon drag the icon with Ctrl+drag (to copy, it has to say Copy not Move), if you make a mistake you can hit the "Esc" key before releasing the drag or simply return it back to where you started.

Thank you for kindly answering. I have tried all the drag or Cntrl_drg methods. Whatever I do, upon arriving in the quick launch area with the drag, Microsoft, in their wisdom, presents me with a 'prohibited' icon (i.e. like a road sign with a diagonal through the circle, meaning you can't do this). I have uninstalled FF, then re-installed. The quick launch icon which was always present and has disappeared remains disappeared after re-installation. This is a mysterious thing for which I can find no reference on the Internet by googling various search strings. Having tried everything I can think of, I'm stumped. BTW, I don't have a WIN key on my keyboard but this should not be a criterion because I have a bug-less desktop with the FF icon on the desktop. Various other quick launch icons remain present as normal. Please - any further ideas?

For what it's worth, desktop screen shot attached. Please see quick launch icons present - IE8, Media Player, Picasa, AVG, Outlook - no FF which disappeared some days ago. Can't get it back no how!

When you launch Firefox, does the icon show up? Right click the icon
and select Pin To TaskBar.

That's part of my problem - when FF is open and a temporary FF icon is down in the quick launch area, it doesn't offer me a 'Pin to the Taskbar' option. I wish it were that simple. That's why I'm stumped. I haven't found any way of how to get my quick launch icon back since it disappear some days ago.

It could be the work of one of your add-ons, or even add / mal-ware. Look thru your add-ons list and make sure you know what each one is there for. Also, Windows > Start > Control Panel > Uninstall Programs. Go thru the list and use a web search to check any that you don't know what they are.

Sometimes a problem with Firefox may be a result of malware installed on your computer, that you may not be aware of.

You can try these free programs to scan for malware, which work with your existing antivirus software:

• Microsoft Safety Scanner
• MalwareBytes' Anti-Malware
• TDSSKiller - AntiRootkit Utility
• Hitman Pro
• ESET Online Scanner

Microsoft Security Essentials is a good permanent antivirus for Windows 7/Vista/XP if you don't already have one.

Further information can be found in the Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware article.

Did this fix your problems? Please report back to us!

Thanks for the kindness of your further advice. Malwarebytes Pro and AVG Pro installed but did a malware scan again nevertheless. No issues found. Checked all FF options, add-ons, plug-ins, disabled wherever not strictly required. Uninstalled any strictly unnecessary program packages in Control Manager. Rebooted. Still no quick launch FF icon, still refuses to offer a pin to taskbar option (prohibited sign shown). I consider myself pretty computer savvy (30 years at the game) but this one is defeating me. Very annoying.

In the end I solved it myself. In case this helps anyone else - was stupidly simple but solved by luck. I had used a 3rd party software to remove the 'arrow' attached to every desktop icon denoting a short cut. Upon deactivating this option and re-establishing the hated arrows, FF icon allowed itself to be dragged and stay down in the quick launch area. Hope this helps someone else.

That was good thinking. Please mark your last message with Solved. Happy computing.