Hi
Not seeing it here, checked my current version installation this morning, double checked just now, all graphics are showing properly in both Discover and Browse. Originally I thought it may be something in the stream, but only if the problem was more prevalent, which it isn't.
The very first thing I would try is running Spotify in Windows Safe Mode. If that cures the problem, there is a conflict somewhere.
Next run Ccleaner, particurly the Registry cleaner. On an old XP install, where a person may have uninstalled numerous programs, over time the various traces of the old programs build up and conflicts develop. Sounds like Steve is beyond 'novice' level so its a shot in the dark, really.
If that fails, possibly video/graphics drivers. It shouldn't be too difficult to try reinstalling the driver, so I'd try that before going on any major fishing expeditions to flush out possible conflicts. XP drivers are getting more difficult to locate. I've had success using SlimDrivers, free edition is available, just Google it. Don't panic when you see 20+ updates, many times a single driver update will update multiple update prompts, particularly USB drivers. In any case, the video driver has always come up first in the queue when I've used this software. Video drivers are notoriously difficult to update and can be prone to problems. Go with the defaults and always restart when prompted before moving on to the next update if you're going that route. Be ready to use System Restore, just in case. BTW, SlimDrivers sets a restore point at each driver install.
Honesly, I'd be more inclined to believe that its a conflict of some sort. Turn off everything loaded at startup, msconfig or a third party startup manager, and if Spotify works, start turning things back on one by one. You can try services.msc also. You can usually tell what services aren't needed, but the rest, boy, this can be time consuming.
Sometimes, the easiest and most effective solution is to bite the bullet and reinstall XP. Hopefully your install disc has SP3 included or slipstreamed. If not, there are 'alternatives' out there. <wink wink nudge nudge> As far as I'm concerned, a license is a license, whether the XP disc you install from is official or unofficial. Enough said on that in open channel, PM me if you want further recommendations.
I try to do my XP reinstall once a year, but it obviously takes time. Take an evening and do your backups, another to assemble all the software to reinstall, then plan for a full day for the actual reinstall. I HIGHLY recommend 2 partitions on a single drive system, one for Windows/Program Files/Documents & Settings, and putting My Documents and such on the second partition. 50 GB is more than enough for Windows and such. Backups are now easier and you don't have to move everything off the drive to reinstall Windows the next time.
Anyway, once you reinstall XP, use SlimDrivers and the dreaded driver installs are a piece of cake. Install Spotify first, even before you update the drivers. it should work fine, then check again after each driver and program install. Yep, this is drastic and time consuming. But it will also make XP run a lot more smoothly, particularly if you've had other random problems on occasion.
Sorry, I didn't intend for my reply to be this long, but I figured I might as well try to cover all the bases.
Staff / Moderator/ 3 years ago in Social & Random