Got a possible breakthrough here. I disabled the translator, and it worked
fine. A closer look shows that toolbar having low-color icons (8-bit?),
whereas the other toolbars have high-color icons (16-bit?). Could there be a
resolution conflict that negates the display of the task pane when 8-bit
toolbars are present? Thinking out loud here....

Chris

"Echo S" wrote:

Poking around on the web...I think the Translator menu might be from Reverso
Translator. Can you disable or uninstall that application and see if it
makes a difference?

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]
http://www.echosvoice.com
Fixing PowerPoint Annoyances
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/powerpointannoy/


"Echo S" wrote in message
...
Oh, a couple more questions.

This isn't a presentation-specific issue, is it? (I don't think it is, but
I want to confirm.)

Also, I see the menu "Translator" on your screenshot. What's that?

Is your laptop unplugged? (Oh, wait. The plug symbol means it's plugged,
doesn't it?) If it is, what happens if you plug it in and aren't running
on battery power? Conserving resources, you know....

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]
http://www.echosvoice.com
Fixing PowerPoint Annoyances
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/powerpointannoy/

"Chris Banyai-Riepl" wrote in
message ...
I'm not using a tablet PC, just a plain Jane Toshiba Satellite (1.5GHz
Celeron M processor, 1.12GB RAM, 40GB HD, ATI video running 1024x768
resolution).

Chris

"Geetesh Bajaj" wrote:

I have a Toshiba M-205 Tablet PC like Timothy but I don't run into the
problem - Timothy, did you get this problem before applying SP2 to
Office
2003?

Chris, are you using a Tablet PC as well?

--
Geetesh Bajaj
Author of Cutting Edge PowerPoint for Dummies
http://www.cuttingedgeppt.com





"Chris Banyai-Riepl" wrote
in
message ...
Hi,
While I'm not Timothy, I'm having the same problem, and I have a
screenshot:
http://www.cbrnp.com/powerpoint-issue.jpg
Don't know if that helps any, but that should show you what we're
seeing.

Chris

"Echo S" wrote:

Timothy, is there any chance I can get a screenshot of your
screen(s)
with
the missing design and layout thumbnails?

Also, I'd like to confirm that this happens with all presentations,
not
just
a particular one. If it's just a particular one, can I get a copy of
that
presentation?

Drop me an email if you have a chance -- echos at indy dot net

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]
http://www.echosvoice.com

"Timothy" wrote in message
...
Hello Echo,

Yes, I'm game. The symptoms are sporadic. Most of the time I
cannot
see
anything in the Design and Layout Panes.

MS Office Powerpoint 2003 (11.6564.6568) SP 2

Windows XP Tablet Edition Service Pack 2
Automatic Updates are enabled

Toshina M205 Tablet PC
I connect it to multiple networks both wired and wireless
Logging on as Admin doesn't effect the problem
Enabling and disabling virus-scanning doesn't effect symptoms (AVG
Free)
I do not have any Powerpoint plugins installed.
I have downloaded some templates from Microsoft.

Please let me know if you need any additional information.
Timothy




"Echo S" wrote:

Hi, Timothy.

This is a thorny issue we've been trying to track down, but so
far,
we
haven't had any luck. Part of the reason is because so few
posters
come
back
with specidic system information, so we haven't been able to try
very
many
things to troubleshoot.

I know I'd love to get some info for you and suggest some things
you
can
try. Are you game?

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]
http://www.echosvoice.com

"Timothy" wrote in message
...
I am having the same problem. the contents of the Slide Design
and
Slide
Layout contents of the Task Pane are invisible. I can use them
by
clicking
on
the blanks, but I cannot see them in the task pane. Have you
had
any
luck
finding a solution?

"Wuli" wrote:

When i look in the task pane - design templates
I cannot see the templates. they are there but they are
invisible!
I saw that someone recommended in the past to lower the
hardware
acceleration of the video card, but that did not work.
any suggestions?

Thanks