Top Sites!

Try clicking on the Action menu (the little coggy thing up at the top right of the Safari Window), and selecting "Show Bookmarks Bar". Can you see a thing that looks a bit like a section of brick wall on the Bookmarks bar, to the right of the thing that looks like an open book? If so, try clicking on that. Does that bring up your Top Sites?

If it doesn't show up, go and run an update for video card drivers, albeit through Windows Update, or if your computer manufacturer has updated drivers that can be downloaded from their site.

You've got to have a decent video card for Top Sites to work.

When I click the book on the bookmarks bar, all that comes up is all my folders with my bookmarks saved in them?

So there's nothing that looks a bit like a brick wall between the book and bookmarks in the bar?

Okay ... if you have your Menu bar up, try going "View > Customise Toolbar".

In the top row of the window that comes up, can you see the top sites button? If so, drag that to your Toolbar (the same horizontal level as your URL field and Search field).

Can you get into the top sites by clicking that button?

When I click that a window pops up, it has a button that says Back/forward, home,

Okay. The Top Sites button should be between those two buttons on the top row of that windows.

I'm wondering if you might have a damaged com.apple.Safari file in your user account. (If that's damaged, it can cause other buttons and things not to appear ... so maybe that's going on here as well.)

Quit Safari. Now go "Start > My Computer". In "My Computer", go "Tools > Folder Options" and click the "View" Tab. Make sure that "Show hidden files and folders" is selected. OK out of the Tab.

Now Open Local Disk (C:).
Open "Documents and Settings"
Open the folder that has the name of your user account on the PC.
Open "Application Data"
Open "Apple Computer"
Open "Preferences"

Drag the com.apple.Safari file out onto the desktop.

Now launch Safari again. (This will rebuild your com.apple.Safari file.)

When it finally opens, can you see the Top Sites thingy in the Bookmarks bar next to the book, or the Top Sites button in the "View > Customise Toolbar" window?

Usually the Pro/Home distinction doesn't amount for much, in this particular context.

Was there an issue with following one of the steps in my previous post? (The contents of Documents and Settings can differ a bit from PC to PC, depending on how the PC has been set up.)

hey again noir...as you know i just went through the steps you listed regarding removing that file to the desktop and i still don't have top sites available just as the other user described. i didn't have it before either and thought just maybe wasn't available for windows users.

i didn't have it before either and thought just maybe wasn't available for windows users.

No, I've got it on my XP box ...

Well, at least that answers one question. Usually these threads (on the missing top sites button issue) get to the point of trying to rebuild that plist file, and the original posters just disappear. So I haven't been sure if the plist rebuild has been working or not. Apparently, it's "not".

Can you check something for me? I'd like to see if this is a systemwide issue or a user-account specific issue. (This isn't going to be a cure, but it will tell us if this is more likely to be a preference files thing or a program files thing.)

Head into your user accounts control panel, and create a new user account with full administrative rights.

Now log out of your usual user account and into the new user account. (Don't use fast user switching to move between accounts.)

Try launching Safari in the new user account. Does it have a Top sites button in the "Configure" thing, and little top sites thingy in the bookmarks bar? Or is it missing in the new user account too?

*Hey I have done all of the above and confirmed it is a system wide error. Any thoughts? (xp home)*

Hey I have done all of the above and confirmed it is a system wide error. Any thoughts?

My initial one is "I would have bet anything that it would have been the other way around" ...

Crikey. Okay, if we're looking at a systemwide thing, then I think the first thing we need to do is check on subtle program file damage, jon.

Let's try the technique from the following post:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10598385&#10598385

Do your Top Sites thingy in the Bookmarks Bar and your Top Sites button in the "Customise Toolbar" window come back after that?

Hey while I'm waiting for the Program Manager to load my list of apps, does safari come with built in developer tools? If it does how do I get to them?

Sure. In your preferences, go to the Advanced Tab and click "Show Develop Menu in Menu bar". That gets you through to things like the error console, the user agents and that sort of thing.

There's some documentation on using the tools at the safari dev center:

http://developer.apple.com/safari/

Ok well the developer tools worked but after completing your last assignment there is still no top sites. I even screen captured the instructions so I would have them when I went offline.