when i hit time machine on the menu bar ..all i ger is desktop

Time Machine is tricky for many users, me included until I learned a little trick.

I open a non-fullscreen Finder window in a blank desktop and then invoke Enter Time Machine from the menubar. Once TM has opened using the Finder window that I have provided, I can browse to anywhere that I want to go and then return to the time of my choosing.

Late 2012 Mac mini, macOS 10.12.6;  Watch, watchOS 3.2.3; iPad Air 2 & iPhone 6+, iOS 10.3.3; TV 4th Gen, tvOS 10.2.1;  Airport Express

Time Machine sometimes opens to the application or Finder window that was active when you opened TM. Otherwise, it will open to the Desktop folder and you can navigate it to other locations just like you do with Finder.

Use Time Machine to back up or restore your Mac - Apple Support

Myopain2017 wrote:

Thanks for the reply..but it still doesn't explain why I can't bring up a time machine menu.

There is no menu, just a cascading window display with navigation arrows, buttons for Cancel and Restore, and a timeline on the right.

Navigating that interface is identical to navigating previously opened Finder windows, except there is no Finder menu.