Douglas Livingstone wrote:
> 
> 
> It happens when the flder apperas empty too.
> 
> Thry this:
> 1. Create a new folder on the desktop
> 2. Right click, then "new-> bitmap image"
> 3. Right click on the image, select edit
> 4. Put something into the image, save it. Close you image editing program
> 5. Turn on thumbnail view
> 6. Try and delete the folder by draging it to the recycle bin, keeping
> the view of the folder open (won't work)
> 
> Think that it is the image still in use?
> 
> 7. Delete the image from the folder (will work)
> 9. Close the view of the folder
> 8. Folder is now "empty" but you still can't delete it.
> 


This has been my experience with Windows 2000 and Windows XP as well.

Microsoft has a technote which purports to describe all cases of why you 
cannot delete a file or folder in the following technote:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;320081

I have never been convinced that this covers everything.

If you really want to see if some process has handles open before your 
delete, go to http://www.sysinternals.com and download their process 
explorer app and/or their Handles program.

I have always thought that there was some deep level of caching 
happening, or perhaps a side effect of various file level driver hooks 
(e.g. Anti Virus programs etc...).

In any case, I concur that if you run into this and it is not because 
you have a program or service which has a handle open on the file, that 
a simple log off and log on will clear it up.

Sigh.