Whenever I right click on the desktop and most programs, the bar comes up as normal, but transparent. Then when I mouse over it, it goes normal. When I click on it like this, it leaves a watermark like thing. I can't put in a screenshot (any help?)
This is a long post. I may have made a mistake in continuity. Apologies.
When the menu appears transparent, don't move your mouse over it. Turn off your monitor. Wait five seconds and then turn it back on. If problem's gone, then your monitor is the cause of the problem. If menu is still transparent, then goto your BIOS/UEFI and if there is a fail safe setting, use that and restart your computer and see if the problem has gone. If not, then...
Assuming the power being delivered to your computer components is clean, your operating system is updated and graphics card's(dedicated or not) drivers are the latest stable(not beta) versions, proceed to the following tedious steps in increasing order of tediousness decreasing order of probability till step 4
1) Did you recently uninstall or install something? If yes installing it back or uninstalling it may fix it OR if you are using Windows, use System Restore and restore to an earlier point and see if that works. If you are using Linux and assuming you've been 'tar'ing your system every once in a while, or using a backup software switch to earlier backups and try rebooting and see if that fixes the problem. If not, then...
2) Uninstall graphics drivers with software like Revo Uninstaller. Restart your system. If you are using Windows, do a registry clean with third party software(I prefer Wise Registry Cleaner) and again restart your system and see of problem persists. If it is there, then your graphics drivers were not at fault. Install the graphics drivers back and proceed to step 3. If the problem has gone, then your graphics drivers were the problem. Download the latest beta version(if available) and install it and then restart your system and see if problem persists. If not, the beta drivers fixed the problem. If yes, then the beta drivers is yet to address the issue. Submit bug report to AMD or nVidia or whichever company is responsible for your graphics.
3) If you are using a dedicated graphics card then, disconnect the cable that is connecting to your monitor at the graphics card's end and connect it directly to your motherboard if port is available and compatible. And remove any 6 pin and 8 pin power connectors powering your graphics card. You don't have to remove the graphics card itself from the slot. Change the setting on your motherboard so that it now uses the motherboard's graphics. See if problem is gone after booting it up completely.
If problem has vanished, then graphics card is the problem. Reconnect the cables and proceed to step 4* where you need to underclock your graphics card's GPU and memory clocks.
If problem persists, then reconnect the cables to wherever it was originally and then proceed to 4 where you may have to underclock other components of your motherboard**.
4) Be careful while doing this step. The menu transparency could be caused by an unstable clock speed in either dedicated GPU or motherboard's GPU, or your CPU, or RAM clocks or a combination of them.
*Try underclocking your graphics card's memory and GPU clocks using the graphics card's software or a third party overclocking software like MSI Afterburner or EVGA Precision(nvidia only). DO NOT REDUCE THE VOLTAGE. After underclocking, restart computer and see if problem persists. If it's gone, then your graphics card may be unstable at default clock speeds. Stress test it with OCCT and look for errors. If errors are found, try RMAing it. If problem is still there, then problem lies elsewhere.
If you don't have a graphics card and are using the motherboard's graphics chip, then goto your BIOS/UEFI and reduce its clock speed there. DO NOT REDUCE THE VOLTAGE. LEAVE THEM ON AUTO.
**If you are using
EITHER motherboard's graphics in combination with your CPU's I-GPU(if your CPU has it)
OR Dedicated graphics card in combination with your CPU's I-GPU(if your CPU has it),
**then reduce your CPU's base clock(if possible) and reduce the multiplier in your UEFI/BIOS so that your CPU is running at no more that 1.4 GHz. Once again, leave the voltages on AUTO. If problem's gone, then your CPU is the problem. If problem is still there, then turn down your RAM's multiplier and then see if the problem has gone.
After the problem vanishes, one or many of the components above is the problem. Try returning all the components to its default clocks one by one and see after which component's default clock return, the problem reappears. That component is the cause of the problem.
5) If after underclocking everything, and doing all of the above, the problem still persists, then probably your operating system is at fault. Submit a bug report to Microsoft, if it's Windows. If it is Linux, then the distribution's developers bug report page/forums.
Good Luck.
This does all seem interesting, but I'm using a laptop. So I doubt it's the monitor. The clockspeed thing might be the cause but as this is the only thing I've got currently, I don't really want to try anything. Also, when I hit a right click button next to the alt key, it doesn't come up as transparent. Also when the watermark thing comes up, it goes over the top of anything else I try to do, but I can get rid of it by changing my monitor settings(ie resolution, main display). This also happens on my secondary monitor.
Does it happen when you right click on a USB mouse or when you right click on a touchpad or both?
If the latter, then it seems to me that the touchpad software that came with the laptop is the reason for the problem. Uninstall your touchpad software. Get the latest version of the software/driver from the laptop's website and install that.
If the former, try connecting to a different USB port. If that doesn't work uninstall its drivers and install the latest drivers for your USB mouse.
If both, then there could be a problem with your Operating System and/or the laptop software.
Regardless of which it is, I suggest that after you uninstall the old software/driver, you restart the computer and run a registry cleaner and then again restart computer before you proceed to install new drivers.
P.S. - There is really no way you will brick your laptop by underclocking said things as long as you leave the voltage on AUTO in the BIOS/UEFI. The worst thing that will happen is that your system won't boot to desktop. Just dialling the clocks back to default would bring everything back with no loss of data or damage to components whatsoever.
P.P.S - I regret not having asked you what you were using as the first question. I might have been able to help you sooner and also saved myself sometime. Hopefully what I've written above is helpful to someone else who has a computer.