The Problem:

During program start up, when Starry Night opens up the application window everything appears, i.e the date, skyguide, options etc, but the background where the stars should be is missing and the desktop is visible in the background.

See the attached image.

Solution:

The issue appears to originate with the WIndows 7 themes.  So, for example a Windows 7 Aero Theme will work.  But, a “basic” non-Aero theme will not work.

If you still encounter the issue after switching to an Aero theme then make sure that Starry Night is *not* set to run in XP compatibility mode.  Right-click Starry Night and choose ---> Properties ---> Compatibility ---> deselect compatibility mode.