Desktop, its Limits ??

Hello all,,
Going to go deep into a computers ability regarding the 'desktop'
and its capabilities.
How much information and how many icons can a desktop cope
with?
How close together can they be? (this includes the fact that descriptions of
the icons are attached to the icons themselves)

Can this cause a desktop to not function properly and constantly
require 'refreshes'?

Is there a minimum or maximum ' information per square inch ' that desktop
can cope with before being thrown into disarray'?
(when I say 'info per square inch', i am only trying to make a point, not a
measurement)

I have been trying to mentally picture it as a blank piece of paper and what
actually happens when the paper is filled to capacity.
On a piece of paper there simply is no more room and hence if you add any
more ink or pencil it will encroach on what is already there
and hence spoil things.

I say this as I constantly have a desktop choc-a-block full of icons leading
to utilities and programs; I also have many many notepad texts which I
copy and save and place there for reading when I get time. (90% of which
are copies of posts to this group)
My desktop is playing up at the moment and I do not believe it is my video
card, I believe I have crammed too much on the desktop area.
Anyway, is there some sort of 'conversion table' or 'method' of knowing how
much a desktop can cope with and just when it is full?
(I also constantly rename shortcuts to smaller texts just so they fit).

Just a curio.

thanks

regards Jane