IPhone 4S - Homescreen icons disappearing after downloading apps?

Question

I have recently downloaded the Opera web browser on my 4S and as soon as I exited the app other icons on my homescreen disappeared from view, leaving an empty space where the icon should be, but the name of the app still visible. When i swipe between homescreens/ to spotlight the images of the apps seem to come back and then a different one disappears.
I have cleared all the apps that were running in the multitasking bar but this hasn't sorted the problem.
I had a problem last week where the phone would not end a call (I had to completely turn the phone off in order to stop the call) I used the factory reset within iTunes to sort this problem out by downloading a new version of iOS 5 (the same version number just a fresh install from apple) and the problem was sorted but it left .64GB of "Other" data on my iphone which I cannot remove. I dont know if this will be something to do with my new problem (I have never had anything above .20GB of "Other" data on my phone before this). iTunes also told me that prior to the reset my phone was over capacitity by .5GB (how is this even possible?).
Since then my phone has also not managed the storage data on the phone correctly as I downloaded some of the 12 Days Of Christmas free content, with my iPhone claiming I have 2GB of available space out of 16GB (using the data presented in the Settings>General>About screen) to download content (2 HD tv programs, which came to 2.5 GB, so before downloading I removed some older music videos to clear extra space, at least enough to clear out the .5GB required) but yet when I synched my phone with iTunes earlier today (after discovering the homescreen problem) iTunes told me that my iPhone was 1.4GB over its storage capactity. I have cleared enough content to allow 3GB of free space on the iPhone according to iTunes but my iPhone only claims that 2.5GB is free, and the Homescreen problem persists.
Normally I wouldnt trouble you guys with my problem and just restore the phone with a fresh OS but I dont actually have a proper internet connection at my house and so i cannot download the operating system as required (I have to use tethering to type this on my mac) I have read that you can restore from a fresh backup that is stored on your Mac after you download the iOS 5 file, but the file is not located within the backups folder in the Mobilesync folder in user libraries. Apparently in the folder other backups should be present with a dating system (i read on forums about this, havent seen it for myself) but all that is located within the backups folder is 2 folders named with a jumble of letters and numbers both containing a load of files with the same random jumble of characters. iTunes will not recognise these as a backup.
Sorry about the long story but I'm new to having a Mac and wanted to put in as much detail as possible (im not used to lion yet).
My question is Should i be able to access backups/ a fresh install of my iPhone locally as I do back it up using iTunes and not iCloud, and if so, where will this file be located in order for me to do so? Also, what is this "Other" data on my iPhone?
Thank you
John

Answer 1

Basic troubleshooting from the User's Guide is reset, restart, restore (first from backup then as new).  Try each of these in order until the issue is resolved.