By default, Windows shows drive letters AFTER the drive labels (names) in the This PC / Computer folder. The user can prevent drive letters from being shown using Folder Options, however, there is no option to show them before the drive's name. For many users, having drive letters in front of the drive label can be a more convenient option. Let's see how to show drive letters before drive names in 'This PC'.
Tag: Windows Explorer
How to start Explorer in a separate process in Windows 8.1, Windows 8 and Windows 7
By default, File Explorer (Windows Explorer) opens all its windows in a single process. That process is called explorer.exe. Explorer.exe and its associated DLLs include all of the user interface in Windows - the taskbar, the Start button and the Start menu, as well as the Start screen in Windows 8. When something goes wrong in one of Explorer's windows such as a hang or a crash, it can cause the whole Explorer.exe process to be closed and restarted. All Explorer windows will be closed immediately, and the user interface (taskbar, Start button etc) disappears and loads again. Enabling Explorer to open separate processes for the file browser can improve the stability of the Explorer shell. Additionally, it is useful to test Registry tweaks you make as they will be applied directly because every new instance of Explorer will read its settings from the registry every time you open a new window. Let's see all the ways to start Explorer in a separate process.
How to disable auto arrange and full row select in Explorer and get narrow spacing in file pane
In versions of Windows after XP, there have been some changes made to Explorer which are quite different from the behavior in XP. One of them is full row selection in Details view. The other change is that items in the right pane are spaded wider apart vertically from one another than there were in Windows XP. Let us see how to revert both changes if you need them to.
Get thumbnails for all possible image and video formats in Explorer folders
Windows supports viewing commonly used picture and video formats as thumbnails in Explorer folders. But for less common formats, it does not generate thumbnails. Also, in modern versions of Windows, the programming interface for generating thumbnails has changed compared to older versions such as Windows XP, so the old shell extensions to show thumbnails no longer work. Let's look at some modern ones that do work and generate thumbnails for all possible formats you might need.
How to set a folder view in Explorer for all folders – List, Details, Tiles, Small or Large Icons
If you use the built-in file manager in Windows, Windows Explorer, you will realize that it has a feature to remember each folder's view setting. Unfortunately, it is not explained very properly by Microsoft and some changes were made in modern Windows versions which make it even more confusing for end users. We constantly get this question asked by our readers - is there any way to make Windows Explorer set a desired view for all folders and then remember it? Let us explore how to do that.
How to switch between views in File Explorer with keyboard shortcuts
With Windows 8, the File Explorer application got the Ribbon interface, which exposes all the possible commands for quick access to regular file management features. This is an improvement for all users, but especially for new users who were not familiar with all features of Windows Explorer and did not use them. The Ribbon UI is a way to discover all useful features for them.
One of the tabs in the Ribbon is the "View" tab. From there, you will be able to switch between various views inside the Explorer window - each view represents files and folders differently. In this tutorial, we will see how to switch between those views quickly, using very simple keyboard shortcuts.
Use this secret keyboard shortcut to fit all columns in Explorer and other apps
Today, I would like to share with you one very special keyboard shortcut, which will improve your productivity and save a lot of time when you have to deal with columns, grids and tables. Using this shortcut, you will be able to size all columns to fit automatically in Windows File Explorer, Registry Editor, Task Manager or any other 3rd party application which support this tricky feature. Let's discover it!
How to change the icon of a folder inside a Library
With Windows 7, Microsoft has introduced Libraries: a wonderful feature of the Explorer shell, which allows you to group multiple folders in a single view, even if they are located on different volumes. Searching through Libraries is also very fast, because Windows performs indexing of all locations which are included inside a Library.
If you use Libraries regularly, you might have noticed that when you open the Properties of a folder to change its icon, you are unable to do so because the Customize tab is missing from the folder's properties.
OldNewExplorer: Another cool app from creator of StartIsBack, can move Explorer Details pane to bottom
The developer of the famous Start Menu, StartIsBack, has written another app called OldNewExplorer and as the name indicates, it aims to restore some of the Windows 7 Explorer features to Windows 8's Explorer. The name appears to be a play on the famous blog, OldNewThing, by Microsoft's Shell developer, Raymond Chen. OldNewExplorer brings a couple of very interesting features back to Windows 8 Explorer. Let's see which.
