[Francis]

Maybe kind of a weird question -

I want to be able to open up a Windows File Explorer window and print a list of the folders and files listed there. Is there a way to do that?
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Francis Tsai
TeamGT Studios

[Nathos]

Assuming you mean print-with-a-printer when you mentioned "print a list of file folders", the webpage below describes a method to add a context menu option (i.e. right click menu) to print the directory contents from Windows File Explorer:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;272623

if you just want an text you can edit, you can remove the "/p" from the "start /w notepad ...." line. Notepad will pop up, you can do whatever you want with the text, then close notepad.

Mini Tip: Since this "requires" a folder to right click on to get the print listing option, sometimes you have a folder with only files in it (no folders). This will still work, you just have to use the "File" menu in File Explorer. The currently open folder will be listed under the File menu, and you can access the context menu item from there. Just make sure you don't have a file or some such selected in the File Explorer (or you'll get different context menu items under the "File" menu)

[eyewoo]

I have never understood why it is so difficult to print a file listing from Windows... You would think that should be a basic and easy capability for a file handling operating system... duh...

When I've had to do it, I use the Alt-PrintScreen keystroke function to copy a directory listing window and then paste it into Photoshop to print. jeez...
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HonePie.com
tumblr blog
digtal art

[Affected]

couldn't you also do a dir in the command console?

[Jin]

Hey guys,

Thanks, Nathos! Thanks, Francis for asking the question!

I just set it up and it's easy, took about five minutes and I wasn't rushing.

It automatically printed via Acrobat Distiller to a PDF file which is fine since if I want a hard copy, I can print it from there.

This'll save me a lot of time when trying to explain to people where they should put their downloaded Painter custom brushes... a zillion times a month.

Whoopie!

I've got another Windows (XP Home) question:

Does anyone know how to view the clipboard contents? I used to be able to open the clipboard and take a look, in Win98, and I could swear I've done it in WinXP but can't for the life of me find the clipboard now! (Maybe I never did do it in WinXP???).

Thanks if you can help, and have a wonderful weekend in any case.



Jinny Brown
TutorAlley Forums
Tutorials and Painter Info at PixelAlley

[Nathos]

As far as I know, the clipboard viewer isn't on the WinXP Start menu anymore. But it is still around. If you'd like make a shortcut for your desktop, it's a snap:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/learnmore/tips/nebeker1.mspx

[Jin]

Nathos!

You are a true friend! Thanks so much for making my life easier two times today.




Jinny Brown
TutorAlley Forums
Tutorials and Painter Info at PixelAlley

[P-Rik]

I agree with Eyewoo >> Alt + PrntScr and Ctrl+V in Photoshop is the best solution !!

I do it for each of my MP3 CD ... The result is very clean !

Cheers !
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Pierrick l'Illustrateur des bois.
Website !

[Jin]

Hi guys,

Using WinXP Home SP2:

Can you give me some idea why, since I followed the two suggestions above (print directory list and shortcut to view the clipboard.. now called Clip Book), whenever I highlight a folder in either the Windows Explorer left panel or right panel and hit the Enter key, I'm taken to a Windows Explorer empty Search window?

The only way I can open a folder now is to either highlight it in the left panel or right click and choose Open from the menu.

Also, several shortcuts I had set up to take me to the main Painter 6 folder, the Painter > Brushes folders for Painter 7 and 8, the Painter IX > Brushes (User) folder, and the procreate Painter Classic 2 folder .... all.... now take me to an empty Search window. In case you wonder, yes, the Target is still what it should be (path to the folder I want to see), in each shortcut setup.

I removed those shortcuts from my desktop, rebooted, and set them up again and that didn't fix the empty Search window problem.

What's going on?


Thanks in advance if you can give me a solution. (I wouldn't begin to know what keywords to use to do a search on the Microsoft site.)



Jinny Brown
TutorAlley Forums
Tutorials and Painter Info at PixelAlley

[Nathos]

My first guess would be that the default action for File Folders got set to "find". To check if this is the case, bring up a Windows Explorer, navigate to the Tools->Folder Options menu item to bring up the Folder Options dialogue. Select the "File Types" tab, and locate the "File Folder" item in the listing of file types.

Click the Advanced button in the lower right with "File Folder" selected. Another dialog will pop up, listing the actions available for "File Folder". It probably has just "find" listed in the Actions list. If it is in bold letters (and/or the Set Default button is greyed out while "find" is selected), that means that the default action for File Folders is currently set to open a search window.

If this is the case, you can do a couple of things to change the behavior. If you just want a new explorer window to pop up each time you double click/hit enter on a folder, you can add a new action and set it as default to do this. Another alternative is to use Regedit to undo the default selection for "find".

Adding a new action is fairly simple. Click "New" on the Edit File Type window. For Action: type in "explore", for Application used to perform action: type in "Explorer.exe". Click OK. Back in the Edit File Type window, click the new "explore" entry, click the "Set Default" button. Now your default action when clicking or hitting enter on a folder will be to open a new explorer window.

If you want to get rid of the "Find" default so you can open a new folder in the same window, I only know of a way using regedit. Standard cautionary note: you can get Window pretty mixed up if you delete or modify the wrong stuff.

You can launch regedit with Start->Run, and type in regedit. Expand HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT. Scroll down until you find "Directory" and expand that entry. Expand "Shell". Click on "Find" (the folder icon itself, no need to expand the registry value). In the right hand pane will be an item named "(Default)". Double click "(Default)". in the "Vaule Data" field, type in "none" without the quotes. That will disable the default behavior of "find" for a File Folder.

Yeah, I realise that the regedit method is a bit fiddly. I'm just not sure of a better way to turn off a default when there is only one default there to have one in the first place.

[Jin]

Hi Nathos,

Thanks so much for bailing me out again. I've tried hard to avoid learning anything more than necessary about WinXP and as you can see, I've overdone it.

After I highlight File Folder and hit the Advanced button, here's what's listed in the Edit File Type dialog box under Actions:

Enqueue in Winamp
Play in Winamp
Add to Winamp's Bookmark list
find
Print Directory Listing

(None of these were highlighted, just the top one had a sort of greyed out highlight, not a real highlight.)

Then two boxes are checked (that I doubt have anything to do with this problem):

Confirm open after download
Always show extension

Since I really don't want to fool with regedit (reasons stated clearly above), I've followed your steps:

I clicked New and typed explore in the Action: field.

In the Application used to perform action: field, I clicked the Browse button and located Explorer.exe so it now says: C:\WINDOWS\explorer.exe.

Clicked OK, then Set Default and explore became explore.

Clicked OK, then Close.

Tested to see if it worked and.....

Yippee! Everything (so far) is back to normal.

Again.... thank you for taking time to share your expertise and save me from spending my time being exasperated.


Jinny Brown
TutorAlley Forums
Tutorials and Painter Info at PixelAlley

[Francis]

I second that - thanks for the excellent help. How did you come to be so knowledgeable about Windows and its many shortcomings?

Thanks you guys for the other suggestions too - I've used the screen grab method, but it seems like a clumsy workaround for something Windows ought to do easily and simply. Speaking of Windows lameness, why on earth can't you scroll in the address book window in Outlook? WTF??
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Francis Tsai
TeamGT Studios