Vista - Folder view keeps changing

I have a small, but irritating problem. The problem I have is the view of
the folder keeps changing.
I know that it is not a big problem, but it is something I would like to
sort out either way.

Many thanks in advance.

NIK

Hello NIK,

Doing Method Two in this tutorial will help Vista remember your folder view settings for a window for when it was last closed.

Windows Explorer Folder View settings

Hope this helps,
Shawn

hi,
I'm just new to vista (one day), after having been using XP for years.
I organize my desktop with folders (shortcuts to folders) contanining many things, mainly shortcuts to doc files, programs, and folders through explorer commands with /root option to limit access to some directories.
I have the same problem as everybody (folder settings lost) but the procedure that has been described many times does not really work (I also have tried a reg file with all the necessary commands) . I have tried many times without success

the simple operation to do is:
- create an empty folder on the desktop
- open it
- set its settings to no navigation panel, medium size icons
- copy a shortcut to file explorer into the folder
- launch the shortcut : explorer shows a left panel
- when I select any folder in the left panel, the panel disapears
- then I set it again to be displayed
- I close the explorer
- I close the desktop folder
- and now, when I reopen it, there is a left panel opened.

The purpose of the desktop folder I use (or it can be a shortcut to a folder), is to store only shrtcuts, so I dont need any navigation panel, menu bar, CDrom burn button, search panel, and so on.
I'm afraid this is not possible, and I'm afraid too that vista will offer me many problems soon, assuming that such a 'folder settings management' problem has not yet been resolved since Vista was released .... which other thing will be blocking next for my XP running tools (I'm working with GCC, Eclipse, GDB, TCPIP development, and many other ... )
and will we be sure that a future Service pack will fix the bug ?

I wish my small test can help , but I would like to have another solution to manage my desktop, without having to by a third party manager.

I'm close to reinstall XP on the computer, I have spend too much time for now.

Post-Scriptum : is it an Explorer problem too : when I right-clik / new/ folder or text file, on a right pane of file explorer, sometimes nothing appears, I must refresh with F5 ?
and again another thing : I cannot suppress the menu bar in the explorer, however I already have seen it working today ....

what can we do........

regards,
Jean-Luc

fanless <guest@xxxxxx-email.com> wrote:
One day's experience with Vista?

If you're THAT impatient, you probably SHOULD.

One day.

Hmmph.

DDW
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Hello Jean-Luc,

The Navigation pane is tied to the folder template in Windows Explorer. If you turn it on or off in a Windows Explorer window that has one template type (ex: All Items), then all Windows Explorer windows with that same template will be affected too. Only the ones that have different folder templates will not be affected. You would need to make sure that the folder on your desktop has a different folder template than the other ones for it to stay off in while on in the others. This tutorial will help explain more about this.

Navigation Pane in Vista Windows Explorer

Hope this helps,
Shawn

hi Shawn,

I have understood the theory of folder templates (however I cannot find more than 5, maybe the french version ? : all elements, documents, images & videos, music details, music file icons.)

When I create my holding desktop folder, I give it the 'images&videos' template, disable the navigation pane and select medium icons.

when I insert the shortcut to explorer in it, I give the explorer, once opened, the 'document' template, with navigation pane ON.
Then I close the desktop folder, open it again, open the explorer shortcut, it opens normally with navigation pane, but when I select a folder in the navigation pane, the pane closes. If I ask to open it again with the 'organize' menu, then it will be my desktop container folder which will open a navigation pane too !

I have made another try : adding a shortcut whith th following command into my desktop folder, and here is the message when I first rightclick on the window to personnalize :


Once I have selected a folder on the navigation pane, the personalization window appears normally.
can you try the same operation and tell me the behavior on your computer, (if you have a little time to lose) it simple to implement ....
I dont understand why, at a moment, I had only one choice, navigation pane, in the organize menu.

Jean-Luc

Jean-Luc,

It's all tied into the folder view settings per separate window and template. Apply Method Two in this tutoral to reset the folder views to help Vista remember your settings per window for when you last closed the window. You will need to make the change per open location for that folder. (ex: Start menu, folder tree, Computer, etc...)

Windows Explorer Folder View settings

Hope this helps,
Shawn

Shawn,

thank you for these informations. I've just done the operations several time again, following the tutorials, it does not work !

I've run the reg file, rebooted the computer, check the general folder options (ok).
if I set the template of a shortcut to explorer, opened for instance on drive D, to 'document', it works correctly.
as soon as I set the template of another folder to 'images' or 'music icons', the preceding explorer shortcut does not work again : selecting a folder in the navigation pane closes the navigation pane.
I cannot make it work, you should try to do the same processing, I think it cannot work.
The computer is a brand new one, vista has just been installed on it.

I have worked on XP and former windows versions with such folder usage, if did work everytime.
it's absolutely necessary that microsoft correct this, it's not possible do make these acrobatic manipulations to manage folders.

Jean-Luc

I agree that it needs to be fixed. The whole folder view situation is just to flakey in Vista. I just does not look like you will be able to get to work the way you want it to until they can get this fixed.

Sorry,
Shawn

Hello Shawn,

I have much appreciated your help, thanks again.

last night I have installed another software I currently use, Eagle from Cadsoft for my electronic designs, and at that time I definitively decided to switch back to XP (after having tried an XP install on an alternate disk before).

although the new computer I'm starting with is 6 times faster than the last one (GCC compile under Eclipse), the graphical display under Eagle is catastrophic : several seconds to display a drawing with a normal grid on, while it's immediate under XP.
I don't want to spend any more time, I think that I could encounter other problems in the near future with the present version of Vista.
I also can say that during the Vista installation I have got several program crashes, for instance the video driver and manager for the ATI HD2400 XT card, Catalyst, crachses under Vista when the 3D configuration menu is selected, it works perfectly under XP.
Characters display seems to be better under XP too.

I'm sorry, but I will use Vista when it will become impossible to do otherwise, unless a certified 'bugless' version will be available.

I'm using so many professional tools that I cannot take the risk, and I'm not sure that they are all Vista compatible at that time.

regards,
Jean-Luc