Vista - Help: How to turn off a really annoying Explorer "Feature"

Hello

Forgive me if this has been asked before but I could not find a good answer
anywhere...

Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for example
when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as columns.

I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns... Type,
Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".

So is there a way to deactivate this and have Explorer just revert to the
behavior it had in XP?

Thanks so much in advance
Steve

What you can do is Open explorer to C:\
Select every folder and select properties.
On the customise tab set Folder Type to "All Items"
Select Also apply this to all subfolders

For the root of the drive just change the view to details.

Regards
Mark Dormer
Posted from Tech.Ed 2007 Gold Coast Australia
www.swiug.org.au


"Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:5A8B582B-AE18-4360-A9C0-FD0EBF202AA7@microsoft.com...
> Hello
>
> Forgive me if this has been asked before but I could not find a good
> answer
> anywhere...
>
> Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
> guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for
> example
> when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as
> columns.
>
> I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns... Type,
> Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".
>
> So is there a way to deactivate this and have Explorer just revert to the
> behavior it had in XP?
>
> Thanks so much in advance
> Steve

Almost a perfect suggestion. If the multi-select includes the Windows
folder, the Customize tab will not appear. But after I avoided that pitfall
it works. THANK YOU.

Odd UI bug... merely selecting the "Apply to subfolders" checkbox will not
activate the Apply button... so you actually have to change the drop box from
"All Items" to something else, and then "All Items" again to make the Apply
button enable itself (just pressing OK will not do the trick)

THANKS AGAIN!

SS

"Mark Dormer" wrote:

> What you can do is Open explorer to C:\
> Select every folder and select properties.
> On the customise tab set Folder Type to "All Items"
> Select Also apply this to all subfolders
>
> For the root of the drive just change the view to details.
>
> Regards
> Mark Dormer
> Posted from Tech.Ed 2007 Gold Coast Australia
> www.swiug.org.au
>
>
> "Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:5A8B582B-AE18-4360-A9C0-FD0EBF202AA7@microsoft.com...
> > Hello
> >
> > Forgive me if this has been asked before but I could not find a good
> > answer
> > anywhere...
> >
> > Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
> > guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for
> > example
> > when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as
> > columns.
> >
> > I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns... Type,
> > Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".
> >
> > So is there a way to deactivate this and have Explorer just revert to the
> > behavior it had in XP?
> >
> > Thanks so much in advance
> > Steve
>
>

No worries and thanks for the added info.

Regards
Mark Dormer
Posted from Tech.Ed 2007 Gold Coast Australia
www.swiug.org.au


"Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:3F345F97-55E8-4E9E-9959-8CF1ED1081EE@microsoft.com...
> Almost a perfect suggestion. If the multi-select includes the Windows
> folder, the Customize tab will not appear. But after I avoided that
> pitfall
> it works. THANK YOU.
>
> Odd UI bug... merely selecting the "Apply to subfolders" checkbox will not
> activate the Apply button... so you actually have to change the drop box
> from
> "All Items" to something else, and then "All Items" again to make the
> Apply
> button enable itself (just pressing OK will not do the trick)
>
> THANKS AGAIN!
>
> SS
>
> "Mark Dormer" wrote:
>
>> What you can do is Open explorer to C:\
>> Select every folder and select properties.
>> On the customise tab set Folder Type to "All Items"
>> Select Also apply this to all subfolders
>>
>> For the root of the drive just change the view to details.
>>
>> Regards
>> Mark Dormer
>> Posted from Tech.Ed 2007 Gold Coast Australia
>> www.swiug.org.au
>>
>>
>> "Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>> news:5A8B582B-AE18-4360-A9C0-FD0EBF202AA7@microsoft.com...
>> > Hello
>> >
>> > Forgive me if this has been asked before but I could not find a good
>> > answer
>> > anywhere...
>> >
>> > Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
>> > guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for
>> > example
>> > when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as
>> > columns.
>> >
>> > I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns...
>> > Type,
>> > Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".
>> >
>> > So is there a way to deactivate this and have Explorer just revert to
>> > the
>> > behavior it had in XP?
>> >
>> > Thanks so much in advance
>> > Steve
>>
>>

By the way, selecting the Windows folder did not stop the customising tab
from appearing on the two machines,which are fresh builds, that I tried it
on.

Regards
Mark Dormer

"Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:3F345F97-55E8-4E9E-9959-8CF1ED1081EE@microsoft.com...
> Almost a perfect suggestion. If the multi-select includes the Windows
> folder, the Customize tab will not appear. But after I avoided that
> pitfall
> it works. THANK YOU.
>
> Odd UI bug... merely selecting the "Apply to subfolders" checkbox will not
> activate the Apply button... so you actually have to change the drop box
> from
> "All Items" to something else, and then "All Items" again to make the
> Apply
> button enable itself (just pressing OK will not do the trick)
>
> THANKS AGAIN!
>
> SS
>
> "Mark Dormer" wrote:
>
>> What you can do is Open explorer to C:\
>> Select every folder and select properties.
>> On the customise tab set Folder Type to "All Items"
>> Select Also apply this to all subfolders
>>
>> For the root of the drive just change the view to details.
>>
>> Regards
>> Mark Dormer
>> Posted from Tech.Ed 2007 Gold Coast Australia
>> www.swiug.org.au
>>
>>
>> "Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>> news:5A8B582B-AE18-4360-A9C0-FD0EBF202AA7@microsoft.com...
>> > Hello
>> >
>> > Forgive me if this has been asked before but I could not find a good
>> > answer
>> > anywhere...
>> >
>> > Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
>> > guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for
>> > example
>> > when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as
>> > columns.
>> >
>> > I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns...
>> > Type,
>> > Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".
>> >
>> > So is there a way to deactivate this and have Explorer just revert to
>> > the
>> > behavior it had in XP?
>> >
>> > Thanks so much in advance
>> > Steve
>>
>>

Hi Steve,

You can do this by also following the steps here. It will disable Vista's "Automatic Folder Type Discovery for Templates" and allow it to remember the settings for the window as you last left them when yoy closed it.

Windows Explorer Folder View settings

For more details on folder templates and columns, you might take a look at this link.

Windows Explorer - Folder Type Templates

Hope this helps,
Shawn

On Wed, 8 Aug 2007 22:00:01 -0700, Speedy

>Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
>guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for example
>when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as columns.

>I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns... Type,
>Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".

AMEN!!

I've covered this issue here, as a "Vista Wish":

http://cquirke.spaces.live.com/blog/...8C23!287.entry



>--------------- ----- ---- --- -- - - -
To one who only has a hammer,
everything looks like a nail
>--------------- ----- ---- --- -- - - -

rechtsklik op de envelop en kies eigenschappen
volop keuzemogelijkheden




"Speedy" <Speedy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:5A8B582B-AE18-4360-A9C0-FD0EBF202AA7@microsoft.com...
> Hello
>
> Forgive me if this has been asked before but I could not find a good
> answer
> anywhere...
>
> Explorer chooses the columns that display in Explorer in Details view I
> guess based on it's own assessment of what will be relevant... so for
> example
> when you view a directory with MP3s in it, Explorer shows ID3 tags as
> columns.
>
> I HATE THIS FEATURE!!! I just want to see the standard columns... Type,
> Size, Date Modified, etc. I don't want Explorer trying to be "smart".
>
> So is there a way to deactivate this and have Explorer just revert to the
> behavior it had in XP?
>
> Thanks so much in advance
> Steve