Windows 7 Folder Properties -> Customize -> General Items for Root Directory?

[mispeled]

Hi.

For some reason, Windows 7 has decided that files in my root directory C: are music files.

They're not.

In every other folder, I can click on Properties, then choose Customize, then choose "Optimize This Folder For..." and choose the type I want - Documents, Photos, Music, General Items. You know the drill. If I click on Properties when I'm in the root C: drive, I get a pie chart showing me how much space I have left and lots of other choices, none of which let me view my files as "General Items."

I don't want to sort my files in my c: directory by artist. There are no artists. Stop being helpful, Windows 7, and thinking I want it this way. I want it to be General Items.

How do I do that? I've been searching the web for two days and, as always, I find lots of people asking the same question and no one answering it. Do YOU know the answer? I bet you do. And thanks for letting me know what it is.

- Norton L

 

[JackHayward]

You can customise the headings/columns in Windows Explorer to show the normal arrangement of Name, Date Modified, Type and Size. Follow this tutorial provided by MS. How to Change Column Settings in Windows Explorer

 

[mispeled]

Thanks, Jack, but I already know how to do this, and it doesn't really answer my question. Anyone else?

 

[MikeHawthorne]

Hi

I can't customize my C:\ root directory as to style in the normal way either.
I can do it for all my other drives so it must be protected some how.

With me it isn't a big issue since I have over 100 applications installed and only ended up with 2 files in my C:\ root directory.
I never actually noticed that before.

Anyway give this a try...

1. Open a Explorer window that you want to change the folder type template for.

NOTE: To change the root directory (Computer or Local Disk C: ) template, open the Usersfolder in Local Disk C: . The changes in Users will be applied to the root directory as well.

Be sure to also do the Apply to All Folder Type Templates section below, or it will not apply to the Computer or Local Disk C: location.

I can't really tell when I do it myself since I only have two files in it.

Mike

 

[mispeled]

Yeah this didn't work for me either. I changed my User Folder to General Items and that changed that particular folder but the root directory remained the same.

This happened to me once before and there's a change you can make in the registry to set it to general items. I've searched for it on Google but, as always happens to me nowadays, I found a bunch of pages and forums with people asking this question and other people not answering it. This page will now be another one in the long list of pages for other people in the future. Unless someone does actually know the answer to this question. I hold out some hope.

 

[Saltgrass]

Could you get us a picture of what is happening using the snipping tool and attach using the paperclip?

 

[mispeled]

Could you get us a picture of what is happening using the snipping tool and attach using the paperclip?

Link Removed

Here's what I'm looking at - my C drive. Notice the columns - title, contributing artists, album; and the button for "Play All." As Jack said earlier, I can right click on the column bar and customize the columns to be general items - date modified, etc. But the folder still "thinks" it's a Music folder; the "Play All" button up above remains. It's a shell customization that Windows 7 automatically switched to in an attempt to be helpful and it's not helpful.

 

[Saltgrass]

If you go to folder options - View Tab and uncheck the "Hide protected operating system files", do you show a desktop.ini file in the c:\ directory?

 

[mispeled]

No, no desktop.ini file in the c:\ directory.
For completists, the files now not hidden are:
autoexec.bat
bootmgr
BOOTSECT.BAk
config.sys
IO.SYS
MSDOS.SYS
pagefile.sys

 

[Saltgrass]

I am sure we all have different files/folders in the root directory due to some type of install.

But I do not show an autoexec.bat or config.sys or IO.sys or msdos.sys. Do you remember where these came from, an XP install or earlier? If you edit the Autoexec.bat (do not double click it) can you tell what it is supposed to do?

 

[Elmer]

Copy the following code into notepad & save it as a .reg file. See Folder Type - Reset, link to actual .reg file

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
 
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell]
"FolderType"="NotSpecified"

Merging the .reg file will set the 'All Items' template for any folders that don't currently have a view saved with a different template. You can clear all saved views by deleting the HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftware\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags key BEFORE merging the .reg file. If any folders open with a different template after deleting the Bags key & merging the .reg file then they more than likely have a desktop.ini file inside.

You will of course be backing up / creating a restore point before trying this?

 

[mispeled]

The entire contents of AUTOEXEC.BAT reads:
REM Dummy file for NTVDM

So it's something my video driver loaded when installed for some reason or another and has nothing to do with the folder customization.

Also, Elmer, I have high hopes for your solution and I believe it will work, except that the way you have it coded, I get an error message which reads:
Cannot import folder.reg. The specified file is not a registry script. You can only import binary registry files from within the registry editor.

So I open regedit and tried to import it from there. Doing so gives me an error message which reads
The specified file is not a registry file. You can import only registry files.

Are there too many quotation marks?

 

[Elmer]

Folder Type - Reset

Link is to the actual .reg file. See if that works?

 

[mispeled]

Yes! That's done it. Odd that I couldn't just save it as a .reg file but I'm over it. Thank you for actually addressing my specific concern and coming up with the real solution.