Windows 7 This is new! Folder shows in Widows Explorer, but not in Open Dialog?

MikeHawthorne

Essential Member
Microsoft Community Contributor
Joined
May 25, 2009
Location
Ada Michigan
Hi

I've been talking with Veegertx about changing the Windows load screen in another post and that brought me to a strange issue.

I created a folder with a sub folder in Windows Explorer and placed an image in it by copying and pasting it.

Later when I wanted to edit the image I tried to open it in Adobe Photoshop.

When I open Windows Explorer I can see the file structure, but the Photoshop Open, dialog, doesn't show the Info folder?

WindowsExplorer.jpg


PhotoshopOpenWindow.jpg


As you can see there is no Info folder in the Photoshop Open Box!

What’s going on here?

Mike
 
Go to those folders in Windows explorer and right click choose properties and make sure the Hidden box is not checked.
As I said you can just edit them images directly without Adobe.
 
Hi again.

I've messed around with this and I have discovered that while the image is not hidden or protected in any way, once it is copied into the Backgrounds folder it can not be opened.

I can preview it, but if I try to open it in Photoshop by clicking on it and selecting open, Photoshop opens but the file doesn't.

On the other hand I can open the real Windows background image stored in the oobe folder with no problems.

But this folder seems to have some special status that makes it invisible outside of Windows Explorer.

I deleted the folder and it didn't resist or seem to be protected in any way, I'll give it another try tomorrow.

Mike
 
I think you need to make sure the image is exactly like you want it before you put it in the Backgrounds folder. That's a system folder. Or what Veegertx suggested is good too.

I've never tried to change anything on my background image that I have in mine. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut. :redface:
 
Hi

I did try using take ownership on it and I think that Stueycaster may be right and once the file is copied into the Backgrounds folder it becomes unavailable. Windows treats it like it doesn't exist.

It's funny because it will let me open the default Windows 7 start screen.
If they were going to protect anything it would be that.

I'm going to try it again today with a different image.

Mike
 
Maybe ownership of the parent folder would do it. Just a guess.

Also I've run into the "inability to see files in the Open Dialog" thing too. I never did figure out how to get around it.
 
I was trying to add an icon for Sticky Notes to my Object Dock. It was easy enough to pin the program to it if Sticky Notes was running. But it put a question mark on it for an icon. I never found a way to find the sticky note icon in Windows. I ended up downloading an Icon Pack and using the one I found in there.
 
C:\Windows\System32\oobe I don't have Full control
I have Full control both INFO and BACKGROUNDS and all files.

Perhaps that is why my BACKGROUNDDEFAULT.JPG shows up in Login, Logoff, Shutdown which tell's me something.
 
Ok I tried to open my background image in oobe with the Picasa Photo program and the info file doesn't show. It's obviously protected. Personally I'm always reluctant to mess with permissions on system files. I don't even unhide protected system files in Folder Options. I didn't try to take ownership or anything.
 
We were trying the link here How To Change Windows 7 Logon Screen Easily [Without Using Hacks & Tools] where you create the Info and then the Backgrounds folder and drop an image there backgroundDefault.jpg replaces Shutdown, Login and logoff

Normally OEM's drop pics there and thats what you see. I have replaced my Dell image with one of my own like pic in my sig.

No I am not going to let them dictate what I see as far as images so I change them.
I have totally replaced the MS image below with my own pic in my Install dvd

MS yuck
View attachment 11545
 
Well I was gone most of the day and now I have the flu, so I haven't gotten back to this but I am going to try it again as soon as I get the time.

Mike
 
Hi

Well I went through the whole process again and it still didn't work.

I merged the Registry entry, made the Info and Background folders, placed a 1600 by 900 image in the folder named . backgroundDefault.jpg

Rebooted and still nothing happened.

I wonder what would happen if I just replaced the default on in the oobe folder?

Mike
 
I give up!

This is just too weird.

I renamed the Windows background file to Origianlbackground.bmp
Then I opened it in Photoshop.

I typed "This is a test" across it.

I saved it back to the oobe folder as background.bmp

I opened it again, in Photoshop, and I could see both bmp files the original and the one I changed.

Then I went and looked for the file in Windows Explorer.

Only the file named Originalbackground.bmp is visible in the folder.

The one I changed and save back as background.bmp, to the folder does not show.
I went and saved it again under the name copybackground.bmp and it doesn't show either.

All three files are visible in the Photoshop open dialog box.

Well I'm going to quit messing with this before I screw something up.

Since I have show all hidden file selected I have no idea why they aren't visible in Windows Explorer, but just the opposite of the other one does show in the Photoshop window.

Mike
 
Mike, there is a size limitation on the image. It has to be under about 225 kb. Mine is 219 kb and it works fine. Just don't be surprised if Windows updates make it stop working and you end up resetting it in the registry. It has happened to me a few times already.
 
Hi

Ok, I thought that the article indicated that it would work with image up to 1360 by 768.
I started with an image and kept reducing the size from 1360 by 768 to 1040 by 720 etc.

When I got down to 360 by 270 it worked.

However the image quality is pretty poor.

I think the true max size is someplace between the size I ended up with and 640 by 480 I'll mess around with that tomorrow.

Unfortunately the size in bytes of the image shown in Photoshop and the one shown after it is copied into backgrounds folder aren't the same.

Mike
 
This one explains it. It states that it needs to be less than 256 kb in size. I used the resize utility in "Paint" to resize mine. I found the size of my image in "Properties" then I mathematically came up with a percentage that brought my original image down to less than 256 kb. I ended up at 219. I can't tell you what the percentage was because your image is probably a different size than mine. Anyway mine looks great. My original image was 3x4 and my monitor is 16x9. It stretches it but my image is a landscape so you can't tell.

Within Windows | Windows 7 to officially support logon UI background customization
 
To reduce a file image size I use Irfanview. When you install make sure to unselect the crap it want's to install. Latest version wants to install a toolbar or something.

EDIT: There is a plugins you can add make this easier. I'll d/l and see

IrFanView Plugins - Software.com
Oh yes the plugin is much easier and gives side by side image. Just choose Save for Web Plugin


View attachment 11737
 
Hi

I have Adobe Photoshop.
It show exactly how big the uncompressed size of the image is in Pixel Dimension, File Size, Inches, and the Resolution all at the same time so getting it under 250 k isn't the problem.

I just didn't believe it because it seems to also say that it supports images up to 1920 by 1200 in the list of supported file sizes.

However I now see that the list is of supported file names, not sizes.
Which leaves one wondering why you would want to name a file "background1360x768.jpg" if that isn't the size of it?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

""As this is an OEM feature images are derived from %windir%\system32\oobe\info\backgrounds. Like the registry value, this folder may not exist by default. The following files (sorted by width-to-height ratio) are supported in this folder:"

backgroundDefault.jpg
background768x1280.jpg (0.6)
background900x1440.jpg (0.625)
background960x1280.jpg (0.75)
background1024x1280.jpg (0.8)
background1280x1024.jpg (1.25)
background1024x768.jpg (1.33-)
background1280x960.jpg (1.33-)
background1600x1200.jpg (1.33-)
background1440x900.jpg (1.6)
background1920x1200.jpg (1.6)
background1280x768.jpg (1.66-)
background1360x768.jpg (1.770833-)""

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anyway it does work if the image is small enough.
Windows own background file is 2.25 megabytes in size, so it doesn't have to live by the same restrictions.

Mike
 
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