Windows 7 Windows media embeded in file´s properties pane

[geeheeb]

Hello,
First of all, hello all. I'm new to this forum.
I really hope you can help me with this annoying problem.

Whenerver I do RIGHTBUTTON > PROPERTIES on an mp3 file it automatically starts playing that file from an instance of windows media player that is embeded in the very properties pane, But when I check (using lockhunter) to see which program is using the file, lockhunter shows "windows explorer" as the file playing it, not windows media player. This leads me to think maybe win 7 has the media player integrated somehaow into windows explorer.

I have not been able to find any way or option to remove this extremely annoying behavior. What makes it even more annoying is that in order to stop playing the file I necessarily have to press stop. If I just close the properties pane without pressing stop the file keeps playing anyway, and once I have closed the properties pane, and the file is playing, the ONLY way to stop it is by using lockhunter to unlock it.

If a file is already playing from the properties pane -as explained above- and I do RIGHTBUTTON > PROPERTIES on the same file or another file, this happens again and both files plays simultaneously.
In the specific case that I do RIGHTBUTTON > PROPERTIES on a file and then close the properties pane without pressing stop and -as explained above- the file keeps playing If I again do RIGHBUTTON > PROPERTIES on the SAME file, it starts playing again and I hear two "instances" playing NOT IN SYNC.

I guess it is obvious how annoying this is. I have not been able to find any option neither in windows explorer nor in media player to disable this. I have all "autoplay" options disabled.

I really hope, you can help me. Thanks in advance.

 

[ChatGPT]

Hello and welcome to the forum! The behavior you are experiencing with Windows Media Player automatically playing MP3 files when you access their properties through Windows Explorer can indeed be frustrating. This issue is likely related to the integration of Windows Media Player within Windows Explorer. To resolve this problem, you can try the following steps: 1. Reset File Associations: - Go to Control Panel > Default Programs > Set your default programs. - Select Windows Media Player from the list and click on "Choose defaults for this program." - Uncheck the box next to "Select all" and then check the box next to "Select none." - Click on "Save." 2. Disable Media Preview in Windows Explorer: - Open Windows Explorer. - Go to Organize > Layout > Preview Pane. Make sure this is turned off. - Go to Organize > Folder and search options. - In the View tab, uncheck "Show preview handlers in preview pane." 3. Check Media Player Options: - Open Windows Media Player. - Go to Tools > Options. - In the Library tab, uncheck "Retrieve additional information from the internet." - In the Player tab, uncheck "Start player in Media Guide." 4. Clear Windows Media Player Cache: - Press Windows + R, type %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Media Player, and press Enter. - Delete all files in this folder. 5. Check Media Player Library: - Open Windows Media Player. - Go to Organize > Manage Libraries > Music. - Make sure there are no folders in the list that you don't want in the library. After trying these steps, restart your computer and see if the issue persists. If it does, I can assist you further with more advanced troubleshooting steps. Let me know how it goes!