Window (folder) settings won't stay the same

[bigred]

I have Win XP at home. I created a folder on my desktop and wanted stuff in there to be in "icon" view and the window to be a certain size. Yet even though I usually leave my PC on, often when I come home and open that window up, it's maximized and I'm in "thumbnail" view. I've reset it various times and it keeps doing it. I live alone and pretty sure I don't have any tech-crazed ghosts around, so "wtfo" - thx for any help -

[Rat]

What have you already tried? The usual thing is to open any folder window (My Computer or whatever) and go to Tools>Folder Options. Within there is the View tab, in which you will find the "Remember each folder's view settings" tickbox. Personally, I always switch it off, as I like the same view for all folders. If you want some folders to appear differently, but remember them later, then this box must be ticked.

Apologies if I'm being patronising, but you didn't specify whether you'd already tried this.

Cheers,
Rat.

[bigred]

lol np, patronize away, it's not like I'm in IT or anything. Oh wait a sec, yes I am :lame:

I'll check, but I'm thinking that isn't it, simply because I'm 90%+ sure that I have other folders with diff. settings and they maintain them. In fact, make it 99%+, because if I change it back to the way I want, close it, and open it up again, it keeps the setting. It's like there's some weird reset going on that I can't figure out a rhyme or reason to....

[Rat]

The only other thing I could think of would be permissions, but that's not really likely. The settings are remembered in a file called (I think) desktop.ini or similar. If System didn't have permissions to create files, then it couldn't remember settings. But System should always have rights, so you'd have to mess around some to change that.

The symptoms you have could be caused if "Remember..." used to be set (and hence older folders would already have and use the desktop.ini file) but has since been switched off, allowing no new changes to be remembered.

Cheers,
Rat.

[bigred]

Well the "remember" is indeed on. : pissed :

I'm not sure but the one consistency that appears to hold true is that it changes when I've been away from the PC long enough that the power saver kicks on. Why on Earth that would matter I have no idea.....

[El Greco]

Try this page (http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_f.htm) (scroll down until you find the "folders" topics). It lists several cases where view settings in XP don't stick.

[Soapy Sam]

Hey. Some good stuff here, E.G.

[El Greco]

Originally posted by Soapy Sam
Hey. Some good stuff here, E.G.

Yep, I guess it's the page where monthly computer magazines pick their "100 hot XP tips that will make your life easier" from :D

[TillEulenspiegel]

Simple.
Take the XP CD ( handle it carefully as to avoid finger prints or scratches). Put it into your microwave oven at %100 power for 4 minutes. Now go get Red Hat or Suze Linux and I guarantee your problems will go away.

[Smike]

Originally posted by bigred
I have Win XP at home. I created a folder on my desktop and wanted stuff in there to be in "icon" view and the window to be a certain size. Yet even though I usually leave my PC on, often when I come home and open that window up, it's maximized and I'm in "thumbnail" view. I've reset it various times and it keeps doing it. I live alone and pretty sure I don't have any tech-crazed ghosts around, so "wtfo" - thx for any help -

Is it by any tiny, tiny, improbably, ridiculously patronizing chance the 'my pictures' folder?

[Rat]

Well, that must be a record. A whole eight posts before someone comes in with the tedious 'Get Linux' answer.

We are all aware that Linux exists. Most of us are aware of its relative strengths and weaknesses. The question was not "What is an alternative OS to Windows". Do people on Linux forums answer similarly (mutatis mutandis) whenever someone asks about a glitch or oddity in Linux? Or do they just bitch about different Linux versions?

There are those of us who are quite capable of using Linux, and do so in some circumstances, but prefer to run Windows at home. That there are a lot of questions asked about how to do things in Windows mostly reflects that most new users start on Windows. Would you really want all those users starting on Linux? Do you honestly believe it's simpler for the new user who just wants to get on the internet and type letters?

Now for the Mac advocates....

Cheers,
Rat.

[TillEulenspiegel]

Originally posted by Rat
Well, that must be a record. A whole eight posts before someone comes in with the tedious 'Get Linux' answer.

Rat.
Oh! come on now rat ! I'm not a rabid Linux fan , just a hater of many things Microsoft.
The Open software model might be a clusterfuge , but it's not a $200 OS that claims to be the best and has easter eggs and bloated code but crippled APIs and chit that doesn't work. I was dissing MS not embracing the open source stuff to be god's word.

Speaking of Open source has anyone tried Open office 1.17? man it rocks 2 full weeks of constant use and not one Blue scree o' death and other attendent BS you get from ol' MS office suite.

[Zep]

I have a no-name brand Win2K PC on my desk at work with over 200 days uptime on it. MS Office 2000, lots of crufty apps, solid workouts every day, and all. I don't worship Bill as a rule, but it seems solid enough to me...

[Rat]

And I didn't mean (as such) to go off at you, Till. It's just that whenever there's a question about a Microsoft product, someone always answers with "Get Linux", and a great deal of the time, it simply isn't relevant. A little problem with how folders appear in Windows will not be solved by moving to Linux; or, at least, not without introducing new problems.

I have a hatred for Microsoft in some departments myself, as does anyone who uses Windows. I have no doubt whatsoever that if a company were responsible for Linux, in all its incarnations, it would take proportionate flak for its idiosyncrasies. Personally, I hate that the problem with using multiple calculation fields in Word has been known since version 97 and still not been fixed. I am very sure that every Linux user has great moments of frustration with similar issues.

The great strength of open source is that the user can take the source and fix the problem; but this was much more relevant when the users were likely to be able. When Firefox (né Firebird/Phoenix) was young, pipelining was a feature you could enable if you wanted and understood. Now it's not, because the average user doesn't understand it. So people send messages to each other saying "look! you can type this in, and Firefox will run faster!". People do so, and Hey Presto! the browser runs faster. But they know not what they do. In the days when computer enthusiasts were the users of Firefox, this was not a deal, but it has now been evangelised to the masses.

Have no doubt that if Linux is to be sold (and I don't necessarily mean for money) to hoi polloi, then it will have to be dumbed down. Either that means that the good bits aren't tinkerable, or it means that it won't spread.

Gone on long enough.

Cheers,
Rat.

[Soapy Sam]

I was just wondering how Till' s microwave is working after grilling a CD. Doesn't sound too safe to me. When I first bought my BROTHER 800w microwave, I experimented with all sorts of things, but I don't think we had Windows CDs in 1983, some 22 years ago. Yes, it gets used every day.

Since Brother no longer make them , and no spares are available, I no longer use it for experiments.

Brother made some excellent home electric/ electronic products.

[TillEulenspiegel]

/Agree Rat. The most annoying thing (for me ) about windows is its lack of direct access to many processes. It is designed that way ( as You said "Dumbed down ) so the casual appliance user won't wreck their OS/Data .

HEhe , actually Sam The nuke is fine. In fact if you have ever "nuked" a pizza on one of those microwave silver cardboard thingies thats what it is, Aluminum micro coat that super heats and browns the pizza from its thermal emissions . About the same as nukin a CD.
I used to carry a nuked windows CD around as a joke .."Well MR so n so heres Your problem..." and show it to the client . Whoop!

[bigred]

Originally posted by Smike
Is it by any tiny, tiny, improbably, ridiculously patronizing chance the 'my pictures' folder?

lol - thanks, but no. It's one I created.

And I access it regularly so it's annoying as fn @#$%!

Oh and btw this also happens to my Recycle bin, ie it somehow auto-maximizes (size) and shows things in thumbnail view instead of Detail view....which I keep resetting it to. Weird.

[bigred]

Originally posted by TillEulenspiegel
Simple.
Take the XP CD ( handle it carefully as to avoid finger prints or scratches). Put it into your microwave oven at %100 power for 4 minutes. Now go get Red Hat or Suze Linux and I guarantee your problems will go away.

....why do that when I can get LINUX for free?

And I know it's moot point, but not interested in "going there," despite my equal hatred of MS' incompetence. If I have to, I'll make do. Just thought maybe someone might've experienced something similar and had a fix...

fn Gates :hate:

[TillEulenspiegel]

I haven't had that happen in XP altho I did experience it with 98. I use mostly 98 because I have many legacy proggies ( and Linux of course).

In 98 what I would do is open the folder goto view , choose your look ( I use large icons)->folder options ->view ->( I use classic)apply->OK . Size Your window, use file heading ->exit. goto start button-> shut down->restart. That force's the OS to save the last instance of the folder parameters a default.
You can probably use the same manual approach on XP if not IF you know what Your doing Start->run-> type regedit-> goto HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, Directory, shell and then delete the actions listed. Folders will now revert to the default look. Try the manual icon/resize dance again , that should do it

[bigred]

I haven't rebooted in awhile but have had power go out, so maybe there's a connection there. I'll try that and see what takes, thanks (and not being well-versed in reg. tinkering prefer literally not to "go there").

I did create a new folder and put them in there and it hasn't happened yet.....but it's still happening w/my recycle bin (obviously can't rename/recreate). :mad:

[TillEulenspiegel]

Make a shortcut to recycle bin. point recycleright make short cut . If it works remove the recycle bin from the desktop.

[bigred]

? I didn't think you could remove the recycle bin from the desktop.

[bigred]

Well I would edit my above reply but there's that wonderful 2 hr time limit :rolleyes:

Anyway, since I know you all can't sleep at night till you hear about a resolution to this, FYI I re-created the desktop folder and deleted the old one, went into the Recycle Bin and reset the settings, set/reset the settings for the new one, hit apply for both, rebooted, and - so far at least - the problem seems to be gone. Not holding my breath, but thx for all the replies.

[Powa]

http://www.helpwithwindows.com/WindowsXP/troub-11.html

[bigred]

Thx very much - I'd be shocked if I had 400+ folders (or even half that) on my PC, but it's worth a look!