Changing the default View setting from Tiles to Details

SpudThumper

SpudThumper

I have never liked Windows preference (Tiles) for viewing directories/folders. I prefer Details.
I have tried a variety of search terms but can find nothing about this matter here or in researching various search engines. Nor is MS Help helpful. This seems strange to me about something so basic and simple.
 
I have this preference too and have it set up this way with every xp instance I have. If you can't figure it out, post back and I'll guide you step-by-step. :)
 
Thank you so much, Samir. I haven't been online since my last posting and have only attempted Elizabeth23's first/preferred website (computerhope.com) on my XP computer (not this one). Unfortunately -- under "Change file display in Windows 7 and earlier" -- I didn't get the My Computer > View > Extra large icons, [etc.] or Folder Options. So that has me stumped. I was going to download the instructions for her other two suggestions, which I will do momentarily. But I am also open to whatever you have to offer.
 
open a folder
choose the view you like
keep it open
at the top of this box you should see tools
click on it and choose folder options
click the view tab
top of box choose apply to this folder or choose to reset all folders
 
And if you want it to always be details, go Control Panel-->Folder Options-->View-->Uncheck 'Remember each folder's view settings'. This way, whatever way you set up the folders will always be the way you see them unless you change it.
 
Thanks, Samir. I did try Elizabeth23's directions yesterday and they worked like a charm. But it left the categories -- file name, size, type of program, modification date -- in a not-too-desirable format. Now I'm thinking that you're way ahead of me. I will next try your directions and see what happens.
 
SpudThumper said:
Thanks, Samir. I did try Elizabeth23's directions yesterday and they worked like a charm. But it left the categories -- file name, size, type of program, modification date -- in a not-too-desirable format. Now I'm thinking that you're way ahead of me. I will next try your directions and see what happens.
Click to expand...
Once you have it showing details, you can tweak that under View-->Choose Details from explorer. A lot of times I'll hide the file type and I do it so fast with keyboard shortcuts I had to look up what my hands were doing (alt-v, c, t, space, enter). These keyboard shortcuts are what are awesome about xp. Win7 has them, but they're more cumbersome and always trip me me because they don't work consistently.
 
This is interesting. (I like your having "to look up what my hands were doing". Reminds me of landline phones. I might not have consciously recalled a phone number but often the brains in my fingers could dial the right number.)
"Un"fortunately, Explorer is but one of a trove of Microsoft products (for instance, all operating systems after Windows XP) that I deliberately chose to never use. I have less than full faith in Microsoft's respect for people's privacy. For this reason my XP computers haven't gone online in many years. I like and am used to Word however.
If your Explorer tip [thank you] is the only option on this, I will just live with my files and directories looking the way they've always looked. I was just hoping for a universal "fix it all now" solution, but sometimes it's "oh well".
 
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