Tag Archives: Windows Explorer

View Folder Sizes In Windows Native File Explorer

by on
1
Applications that analyze the disk space usage allow you to identify the programs and folders hogging your hard drive. If you have a big hard drive, you might not care about duplicate files stored in your computer, but if you have limited disk space, storage memory management is of high importance. We have covered a lot of applications that allow you to keep an eye on the memory consumption by different folders. These include OverDisk - an application that provides details about file and folder sizes in a graphical representation - and DiskFerret, a Java-based disk analyzing utility. While these programs are very useful, you are required to launch them manually every time you want to view folder sizes. By default, the Size column in Windows Explorer only lists the size of files present inside a selected folder, and does not display the size of subfolders. Folder Size is an application that provides you with an easy, automated way to view the sizes of folders while using Windows' native file manager. Read More

Better Explorer Boasts Tabs, Ribbon UI, Drive Size Charts & Much More

by on
8
We have seen Microsoft make certain improvements in the Windows 8 version of Windows Explorer, now known as File Explorer. The options bar at the top has been replaced with a ribbon-based UI that groups similar options together under tabs. While the default Windows Explorer in Windows 7 provides you with seamless file browsing, navigation and search features, it lacks some advanced options, such as tabs, built-in multiple format archive management, folder/drive size charts, history view and advanced conditional selection, to name a few. Better Explorer is an application for Windows that gives you all the features of Windows 8 File Explorer in Windows 7, along with quite a few additional ones. Let's take a look at the features in detail after the jump. Read More

How To Bring Back Original Windows 7 Explorer Shell In Windows 8

by on
6
Here at AddictiveTips, we have been religiously covering any noteworthy app that allows you to customize any aspect of your copy of Windows 8. The capability of these tools vary from bringing the Windows 7 Start Menu back, to disabling hot corners, and changing the opacity of window borders. A few months back, Waqas compiled a list of the best Windows 8 Start Screen modifiers and start menu apps that allow you to apply several UI-related changes to the operating system. However, the goal of most of these tweaks is the same: to get the familiar UI of Windows 7 back in Windows 8. Today, we have an application for you that not only brings the Windows 7 style Start Menu back to Windows 8, but also disables everything else related to Windows 8. Ex7forW8 (Windows 7 explorer for Windows 8) allows you to run the Windows 7 explorer shell, giving you the real feel of Windows 7 on Windows 8. Other than the Start Menu, it disables every Modern UI app and feature including the Switch List, Charms Bar, More PC Settings etc. Read More

Bring Back Windows 7 Explorer Toolbar In Windows 8 With Ribbon Disabler

by on
2
The latest installment of Windows from Microsoft comes with a lot of new features. The user opinion is divided, with some welcoming the new direction Windows is heading towards, while others complaining about deviating this much from what they have been using. To learn about the changes in the OS, check out our detailed review of all the new features introduced in Windows 8. Ever since the Consumer Preview of Windows 8 came out, people started getting an idea of the magnitude of changes they will have to face, such as the replacement of Start Menu with the Start Screen, and Explorer toolbar with the Ribbon UI. Developers are still coming up with tools that let users get back the feel of the previous versions by reintroducing the Windows 7 UI elements that are no longer present in Windows 8. Previously, we have covered several tools that bring back the Start Menu, and today we have a tool called Ribbon Disabler that disables the Ribbon UI and brings back the old Explorer toolbar. Read More

Clover: Get Google Chrome-Like Tabbed File Browsing In Windows Explorer

by on
9
While tabbed-interface dates back to as early as 1980’s, web browsers like Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome made it mainstream. They eradicated the need to open more than a single window to browse different web pages simultaneously. Other than that, tabs are commonly found everywhere – from a small utility console to an application’s settings panel. There are many third-party Windows Explorer alternatives as well, which facilitate you to work with multiple directories in conjunction, using the same tab interface or using multiple panes. This allows you to perform everyday computer tasks, such as copy, paste, move, cut or deletion of files a tad bit easier. Windows native File Explorer doesn’t support tab interface yet, and it would be a divine feature should Microsoft opts for something similar in future iterations of their decades old Windows operating system. Until then, you can try this ultralight, and all the same, very handy Windows Explorer extension labeled as Clover. This extension is designed to add Google Chrome-like tabs GUI on top of the Explorer of every window. No longer you need to have multiple windows opened at the same time. More details to follow. Read More

Immersive Explorer: Metro-Style Alternative To Windows Explorer

by on
6
Although the new Metro User Interface (introduced through Windows 8) didn’t have a love-at-first-sight experience with the loyal users, its fan following is increasing day by day. People have started to realize that the new interface may be different than anything Microsoft has ever incorporated in earlier version of Windows yet these changes are for the better keeping in view user-friendliness, touch-friendly interface and an organized, vibrant layout of resources. Immersive explorer is a metro-style navigator serving as alternative to Windows Explorer. The aim is to focus more on the content rather than opening multiple windows and switching from one to the other. Images can be viewed and zoomed easily using this application with basic file management features appearing at the bottom. It is not in any way a replacement of Windows Shell and doesn’t require any installation granting immediate access to the attractive interface without admin rights. Read More

TabExplorer: Add A Colorful Multi-Tab Interface To Windows Explorer

by on
3
There are many third party applications available that allow you to have a tabbed explorer to navigate through your files and folders. The advantage of having a multi-tabbed file explorer, instead of the regular one offered by Windows, is that the copy and paste functions, as well as browsing through multiple folders at a time, becomes easier. For instance, if you want a copy a file from one folder to another, the process requires you to open the source folder, then copy the file, navigate to the target folder, and then paste the file. On the other hand, if you have a multi tabbed file browser, you can just open both folders simultaneously and just copy the file from one folder to another. Why Microsoft has not yet added this option to the default Windows Explorer is something only they can answer, but instead of waiting for them to add it, you can use TabExplorer. It is an application for Windows that adds tabs to it and converts it into a tabbed explorer. It has the option to run on Windows Startup, too, so you will always have that extra utility. Keep reading to find out more about TabExplorer. Read More

How To Enable Hidden Explorer UI Animations In Windows 7 & Windows 8 [Tip]

by on
3
Sometimes developers keep hidden features on their software, some, due to unfinished codes are left within or others, for reasons unknown. Windows 7 and Windows 8 are also no exception, and their integrated Explorer have some hidden animations that cannot be enabled via Control Panel or Registry Editor. Why Microsoft has chosen not to include them in Windows settings is still a mystery, but as curious as people are, things like these cannot stay hidden for a long time, as people are always up to find new things in the OS, no matter what's it related to. Earlier, there was a method for enabling the hidden animations in Windows Explorer that required you to replace the Explorer Frame file, namely ExplorerFrame.dll, with a customized library file, but most users find replacing system files quite a tedious process, as it includes changing the ownership of the files (and some just don't understand the technical jargon, anyway) Today, we have found a miniscule application called AniExplorer, which makes the job easier for you in enabling the hidden animations in Windows 7 and Windows 8 Explorer without having to manually remove or replace system files. Pertaining details after the jump. Read More

Find Files Based On Size Using Windows Explorer Search Filters [Tip]

by on
2
Not a long time ago, a hard disk of a personal computer with 1 Terabyte of available storage space was unheard of. Nowadays, it is considered to be the standard hard drive space for a personal computer, and we can easily fill it up, since we've stopped deleting large files after their use is over. For instance, most of us do not bother to delete HD movies, even after watching them. To help our readers analyze disk space usage and manage data on the hard drive, we have covered a lot of useful disk space management applications in the past; OverDisk (reviewed here), Disk Space Fan (reviewed here) and RidNacs (reviewed here), just to name a few. Disk space analyzers allow you to view the files and folders stored on your hard drive with respect to their size and provides you with the option to delete them. There is no question about their usefulness, but what if you can view all the files bigger than a particular size without installing any third party application? In this post, we will explain how you can use the Windows Explorer Search to find files bigger than a defined size. Read More

Just Manager: Clutter-Free Dual-Pane File Explorer With An FTP Client

by on
Leave a comment
There are several third-party file managers out there that provide an easy way for accessing files by simultaneously displaying two different directories side by side. When talking about such (dual-pane) file managers, you might say that Total Commander is the true king of the throne, but there are also some other (simpler) alternatives that give you the same facility in a rather clutter-free environment. One such tool that we have come across is Just Manager, which provides a simple double-panel interface to manage your files and folders, and enables you to access basic Windows utilities directly from its toolbar including CMD, Run command console and Map Network drive. It also comes with a built-in FTP client, which lets you quickly connect to any FTP server by inputting server Name, Host, Port, Username, Password and Remote directory path. More details just after the break. Read More

Instantly Auto-Adjust The Width Of ‘Details View’ Columns In Windows Explorer [Tip]

by on
2
The Windows 7 & 8 Explorer provides users with a lot of viewing options including Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, Medium Icons, Small Icons, List, Details, Tiles and Content. While most users do not usually change the default view mode, other view modes, like Extra Large Icons, Details view mode, also come in handy in different situations. For instance, I keep Medium Icons as a default viewing mode for most  of my content, but prefer Details view mode to view the audio files in my music collection folder. In the Details view, files are displayed much like they are in the List view, but with additional information. Though, you might have noticed that sometimes, when you open a folder and switch to Details view, the columns are not appropriately sized according to the field content. You can drag each column to the required size or double-click the right edge of a header, but doing so in every folder is a tedious task. Join us after the break for a extremely simple way to instantly adjust the width of all columns in a folder that has the Details view. Read More

Remove Third Party Application Options Or Tabs From File/Folder Properties Dialog [Tip]

by on
Leave a comment
There are numerous applications and scripts available out there, which integrate their most useful functions and options in Windows right click context menu to let users easily access them and perform the required operations over selected files and folders. The context menu certainly provides a quick way to access app’s features, but when such applications are uninstalled, they often fail to unregister their context menu entries. Likewise, there are some applications like SKTimeStamp(reviewed here), MediaTab (reviewed here) and AveFolderBG (reviewed here), which provide all of their features in folder/file Properties dialog, letting users quickly perform different tasks on files/folders and specific file extensions. Such applications not only increase the file properties dialog load time, but also add hidden information to files’ meta tags. If you’re dealing with an application that doesn’t provide an option to disintegrate or remove its features from folder or file properties dialog, here is how you can remove its options from file/folder Properties dialog. Read More

How To Enable Inline AutoComplete In Windows Explorer & Run Dialog Box

by on
Leave a comment
Web browsers like Firefox, Google Chrome or Opera are all known for being feature rich and powerful. They all contain distinct features that make them unique. One tribute however, where they all share a common ground is Inline AutoComplete. It is a feature that is included in all modern browsers. What Inline AutoComplete does is, it helps you save time by automatically filling in a web address when you start typing its URL. Let us explain you a simple example, when you want to open AddictiveTips, start typing its URL and after two or three letters, the complete URL will automatically appear in the address bar, making you instantly jump the desired URL. This great feature is not a prerogative of web browsers only.The same inline AutoComplete functionality is also available in Windows Explorer, as well as the Run dialog box. For some reason it is not activated by default, means you need to manually enable it. Normally when you type something in the address bar of Windows Explorer, it searches for it first. In this post, we will explain to you how to enable the Inline AutoComplete feature in Windows Explorer and Run dialog box. Keep reading. Read More

minWE: Access Windows Explorer Contents From Quick Launch Bar

by on
Leave a comment
A lot of people do not like to keep a large number of icons on their screen. Application launchers are utilities designed to help you manage your shortcuts and quickly launch frequently used applications without creating clutter on your desktop. They basically keep shortcuts in your reach without disturbing your work space. Previously, we have reviewed some very useful application launchers that allow you to easily launch applications either by adding them to a toolbar or specifying their shortcut path. Famulus, a previously covered app, lets you  launch files as well as websites using hotkeys, while Windows 7 App Launcher lets you effortlessly create application profiles so that they can be launcher with a single click using the Jumplist and Thumbnail Preview features. Today, we have another application, called miniWE, that is a combination of Quick Launch Bar and Windows Explorer, it is not exactly an application launcher, but a file explorer accessible from your task bar. Keep reading to find out more about miniWE. Read More

ExplorerView: Basic Windows Tweaks Including Disabling Auto File Detection In Explorer

by on
Leave a comment
There are some set behaviors for Windows that cannot be changed easily. For instance, whenever you open a folder in Windows Explorer in Windows Vista and Windows 7, it automatically detects the contents of a folder and shows you the complete contents after the scan is finished. This process can take a lot of time if there are a large number of files included in the folder. By default, you cannot turn this feature off. Likewise, when you delete a file, it doesn’t get removed from your hard disk at once. Choosing the delete option only moves it to the Recycle Bin, and to directly remove it from your computer, you have to use the Shift + Delete combination. Windows doesn’t allow you to change this option to set complete removal as the default option, either. Furthermore, sometimes when you run Windows Update to install and download new updates from Microsoft for your operating system, it automatically reboots the computer in the end. ExplorerView is an application for Windows that takes care of all these issues and allows you to tweak some basic functions. Keep reading to find out more about ExplorerView. Read More

Classic Shell Updated, Lets You Add Windows 7 Start Menu & XP Explorer Toolbar To Windows 8

by on
Leave a comment
When making the switch from an old program to its newer version requires a significant amount of effort that is needed to learn all the new things and change the way you performed the old ones. This effect is magnified when you upgrade the whole operating system.  Microsoft has recently released a preview of its latest operating system, Windows 8, and by the looks of it, a lot has changed in this version. Classic Shell is a very popular Windows enhancement tool and it has been recently updated to support Windows 8. Previously, when it was only available for Windows Vista and Windows 7, it included a collection of features that were available in the older Windows versions, but were removed from Windows Vista and Windows 7. Now, it performs the same function for Windows 8, i-e, adds all those things that were present in Windows 7, but were, for some reason, removed from the latest Windows release. These features include the greatly missed Windows Start Orb, the old Windows XP style toolbar in Windows Explorer, and a lot of other features. Keep reading after the break to find out more about Classic Shell. Read More

Windows Explorer Tracker Logs User Activity & USB Connection In PC

by on
1
Ever wondered where does all the data that is automatically downloaded from the internet during browsing goes? Windows creates temporary folders and stores relevant files in them for saving the text, images, audio and video content found on a web page. At the end of the session or upon system restart, these files and folders are deleted and space is made available for new data. However, all of this happens in the background and there is no visual indicator of a temporary files being created, edited, moved or deleted from your system. If you want to monitor the activity in your hard drive regarding operations such as creation and deletion of files and folders, try Windows Explorer Tracker. It is an application for Windows that lets you monitor and automatically record operations done in Windows Explorer, such as Delete, Rename, Create, Insert, Add and Remove action of files and folders. Other that that, it also detects and stores the date and time when a USB flash drive was inserted or removed from the system. Windows Explorer Tracker can also be used to track and record operations on remote host via the mapped network drives. The date and time information is stored in log files which are named according to date for easy retrieval. Keep reading to find out more about Windows Explorer Tracker. Read More

The Complete Guide To Windows 8 Explorer; New Ribbon Tools And Options

by on
13
If you’ve been following news regarding improvements and additions in Windows 8, you must have heard about the revamped ribbon-based Windows Explorer. Windows 8 File Explorer clones the user interface of MS Office 2010 applications, bringing all the necessary options and tools right in the ribbon, so that you don't have to find options from menus in menu bar and from right-click context menu. Just like MS Office applications, it includes a dynamic ribbon at the top of file explorer window, which shows special tools and options for certain types of files. For instance, you will see a a separate Picture Tool Manage tab when you select image(s), similarly, you can access all the respective tools for a selected application from Application tab. Read More

Folder Colorizer: Change Icon Color Of Any Folder In Windows

by on
3
While searching through a huge number of folders, it is common for users to miss the one thing that they are looking for. This is due to the fact that, when faced with a lot of similar looking items, the ones with the same color are categorized together by the human brain. The default yellow color for folders chosen by Microsoft to be used in Windows Explorer is pleasing to the eyes, but it also makes differentiating between all the folders a difficult task. Whenever you look inside a folder containing a large number of sub folders, they all look the same to you because they are of the same color. What i have done to tackle that problem is choose a different icon for all the frequently used icons, but that requires you to separately access the settings of each folder and change their icon. It can be quite useful, however, if the number of folders is huge, it can turn out to be quite a tedious task. Folder Colorizer is an application for Windows that enables you to easily categorize and differentiate folders from each other by applying a different color to each folder, straight from the right click context menu of folders. More on Folder Colorizer after the break. Read More

NexusFile: Dual-Pane File Manager With FTP & Archive Extraction Support

by on
3
While roaming around on the internet, we stumbled upon a very useful file manager, and since we know how much you appreciate good freeware, we thought it was a must to share with our addicted readers. NexusFile is a file manager that can be easily used as the default Windows Explorer alternative because of its massive scope of functionality. The application features dual pane view, multiple tabs, supports FTP , has Shortcut key support, Folder Tree view, a built-in Advanced Rename feature, can extract archives (ZIP, RAR, ARJ, ACE, ALZ, 7Z etc) without external applications, allows you to set Favorite and Quick Access Folders, change Skins, and is portable! Read on to find out more about Nexus File. Read More