The View page of the Folder Options dialog box offers you the following options, some of which you’ve already met earlier in this article:

Always Show Icons, Never Thumbnails  

 Select this check box if you want to prevent Windows Explorer from displaying thumbnails for files and folders.

Always Show Menus    Select this check box if you want the menus to appear in every Windows Explorer window. If you’re used to an earlier version of Windows that includes the menus, you may find this option useful.

Display File Icon on Thumbnails    Select this check box if you want Windows Explorer to display an icon indicating the associated program on each thumbnail. Thumbnails are the larger sizes of icons. For example, if you select this check box, Windows Explorer displays icon previews of Excel 2007 workbooks together with an Excel program icon. Usually, the program icon is helpful for visually identifying the file type.

Display File Size Information in Folder Tips    Select this check box to control whether or not Windows Explorer displays an information pop-up when you hover the mouse pointer over a folder. As its name implies, this option doesn’t apply to files - just to folders. So when you’ve cleared this check box, Windows still displays file information when you hover the mouse pointer over a file in an Windows Explorer window.

Display Simple Folder View in Navigation Pane    Select this check box if you want to hide the dotted lines used to connect the folders and subfolders in the Navigation pane.

Display the Full Path in the Title Bar Classic Folders Only    Select this check box if you want Windows Explorer to display the full path in the title bar of Windows Explorer windows when you’re using “classic” folders.

Show/Do Not Show Hidden Files and Folders    Select the Show Hidden Files and Folders option button to make Windows Explorer display hidden files and folders. By default, the Do Not Show Hidden Files and Folders option button is selected.

Hide Extensions for Known File Types    Clear this check box if you want to make Windows Explorer display file extensions, the last section of each file’s name. For example, in the filename MYBOOK.DOC, the extension is .DOC. By default, this check box is selected, so Windows Explorer hides extensions. But as discussed in “Working with File Associations, File Extensions, and File Types” in Article 9, you may find displaying file extensions helpful at least sometimes.

Hide Protected Operating System Files    Select this check box to make Windows Explorer hide operating-system files. Hiding these files is usually a good idea, because it helps you avoid deleting them accidentally. But for some special purposes, you’ll need to display these files temporarily.

Launch Folder Windows in a Separate Process    Select this check box if you want to make Windows Explorer open each separate folder window in a separate area of memory rather than sharing a single area of memory among the folder windows displayed. Using separate folders theoretically increases the stability of Windows, because if one instance of Windows Explorer crashes, the others shouldn’t be affected. However, using separate folders consumes more mem- ory and processor cycles. This option is turned off by default. Turn it on only if you find that Windows seems to be crashing when you’re working in Windows Explorer windows.

Remember Each Folder’s View Settings    Select this check box if you want Windows Explorer to use the same view for a folder when you reopen it. Clear this check box if you want Windows Explorer to revert to the default view for each window you open.

Restore Previous Folder Windows at Logon    Select this check box if you want Windows to reopen Windows Explorer and Internet Windows Explorer windows to the folders and addresses at which they were open when you logged off. This option can be useful for helping you pick up work where you left off.

Show Drive Letters Clear this check box if you want to see only descriptive names also called friendly names for drives rather than drive letters such as C:

or D:. Windows displays drive letters by default.

Show Encrypted or Compressed NTFS Files in Color    Select this check box if you want Windows Explorer to display compressed files on NTFS partitions in blue instead of black in the default color scheme. Windows Vista Home doesn’t support encryption, but in Win- dows Vista Business and Windows Vista Ultimate which do support encryption encrypted files appear in green when you select this option. This option is off by default. Normally, you don’t need to know whether files are compressed. Show Pop-up Description for Folder and Desktop Items    Select this check box if you want Windows Explorer to display a descriptive pop-up when you hover the mouse pointer over a folder or an item on the Desktop. This option is on by default and is usually helpful. Clear this check box if you find the pop-ups distracting. Show Preview Handlers in Preview Pane    If you don’t use the Preview pane, you can clear this check box to prevent Windows from using the handlers programs that display previews in Windows Explorer windows. Turning off the handlers may improve performance a little. Use Check Boxes to Select Items    Select this check box if you want Windows to display a check box next to each file or folder you highlight in an Windows Explorer window. You can then use these check boxes to make a selection of multiple files and folders - for example, if you find it uncomfortable to hold down Shift or Ctrl while making a selection. Use Sharing Wizard Select this check box if you want to use the Sharing Wizard for shar- ing files and folders. Clear this check box if you prefer to set up sharing for files and folders manually. When Typing in List View Options    Select the Automatically Type into the Search Box option button if you want Windows to treat text you type into an Windows Explorer window in List view as search text. Normally, you’ll want to leave the Select the Typed Item in the View option button selected, so that Windows lets you “type down” to select an item.

Creating a New Folder

To create a new folder, right-click open space in the folder in which you want to create the new folder and choose New   Folder from the context menu. Alternatively, choose Organize   New Folder. Windows creates a new folder, assigns it a default name based on New  Folder New  Folder, New  Folder 2, and so on, and displays an edit box around the name. Type the name for the folder and press the Enter key or click elsewhere in the window. You can create a new folder in any folder for which you have permission to make changes. If you’re not able to create a folder, the folder you’re working in probably belongs to someone else who has chosen not to give you permission to make changes in it.

Copying a File or Folder

Windows gives you several ways to copy a file or folder. Because copying is an action you’ll need to perform often, this section shows you most of the convenient ways to copy a file or folder. You may end up using only one or two of these ways, but you should try them all out and see which you find easiest in which circumstances. Some of the ways of copying a file involve opening multiple Windows Explorer windows or having the Desktop visible. For others, you need have only one Windows Explorer window open or the Desktop. This section says “a file or folder,” but most of the techniques work just as well for multiple files or folders. If the folder to which you’re copying or moving a file already contains a file with the same name, Windows displays the Copy File dialog box . You then have three choices:

Copy and Replace Click this button to replace the existing file in the folder with the new file.

Don’t Copy    Click this button to cancel the copy operation. You can also click the Cancel button at the bottom of the dialog box.

Copy, but Keep Both Files Click this button to copy the new file into the folder but give it a new name. The button shows the name the file will receive. This option is useful when you’re not sure whether the file you’re copying contains newer data than the existing file. Similarly, if you go to paste a folder into a folder that already contains a folder with the same name, Windows displays the Confirm Folder Replace dialog box . Look at the details carefully to make sure you’re clear which folder you will replace if you proceed, and then click the Yes button or the No button as appropriate.

What if You’re Copying Several Files that Will Replace Other Files?

If you’re copying two or more files that will replace other files with the same names, the Copy File dialog box includes a Skip button and a Do This for the Next N Conflicts check box where N is the number - for example, Do This for the Next 2 Conflicts. Click the Skip button to skip the current question. Select the check box and then click the appropriate button if you want to apply the same action to all the conflicts. For example, you might select the check box, and then click the Copy, But Keep Both Files button.

Copying a File or Folder by Using Drag-and-Drop

When you’re copying a file or folder, Windows distinguishes between copying it to another folder on the same drive or to a folder on a different drive:

Same drive Windows assumes that you mean to move the file or folder rather than copy it.

Different drive Windows assumes that you mean to copy the file or folder. Because of this assumption, you need to use different techniques for copy operations depending on the drives you’re using.

Copying a File or Folder to the Same Drive

To copy a file or folder to another folder on the same drive, take the following steps:

1.  Open an Windows Explorer window to the folder that contains the source file or folder.

2.  Open another Windows Explorer window to the destination folder.

3.  Select the file or folder in the source folder.

4.  Hold down the Ctrl key, and then drag the file or folder to the destination folder. Windows displays a plus + sign on the mouse pointer to indicate that the file or folder will be copied to the destination.

5.  Release the mouse button and the Ctrl key. Windows copies the file or folder. While it does so, it displays the Copying dialog box shown here, which lists the file or folder being copied and an estimate of how long the whole Copy operation will take. You can click the More Informa- tion button or Less Information button to change the amount of detail displayed.