Can you make that box to pick which program to open a file with automatically pop up?

[V00D00]

I'm never going to use microshaft's sh!tty "web service", so can I make it go right to the program selection dialog?

When a file is an unknown file type and has no program association and you double click on it, a dialog pops up asking you if you want to use a web service to try to find out what program to use, or if you want to select which program to open it with yourself.

I want it to skip that first box and go right to where you can select which program it opens with.

Here's an image for those who are a tad confused:
http://img49.exs.cx/img49/5505/winders3jc.gif

 

[h2]

What are you talking about? Do you want to change which program opens files by default? That's easy, windows explorer -> tools -> folder options -> file types, change it there. Or are you asking something that's actually hard to do?

 

[V00D00]

You're right, I should clarify my question.

When a file is an unknown file type and has no program association and you double click on it, a dialog pops up asking you if you want to use a web service to try to find out what program to use, or if you want to select which program to open it with yourself.

I want it to skip that first box and go right to where you can select which program it opens with.

Here's an image for those who are a tad confused:
http://img49.exs.cx/img49/5505/winders3jc.gif

 

[h2]

I've never seen that, but I also have my windows explorer set to this:

web view :: use windows classic folders [instead of 'enable web content']. Since I always disable enable web content, and I've never seen that, ight have something to do with it. I also never use Windows XP, it makes far too many 'decisions' for me, W2K is all I use, although I have XP sp2 installed, I just never use it, except for testing.

 

[V00D00]

Well I'm pretty sure this is strictly an XP feature.

It has nothing to do with web content, windows just offers to attempt to use an online service to figure out what the file type is and what program is used to open it. I guess it might be a useful feature if you're stupid.

I can't stand web view.

 

[CPORonin]

Goto Start Menu>Run and type in gpedit.msc

User Configuration>Administrative Templates>System>Internet Communications>Internet Communication Settings

Double Click "Turn off Internet File Association service"

Click the enabled radio button.

 

[V00D00]

I don't see the Internet Communications thing in there, and I checked pretty much every option on there and I still can't find it.

http://img95.exs.cx/img95/7723/itnotthere8iw.gif

 

[CPORonin]

Do you have service pack 2 installed? I think this feature is only available in SP2.

Ooops...or you can just do this:

Disabling the File Association Web Service

The following procedure explains how to disable the file association Web service by setting a registry key.
To Disable the File Association Web Service by Setting a Registry Key

1. Open Registry Editor by clicking Start, clicking Run, and then typing regedit.

Caution Incorrectly editing the registry may severely damage your system. Before making changes to the registry, you should back up any valued data on the computer. You can also use the Last Known Good Configuration startup option if you encounter problems after manual changes have been applied.

2. Navigate to the following registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows
CurrentVersion\Policies\System

3. Point to New in the Edit menu, and then click DWORD Value.

4. Type the following name:

NoInternetOpenWith

5. Click the new entry (NoInternetOpenWith), and then select Modify in the Edit menu.

6. Ensure that Hexadecimal is selected, and then for Value data, type:

1

7. Close Registry Editor.


Found it on this page.

 

[h2]

This kind of thing is why I absolutely refuse to use windows XP. The decisions they are making are making this OS less and less controllable. It takes me a few hours to return XP to a more or less useful condition, switching off all its defaults, this is a new one on me though.

Windows 2000 remains by far and away my MS OS of choice, but since I'm pretty much positive longhorn, if it ever comes out, even in its currently completely stripped state, no new FS etc, will be even worse than XP.

This is why more and more corporations are taking a serious look at Linux desktops, I know it's why I am. On the server side of course they aren't just looking, they are buying. I worked for a big organization that absolutely refused to allow XP into their systems. It was W2K all the way on the desktop, server 2003 for some ms specific junk, redhat for most of the real stuff.

 

[V00D00]

Thank you CPORonin!!

Windows is only supreme because everything is compatable with it. Even if it's really buggy, it works for the most part.

I find that I'm messing with settings for a while too before I am able to get it how I want it. That's why whenever I change all my hardware around and get a fresh install of XP tweaked just the way I like it, I make an image of it, so next time I can have a fresh install on my system in less than 10 minutes.