Registry Key to set a specific application to run a file

[pochrist]

I need to set a up an older program to view Panoramic files on a users local machine.

I'm making a Demo CD with HTML and this Program can't run off the the CD so it has to run local:

The Problem is:

1. The Viewer was made in 1995 and the company is gone now. (no updates or plugins)

2. The Viewer has no installer it just has a *.exe and *.isu, the app will work if I copy it to a directory and drag & drop Pan files on it or browse through the program to a Pan file.

What plan I to do is to have the have the user download / copy the Viewer to their hard disk and then have them import a registry key into the registry so they can set the viewer as default.

My problem is How do a make a registry key that when imported will set it up as the default viewer on other systems. Thanks.

 

[Markbnj]

See the following MSDN articles:

File Types:

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-...y/bb776870(VS.85).aspx

Shell Verbs and File Associations:

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb776883.aspx

Some combination of the registry keys and related behaviors described there should get you what you want.

Note that the program has to support the necessary command-line, COM, or DDE messaging interfaces in order to be informed what file was clicked, but since you say it supports drag-n-drop then it likely does.