windows explorer

Windows Explorer has never been what I'd call a user-friendly tool. In fact, I find it pretty unintuitive. Yet it's what Windows users are stuck with for moving, copying, deleting, and organizing their files.

If you've often wished for an easier, more robust replacement, today is your lucky day: Giveaway of the Day is offering Donald Lessau's XYplorer 11.90 Windows file manager free of charge. It normally sells for $29.95.

WARNING: Do not click the big blue Download button that appears alongside the description of XYplorer. That's actually an ad, and clicking it … Read more

Microsoft does listen to user feedback, at least when it comes to fine-tuning some of the features in Windows 8.

Through their Building Windows 8 blog, the folks in Redmond have worked to reveal changes in store for Windows 8, notably in the area of file management. Among them are improvements to the cut, copy, paste, rename, and delete commands; refinements for file collisions; and a new look and feel for Windows Explorer.

In reaction to those blog posts, more than 2,000 users chimed in with suggestions for further tweaking the new file management. And Microsoft apparently listened.

Detailed … Read more

I will go out on a limb and say that in the history of humankind no product has caused more irritation to more people than Windows. At least not since the invention of the pop-top can (and with the possible exception of the Ford Escort).

Terry from Moncton, New Brunswick, agrees:

"Probably a bad way to start, but I think Windows [stinks]. However, I have to use it vis-a-vis my business. Just bought a Windoze 7 machine and its idiotic permissions, among other things, are even more irritating than previous incarnations.... All I want is for the default for … Read more

It stands to reason: the less software you have on your system, the lower the risk of software conflicts.

Windows 7 is complete enough to not need any added helper programs. The Windows Firewall, Security Essentials, Windows Update, and other components of Windows 7 are sufficient to keep your machine running smoothly and virus-free.

(Technically, Security Essentials is freeware supplied separately by Microsoft, but I consider it part of the operating system.)

In the past, I have recommended free file-management programs for Windows Vista and XP to replace or enhance Windows Explorer. Windows 7 Explorer is not a big departure … Read more

Microsoft's choice to add the ribbon interface to Windows 8's Explorer has triggered some complaints, but the company is sticking by its decision.

Posting another installment of the "Building Windows 8" blog last Friday, Windows and Windows Live Division President Steven Sinofsky responded to user feedback over some recent blogs, including one from August 29 in which the company revealed that Windows Explorer would sport a ribbon interface.

That bit of news prompted a fair number of user complaints.

"We chose the ribbon mechanism, and to those that find that a flawed choice, there isn't much we can do other than disagree," Sinofsky wrote. "We were certain, and this proved out, that the dislike of the ribbon is most intense in the audience of this blog."… Read more

Subscribers have just a couple days before Netflix forces them into higher priced plans, iTunes Match gets released to developers, and Windows 8's Explorer window gets the ribbon from Office.

Links from Tuesday's episode of Loaded:

Computer screens come in all shapes and sizes, but one thing they all have in common is clutter. Around the edges of any program window--even the Windows desktop itself--you'll see toolbars, sidebars, and other controls that take space away from the area reserved for your actual work.

The simplest way to remove the various information and shortcut bars from view is to press F11, which expands the currently open window to all four screen edges. Return to the standard view by pressing F11 again.

Likewise, the fastest way to enlarge content on the screen is by using Windows' built-in … Read more

Images from a pre-beta version of Windows 8 reveal that Microsoft is apparently expanding its use of the ribbon interface to replace traditional pull-down menus and toolbars.

Following Microsoft's release of the latest pre-beta build of Windows 8 to select partners recently, screenshots of certain features in the upcoming OS were allegedly posted online. In particular, images displayed on enthusiast site Within Windows by "Windows 8 Secrets" co-authors Rafael Rivera and Paul Thurrott show the ribbon interface reaching Windows Explorer.

Introduced with Office 2007, the ribbon interface has been loved by some and reviled by others. But … Read more

The other day a visiting relative asked if he could use my laptop to check his Facebook account. He couldn't make it past the desktop. "Hey, don't you have Firefox on this machine?"

"Press the Windows key, type f, and press Enter," I told him.

I had been using Windows 7's Start menu search box to launch Firefox and other apps for so long I neglected to add a Firefox shortcut to my taskbar. (I prefer to keep my desktop clear of icons by placing my desktop shortcuts on a menu that pops out of the taskbar, … Read more