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Customizing a folder by placing a picture on its cover---

Anonymous
2009-05-13T19:12:27+00:00

I open a file folder containing pictures—I click ‘view’, then ‘customize this folder’, then ‘choose file’, then I click a picture, then ‘apply’, then ‘ok’.  Like all previous versions of Windows I’ve owned, I  should now have that picture on this folder’s cover.  With my new Vista Home Basic I get nothing—UNLESS, strangely enough, I first open up a picture from the file, click ‘fix’, and then make ANY random adjustment to the picture--then it WILL be able to become a cover picture.  The PROBLEM is—a few days after I’ve done this to all of my picture files, most of my files have the wrong picture on them—random pictures that I have ‘fixed’ from the WRONG files.  Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Music, photos, and video

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  1. Anonymous
    2009-05-14T01:37:47+00:00

    Hello Don Golliher,

    Thanks for using the Microsoft Answers Forum

    I have a few of questions to clarify your issue.

    1.       What is the default image when you add pictures to your folder?

    2.       Are you using any theme altering or folder customization software that might prevent this feature from working properly?

    3.       Are there any features in your anti-virus that also might prevent this feature?

    Answer the questions above and let us know what you find.

    Judd

    Microsoft Answers Support Engineer Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

    1 person found this answer helpful.
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  1. Anonymous
    2009-05-14T23:18:22+00:00

    Hi Don,

    Regarding your problem,  you might need to refresh your thumbnail cache or your icon cache after you make change to your folders for it to reflect it correctly.

    Here's few guide on how to change picture preview for folder and how to refresh your cache.

    http://support.microsoft.com/kb/812003

    http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/88518-folder-preview-picture-change.html

    http://malektips.com/vista\_explorer\_0002.html

    Hope this helps,

    Kevin

    Microsoft Answers Support Engineer

    Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

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  1. Anonymous
    2009-05-15T05:37:43+00:00

    Hi Don,

    May be in Windows 7 things will change, glad it help you out though.  I don't know about change the default feature of Vista.  It might not be possible at all at this time.  There might be third party software out there able to do it but not just with Vista. 

    Hope this helps,

    Kevin

    Microsoft Answers Support Engineer

    Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

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  2. Anonymous
    2009-05-15T04:44:17+00:00

    Hi, Kevin---

    Thanks for responding—that lst link you gave definitely identified my problem—it said that “by default” Windows Vista will allow me to put customization pictures on 400 different folder covers.  Now, if somebody knows how to change that default to 3,000 then my problem will be solved.  Funny that this wasn’t an issue with my old XP.  Thanks again—Don.

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  3. Anonymous
    2009-05-14T17:55:12+00:00

    Hi, Judd---

    Thank you for responding so quickly. 

    1--If I create a new folder on my desktop, a random picture from an unrelated desktop folder will immediately appear on the cover.  [This same picture will appear on every new folder I create on the desktop].  I normally create and use folders within folders and each time I create one of these sub-folders, a DIFFERENT random picture from a completely unrelated folder immediately appears. 

    Placing new pictures in the folder does not change the cover picture--and when the cover picture does change a couple of days or a couple of computer reboots later, it is usually TO a picture I have placed ON a completely unrelated folder cover.

    2—Theme altering / folder customization—I normally run a picture from a file as a desktop background, but I have just reset the theme to ‘Windows Basic’.  In ‘Folder Options’ I had changed options to ‘single-click’ from ‘double-click’---and under ‘tasks’ I changed from the default ‘show preview and filters’ to ‘use Windows classic folders’—I am now switching this back to the default.     

    3—I have not yet installed my anti-virus program.  I stay current, daily, on Windows Updates and have no current or recent ‘Problem Reports’.  I have just upgraded to Internet Explorer 8 and am about to look through my Windows Defender to see if it also contains some elements I consider too intrusive.

    It seems to take a couple of days or computer reboots before I start noticing my cover pictures changing to the wrong ones.  Each time I notice that about another 15 - 20% of my cover pictures have changed.  While I wait to hear back from you I will see if going back to default settings helps fix this problem.  Thanks again—Don.

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