Windows 7 comes with a long list of registered file
types, but it can’t account for every extension you’ll face in your
computing career. For rare extensions, it’s best just to use the Open
With dialog box. However, if you have an unregistered extension that
you encounter frequently, you should register that extension by
creating a new file type for it.
Tip
Text
files, in particular, seem to come with all kinds of nonstandard (that
is, unregistered) extensions. Rather than constantly setting up file
types for these extensions or using the Open With dialog box, I created
a shortcut for Notepad in my %UserProfile\SendTo folder. That way, I can open any text file by right-clicking it and then selecting Send To, Notepad.
Our
old friend the Open With dialog box provides a quick-and-dirty method
for creating a simple file type for an unregistered extension:
1. | In Windows Explorer, select the file you want to work with.
|
2. | Click
Open. (For unregistered file types, Windows 7 doesn’t display the Open
With command.) Windows 7 displays a dialog box telling you that it
cannot open the file.
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3. | Activate the Select a Program from a List of Installed Programs option and then click OK. The Open With dialog box appears.
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4. | Select the application you want to use to open the file or click Browse to choose the program from a dialog box.
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5. | Use the Type a Description That You Want to Use for this Kind of File text box to enter a description for the new file type.
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6. | Make sure that the Always Use the Selected Program to Open This Kind of File check box is activated.
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7. | |
This method creates a new file type with the following properties:
The
number of actions Windows 7 creates for the file type depends on the
application you selected. If you can use the application to both
display and edit the file, Windows 7 creates Open and Edit actions; if you can use the application only to display the file, Windows 7 creates just the Open action.
The icon associated with the file is the same as the one used by the associated application.
In the Registry, you see the extension in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and the associated file type name is ext_auto_file, where ext is the file’s extension.
