How to change default folder which appear after clicking the explorer option in Start menu.

Whenever I want to find a folder on my computer I use the windows explorer. I go to the start button and right-click in order to choose the explorer option in the start menu.

After that I am automaticly directed to the Start Menu folder....a folder I never use.

I would like to be directed to a folder I often use....the folder where I keep my downloaded files.

What must I do to change my default start-up folder when I click on the explorer option in the Start menu?

Mucho thanks for anybody with the solution..

It opens up the start menu folder, because that is the option you chose when you right-clicked on it. This isn't a "default option" for just the start menu. The same thing happens if you right-click on the Computer on your desktop, it will open "My Computer" in the explorer menu. Create a short-cut on the desktop, or Quick Launch menu to the folder in question.

Under the start menu, more often then not, the "Downloads" folder is right there. If it isn't, open "my computer" until you see "my downloads" and then right-click on that, go to "Send to" and click on Desktop (Create Short cut). Then you are done.

reply to post by zatara


Why not just use the search feature to find the folder you are looking for? Using the Explore feature is the long way around. The reason you start in the Start Menu folder is because you right clicked on the Start Menu. There is no way to change this, well maybe there is an advanced way to change this in the Registry or in WMI Objects, but I wouldn't recommend doing that because you can mess up your computer really bad if you don't know what you are doing.

reply to post by zatara


Both Skada and OptimusSubprime have given good answers

What version of windows are you using?

Originally posted by PhoenixOD
reply to post by zatara

 

Both Skada and OptimusSubprime have given good answers

What version of windows are you using?

I feel ashamed to tell you....vista. Its an old HP Pavilion desktop and the worst computer ever. I tried to install XP but without advanced computer skills it is impossible to install an other version.

Bit off topic but I would like to add that I am very dissappointed in HP and will not ever buy an other HP product because of such customer support and sales strategy.

reply to post by zatara


Vista isnt all that bad. I always use 'computer' from the start menu when i want to access the file system. You could try dragging the 'computer' option from your start menu into your task bar at the bottom of the screen. Then you can click that each time.

Here's a slightly convoluted way of doing it.

1 - Open Notepad.
2 - Write: "explorer.exe c:temp" (without the quotes), but change the "c:temp" part to whatever you want to be the startup folder
3 - Save the file, but on the save file dialog, change the file type from "text file" to "all files". The file name should end in ".bat", I called it "whatever.bat"
4 - Create a shortcut on your desktop or in your start menu, pointing to that "whatever.bat" file you just created.
5 - Right-click on the shortcut and choose "properties". In the "shortcut key" field, choose a key combination (like ctrl + alt + e, for example) and click OK.

Now, if everything is as it should be, if you press the key combination you just defined, the explorer will open in the desired folder.

This method, instead of the "whatever.bat" file could use a simple shortcut to that folder, as Skada said. You can also add a shortcut key combination to that shortcut. The only advantage of the method I mentioned has is that you can use it to open two or more folders, you just have to add another line with a command to open the second folder. This is useful if you usually copy files from a folder to the other.

PS: as I don't have an English version of Windows the names may be different.

reply to post by zatara


You could try this:


Change the 'target' in the Windows Explorer shortcut (you should find that
in the Accessories folder of your Start Menu), to:

%SystemRoot%\explorer.exe /n,/e,/root,/select,C:\

Copy and Paste that (altered) shortcut onto your Desktop, and/or onto your
Quick Launch Toolbar, if you have that toolbar showing.

If you change the 'C:\' part, you can open up an Explorer window within any
of your drives/folders, for example, D:\MyFiles.

You could also just find the folder you want to start in, right click it and then choose "create shortcut" then drag that shortcut to either , the desktop, the task bar or even the start menu

You could also set a keyboard shortcut for the shortcut.

Originally posted by zatara

Originally posted by PhoenixOD
reply to post by zatara

 

Both Skada and OptimusSubprime have given good answers

What version of windows are you using?

I feel ashamed to tell you....vista. Its an old HP Pavilion desktop and the worst computer ever. I tried to install XP but without advanced computer skills it is impossible to install an other version.

Bit off topic but I would like to add that I am very dissappointed in HP and will not ever buy an other HP product because of such customer support and sales strategy.

You should youtube how to install windows XP. Its very easy, just put the disk in, delete the partitions and install.
Any computer that can run vista can run XP. If you have more then 2gb of ram get the windows xp 64bit version or windows will not read all of your ram

reply to post by Infi8nity


XP would read 3.5 out of 4gb.

You could run xp and vista together as a dual boot as well.