PC Club: How to change the default file view in MS Word

November 12th, 2008, 6:47 pm · Post a Comment · posted by Tamara Chuang, a.k.a. The Gadgetress

The North Orange County Computer Club helps The Gadgetress tackle the multitude of readers cries for help. NOCCC group has experts in Windows, Word and all sorts of computer topics. The club, which meets monthly on various topics, has been in existence since 1976. Visit the club’s site at noccc.org. To get this answer delivered to your computer automatically, sign up for the e-mail update HERE.

Question: I’ve got a question for you. I’m running MS Windows XP Professional with the latest service packs. Whenever I try to open a file on my computer (in MS Word, Adobe Acrobat, or just about anything else), I get an “Open File” dialog box which by default ”Lists” my files. In order to drill down to the file I am looking for, I then have to click on the “View Menu” and change from “List” to “Details” in order to find my most recent saved items. Is there a way to change the default on this dialog box to always open in the “Details” mode? ~ Greg Beck

PC Club: I was happy to read your question Greg. I have had the same irritation for a long time and it gave me the incentive to look for an answer. It turns out that it can be done, but not as simply as changing some obscure parameter.

The fact that not all programs use the standard Win XP open window complicates the issue. Microsoft Word and Excel (and some other programs) use their own “Open” window.

I found two programs that address this issue. Both of them download as compressed files in the ZIP format, which requires that you know or learn how to deal with ZIP files.

The first one is free, but does not have as many features. In particular, it does nothing with MS Word. The second has a free thirty day trial, has many features, and costs $19.95 if you like it.

The first program is, “ElmuSoft FileOpenPatcher 9.0” and can be downloaded from Softpedia.com. This program saves the Comdlg32.dll file so that it can be swapped back and forth, with a modified version that displays the modified “Open” window. I tried it. It works.

The second program is File-Ex 3.0 and is available from www.cottonwoodsw.com/welcome.html.

File-Ex saves valuable time and mouse clicks by significantly expanding the size and functionality of the “Open” window. It adds several new and useful features to the new window it displays. It automatically enhances almost all Windows applications. The program works on both the Open and Save windows. You do have to go to its options menu to set the “Default to Details view” to true with a check box. This program can be “trained” to work with MS Office 2003 via a preconfigured template that can be downloaded from the same site. Another nice feature is that it remembers the last Open/Save folder that you used with different programs. I like it. ~ Jim Sanders, President, NOCCC

To get future answers delivered to your computer automatically, sign up for the e-mail newsletter HERE.

Past Stump the PC Club questions:

Miss a day of Gadgetress? Miss out. Check daily for news you can use. Want this delivered to your inbox? Click HERE. Have you seen ... the Fast Gadgetress?