Choose any image within folder as custom thumbnail image?

[Megalith]

Has this functionality been added to the latest beta yet? For some reason, desktop.ini files aren't being created on my system (even when I set custom folder images via File Explorer), so I can't check myself.

[TheQwerty]

Has this functionality been added to the latest beta yet? For some reason, desktop.ini files aren't being created on my system (even when I set custom folder images via File Explorer), so I can't check myself.

You cannot specify a particular file as the thumbnail for a folder - and I don't think there are currently any plans to add that.

However, if the folder contains an image named 'folder' XYplorer will use that for the thumb, so if you duplicate the image you want with a base name of 'folder' it should be used.

Folder Thumbnails.

The file list supports Folder Thumbnails. In Thumbnails view, folders display a thumbnail of any file in the folder named "folder.*" where * is any of the following image extensions: jpg, png, gif (looked for in that order).
If no "folder.*" is found, the alphabetically first *.jpg image in the folder is taken (if any).

[Megalith]

Yes, I do know about that, but the developer said that he was going to add a feature where XYplorer would read the information off of a folder's desktop.ini file for the custom thumbnail.

[RalphM]

According to the history this has been added in the following beta:

Code: Select all

v14.80.0212 - 2015-01-25 14:38
    ...
    * Folder Thumbnails: Now the Windows folder setting "Properties / Customize
      / Folder pictures" is honored. The desired file for the folder thumbnail is
      read from desktop.ini if it is found within the folder. This available
      from Windows XP onwards.

But I haven't checked whether it works.

[TheQwerty]

Right... specifying logo's within desktop.ini does work for setting the thumbnail and I can confirm that it works.

Sorry for my misunderstanding!

[Stef123]

Now I am the one getting confused and probably misunderstanding something here. How do logos figure into the picture, or rather thumbnail - is this related to XY icons (read logo?) and CFI etc after all?

[TheQwerty]

Now I am the one getting confused and probably misunderstanding something here. How do logos figure into the picture, or rather thumbnail - is this related to XY icons (read logo?) and CFI etc after all?

If you open the shell properties for a folder there is a Customize tab with a section for Folder pictures to define a specific image that is shown on the folder icon in WE. If you assign a picture to the folder Windows creates a desktop.ini file within the folder with a [ViewState] section and a key called Logo set to the image file's path.

As of a month ago XYplorer was made to show the same image as the folder's thumbnail image.

This has nothing to do with CFI/PFI.
Why is it called Logo? Ask Microsoft.

[Stef123]

Thanks for clarifying. Ran a quick test and this is not good. I need my own custom folder thumbnails back, for someone working portable this was a great way to place his own (hidden) content info to override the generic stuff from the host, not the other way round as it is now, the host overriding my custom thumb. Please make this optional.

[PeterH]

I think if you delete desktop.ini XY works as before?

Just test it...

Edit: but it's not 'generic' - every folder has it's 'private' desktop.ini

[klownboy]

I think if you delete desktop.ini XY works as before?

Yes, I specifically asked Don that question earlier in this thread. The desktop ini does take priority over an exiting folder.jpg, but will use the folder.jpg if it doesn't exist.

[Stef123]

I don't want to mess with the ini-files of my clients. You wouldn't appreciate that either. It's one thing to dump files (thumbs databases etc) for a few weeks on their system to speed up my workflow. But it's quite another thing to change their things around. To my understanding, the generic should never override the specific. This applies to PFA and CFI as well. Things within XY are meant to override the system settings, not the other way round.

[PeterH]

As I said:
- desktop.ini is not generic
- and XY might define defaults for something that can be overridden by explicit definitions in Windows.

But OK: I do see your problem!

[Stef123]

I don't mean to get hung up on definitions. What's MORE generic or MORE specific depends on where you are. When I am in XY, I expect XY's stuff to override what comes from the system, no matter how non-generic (in terms of Win vanilla installations) it may be, file icons, open-with associations, whatever.

Changes like that make you wary of deploying other customizing stuff that the help file mentions. Why go through the motions - it might no longer work with the next update. I thought the wish of this thread was not having to set up a whole bunch of folder-images, it never occured to me it would override an old and tried XY feature.

This is the wrong order of preference, imo. If you're fine with whatever you set up outside of XY, in the system, this is what I call generic. What you do to override that, just and only and exclusively within XY, this is what I call specific. Folder.jpg should override desktop.ini, not vice versa as it is now.

[TheQwerty]

I agree that the order should actually be:
<curitem>\folder.jpg
<curitem>\folder.png
<curitem>\folder.gif
<curitem>\desktop.ini>[ViewState]>Logo
<curitem>\*.jpg


However, I think you should just not use folder thumbnails and instead rely on CFI/PFI to customize the icon. The usage of folder.[jpg|png|gif] is no better because your clients may already have that file too, leaving you with no way to modify the thumbnail for your own needs.

Until there's a way to specify custom thumbnails without touching the file system none of them is an XY-specific and portable solution.

[Stef123]

The usage of folder.[jpg|png|gif] is no better because your clients may already have that file too, leaving you with no way to modify the thumbnail for your own needs.

Hmm, that may be, but with this reasoning XY has faulty design to start with. I was quite happy with it nevertheless. If such a name really existed already, I'd see it when creating my own.