Customizing Media Folders

The features available in the My Pictures, My Music, and My Videos folders are actually based on templates that can also be applied to other folders on your system. For example, if you have images located in a folder other than My Pictures, you can set up that folder to use a template that gives it the same features as My Pictures. You can also customize a folder to show a specific image in Thumbnails view and to use an icon other than the generic folder icon.

To get started, first use Windows Explorer to display the folder you want to work with, and then select View, Customize This Folder. Windows XP opens the folder’s property sheet with the Customize tab displayed.

Selecting a Folder Template

In the Use This Folder Type As A Template list, choose one of the following templates:

• Documents Choose this template to give the folder the same features as a standard folder.

• Pictures Choose this template to give the folder the same features as the My Pictures folder.

• Photo Album Choose this template to give the folder the same features as the My Pictures folder, and also to display the folder in Filmstrip view by default.

• Music Choose this template to give the folder the same features as the My Music folder.

• Music Artist Choose this template for a folder that holds music by a single artist. This gives the folder the same features as the My Music folder, and it also opens the folder in Thumbnail view, which displays an album-art icon for each folder that holds an album by the artist.

• Music Album Choose this template for a folder that holds music from a single artist. This gives the folder the same features as the My Music folder, and it also opens the folder in Tiles view, which displays an icon for each track from the album.

• Video Choose this template to give the folder the same features as the My Videos folder.

If you want this template to be used for all the folder’s subfolders, select the Also Apply This Template To All Subfolders check box.

Changing the Folder Icon

In Thumbnails view, when folders are displayed in the right pane, Windows Explorer displays a folder’s icon with a picture. For example, if the folder uses the Music Album template, the folder’s Thumbnails icon displays a picture of the album cover (assuming you have an Internet connection and Media Player was able to download the album cover). Similarly, for a folder that uses the Pictures or Photo Album template, its folder icon will display the first four images that reside in the folder.

To change the image, click the Choose Picture button and use the Browse dialog box to select the image file you want to appear on the folder’s icon.

Insider Secret

Another way to specify the image used in a folder’s icon in Thumbnails view is to make a copy of the image inside the folder, and then rename that copy to Folder.jpg. Note that if you use the Choose Picture command to specify a different image, Windows XP ignores the Folder.jpg file. To use the Folder.jpg image again, click the Restore Default button.

This customization applies to folders shown in the right pane, displayed in Thumbnails view. To change the folder icon in other views, click the Change Icon button and use the Change Icon dialog box to choose a new icon.