by Joyce Kohl
November 26, 1998
Viewing Graphics
Whenever you open My Computer and open folders with graphics all you normally see is a generic icon to represent the graphic. Some people have invested in special thumbnail viewers or perhaps have one installed by some program that uses thumbnail views to catalog a huge collection of graphics. Or maybe you use a utility like PowerDesk (see my review of PowerDesk) to view graphics in the various folders on your computer.
What's a "thumbnail?" It's a standardized smaller version of any graphic. So when you view graphics by thumbnails, they all appear as the same size which then enables looking through all of them in a more or less large icon view.
NOTE to Webmasters or collectors of Websites: HTML files will also display in thumbnails!
The default view of icons in folders when using My Computer is like this:
Using the steps to enable viewing graphics in thumbnails will result in this view:
First step: Highlight the folder you wish to change to thumbnail viewing. Then right-click on it, select Properties which is at the bottom of the box that pops up:
Second step: Click in the Enable thumbnail view box, then click OK:
Third step: From My Computer, open the folder containing graphics, click on View in the Toolbar, cursor down to and select the NEW option, Thumbnails. If you don't see the new option, you probably did something wrong.
The speed of changing the generic icons to thumbnails depends on how many graphics are in the folder and the speed of your system. Repeat the three steps for each folder in which you want the thumbnail option to be available.
Customizing Folders
Here's a new discovery I made recently. When trying to colorize one of my folders, I learned I could use an image for the background of an open folder. Yeah, I know, this option has been around from day one, but it's new to me and maybe it will be to you, too. Here's a screenshot showing how my work folder looks with a simple background and the font colorized:
First Step: Open the folder you want to change, Select View/Customize this Folder
Second Step: Select Choose a Background Picture, then click Next
Third Step: Select the image, select text color, then click Next
Fourth Step: On the next screen that pops up, click on Finish. That's it! Simple, huh?
Pixel by Pixel Mouse Pointer Control
For this tip you'll need to have the Accessibility Options applet installed. If you don't, then install it through the Control Panel - Add/Install, then Windows Setup.
This is one of my most patience-saving "tricks" - and ultimately time-saving. First, from the Control Panel, click on Accessibility Options, then click on the Mouse tab and check the Use MouseKeys. The next time you want to move the mouse pointer just a teensy bit - one pixel at a time - use the arrow keys on your keypad. Yes, your mouse will continue to work the same as always, but now you'll have an added "hidden feature."
Copyright © 1998 by Joyce Kohl
"Go Inside" is a David Boles Trademark