On 16/08/2024 19:48, croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details" view. Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched high and low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a fix?

No. I haven't had the same or similar problem.

In Windows 11, You can right-click on your desktop and choose View >>
Medium Icons

See this image: <https://i.imgur.com/l0ixabp.png>

It might be the problem for you though this setting is for desktop
items. Try it and see if it makes any difference.

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I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details" view. Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched high and
low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a fix?

--
croy

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On 16.08.2024 20:48, croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details" view. Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched high and low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a fix?

If you select "open" in IrfanView a window opens where you can
also select how the files are displayed large/small icons,
details etc. (at the upper right corner).

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On 16/08/2024 20:49, Herbert Kleebauer wrote:

On 16.08.2024 20:48, croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details"
view.
Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time.  I've searched
high and
low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up
empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a
fix?

If you select "open" in IrfanView a window opens where you can
also select how the files are displayed large/small icons,
details etc. (at the upper right corner).

Irfanview and virtually all programs that use the standard Windows Open
or Save dialogues have the same drop down View menu as File Manager. If
you have a high resolution screen the View menu button may be very small
in Irfanview.

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On Fri, 8/16/2024 2:48 PM, croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details" view. Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched high and low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a fix?

comdlg and shell, use different settings.

Even when the GUID for them is the same ("Details" one),
the Sort By or Group by, can still upset the resultant view.

You can get into the right "neighbourhood" in the Registry, with this for guidance.
This should give you a registry key, for a particular folder.

https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/shellbagsview.zip

I would sooner experiment with (2) here, than wade into the Registry manually for this.
Since there does seem to be some sort of "inheritance" capability, editing
a particular registry setting might not be enough. Something could override it. Or, if the information is considered "corrupted", perhaps an override is used and the override is not saved. There are many possibilities. But basically,
the File Manager shell view of a folder and the OpenFile dialog, don't have
to use the same view. Why ? PowerUser-Dick-Thinking ??? Notice that the OpenFile
dialog, does not have the same preference setting capability (even using Customize),
that the Ribbon based shell had. There is no complete steering control, on
how the OpenFile dialog appears. Using Customize and "Apply to other folders" just does not work. No surprise really. It didn't even raise my blood
pressure, seeing that. Been there, it's still the same worn Tshirt.

https://superuser.com/questions/1752744/shell-bags-registry-hacks

https://lesferch.github.io/WinSetView/

https://codeload.github.com/LesFerch/WinSetView/zip/refs/heads/main

Name: WinSetView-main.zip
Size: 1,176,268 bytes (1148 KiB)
SHA256: C79754C2E5AED0ECDD3CCEC0DF152556CA69DDEEF3B344262DC8BCDA28A8B2C6

Have fun, I guess... :-/

I still have NOT managed to fix mine. There is one folder in particular,
that irritates me, but I haven't managed to fix it (yet).

Paul

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croy <croy@spam.invalid.net> wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details"
view. Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed
as huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched
high and low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found
a fix?

I don't use Irfanview, but do use XnView Classic. Its file browser
dialog is its own object, not some variant view of File Manager.

I found a screenshot of Irfranview's File -> Open menu at:

https://www.irfanview.net/tutorials/bartosz_makuch1/images/image007.jpg
from: https://www.irfanview.net/tutorials/bartosz_makuch1/irfan-view-quick-start-guide.htm

Does that look like File Manager to you? It is using its own browser
object to navigate the file system. That article has no datestamp, so
no idea how old is the article. Information's value degrades over time
(no longer applicable, invalid, incomplete) while some gains importance (history). Different versions of a program can use different objects,
like their own file manager, so what the latest version of Irfanview
uses now might not be what it has used in the past.

In fact, Irfanview has 2 different browser objects: the one above, and
this one:

https://www.irfanview.net/tutorials/bartosz_makuch1/images/image031.jpg

where you pick from a tree pane for navigation to select a folder in
which to view images within. Instead of using the File -> Open menu,
you use their File tab. Doesn't look like Microsoft's File Explorer.

Since the above article has no datestamp, doesn't mention the OS
version, and you didn't specify the version of Irfanview, does your
instance of IrfanView under Windows 10 use the Microsoft File Explorer
browser object, or does Irfanview still use its own browser?

Programs can use the standard [file] browser object in their code, or
they can code their own. Some custom browsers are really weird looking.
I remember MS Word had one that had a category pane on the left, and nav
pane on the right, like this:

https://ms.codes/cdn/shop/articles/word-2019--open-a-file--02.png?v=1709211193

and the Browse link was not File Explorer. They still have the overview
File -> Open dialog, but selecting Browse opens a standard browser
dialog. Whether that app-specific browser object uses the same settings
as File Explorer depends on how the app was coded for the browser
object. For example, on Windows 10 Home x64 22H2, I have File Explorer configured to use a Details view. In MS Word 2021, its browser object
uses whatever what its last used view, so it might show icons instead of
a filename list. Word remembers its view setting between instances of
Word which does not have to match the view settings in File Explorer.
Word's Browse uses the standard browser object, but retains its own view settings independent of those in File Explorer.

I take it Irfanview is not remembering your choice of Details view in Irfanview's browser. That's a problem with Irfanview not recording and
reusing prior views across multiple instances of that program.
Something you should bring up in the Irfanview forums where you can
discuss with a more focused community. Their forums is also where you
submit as bug reports.

https://irfanview-forum.de/

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On 8/16/2024 2:48 PM, croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details" view. Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched high and low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a fix?

I have the opposite. My Explorer view is set to medium
icons. I was able to customize it so that it shows them at
33px, to mimic the old medium icon display. (Thw Win10
version is either 16px lists or 48px grid.) You FileOpen
dialogues show variously. IrfanView shows small tiles. Some
other cases show details. Some show a small window.

I don't know why. Windows Explorer settings have been
broken for decades. They can only be controlled via arcane
tweaks and even then they tend to act up. The file browsing
windows, as Mike said, are a standard Windows function. So
it's likely just a case of Windows being screwed up.

Paul mentioned some of the settings that can be used to
control folder windows, but I'm not aware of a setting to
change FileOpen and FileSave. I'd be afraid to use the option
in the dialogue window. It might screw up my folders!

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On Fri, 8/16/2024 10:35 PM, Newyana2 wrote:

Windows Explorer settings have been broken for decades.

+1 , Amen to that.

I would like to hear what the staff think of it.
Maybe they charge $1 per rant too ? :-)

Paul

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On 17/08/2024 08:02, ...winston wrote:

croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details"
view.
Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time.  I've searched
high and
low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up
empty-handed.

Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a
fix?

On my Win10/11 devices
File/Open in Irfanview opens to its installed default view dialog box
That dialog box's tool bar has a 'View Menu' option.
 - after changing the option to Details, subsequent File/Open defaults
to the last chosen 'view' and afaics the last folder the last file was opened.

File/Save As likewise operates in similar fashion

The same in Windows 8.

However up to Windows 7 the view type in Folder Options was set for all folders.

With Windows 8 & newer you have to set the view in 5 different folder
types :General Items, Documents, Pictures, Music & Videos.

Even then it doesn't apply across the board. There are still folders
where the view has to be changed manually & IIRC the view type doesn't
stick but has to be changed every time those folders are viewed.

If you wish to look for more detailed info
Locate the i_view32.ini or i_view64.ini file in your
userprofile(normally AppData\Roaming\IrfanView)
- in the ini file you'll see file locations for
 [RecentFiles], [MRUD], [Save] and [Open]

 *MRUD (aka Most Recent Used Directory)

i.e. Irfan stores user chosen settings in an ini file, not the registry

--
Regards
wasbit

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...winston wrote:

[snip]

On a philosophical point, if a File Manager exists - which can be
configured with a wide variety of display options - then there should
never be any reason for any other app to contain any file management
facility whatever.

I have seen users who have no concept of how the file system works, and determinedly use the app to navigate the file system. Because every app
is different, and they all implement their file management in their own idiosyncratic ways, users get very confused. Users don't learn any way
to group related files in a given location. Indeed, some operating
systems (Apple iPads for example) completely prevent such grouping, so
for example pictures cannot be filed in the same place as text files or spreadsheets, where for a given project you might want exactly that sort
of grouping.

So for "File Open", use the File Manager to navigate to the desired
file, double click to open it. In Windows the file extension controls
which app is to open the file. Or "Open With ..." to choose the app.
Other operating systems may use a different mechanism but can achieve
the same effect.

For "File Save & Close" the app overwrites the original file. Or write
a new file with versioning.

The function "File Save As" presents more of a problem. The ideal would
be for the app to open the File Manager in order to specify the path &
filename for the save process. The full features of the File Manager
will be available, without the need for the app to do anything other
than receive a "hook" to the new path and filename.

A simpler option would be to retain the current path, and only allow a
new filename, possibly even a version increment of the original name.
If the user wants that file in another path, then he or she can use the
file manager to move the file later.

The user may wish the app to open several files. I'm not thinking here
of something like a word processor where several documents can be open simultaneously and - for example - material copied from one document to another; this can be done from the File Manager. I can't think of a
good example but one possibility might be a compiler app which needs
several source files and libraries. But in this case there is probably
a "build" option which allows all the sources to be specified in a
single file. This file then runs the app and provides all the arguments
it needs to complete.


--
Graham J

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On 8/17/2024 4:43 AM, wasbit wrote:

The same in Windows 8.

However up to Windows 7 the view type in Folder Options was set for all folders.

With Windows 8 & newer you have to set the view in 5 different folder
types :General Items, Documents, Pictures, Music & Videos.

Even then it doesn't apply across the board. There are still folders
where the view has to be changed manually & IIRC the view type doesn't
stick but has to be changed every time those folders are viewed.

All versions have been broken, at least back to XP. The settings were haphazard and broken. In XP, Explorer didn't save the settings
properly, so they'd be forgotten. I wrote my own scripts for both
XP and 7. I've also come up with a fix, partially using WinSetView,
on Win10. The trick is that you need to delete all folder settings
memory, then set what you want in an all folders key and specify
the folder type. I have all folder as general. All show in the window
size I want with the icon layout I want. BUT, it's still messed up.
If I switch the view manually in one folder temporarily for some
reason, I can't switch back and have to run the folder fix routine
all over again.

The Registry settings for this are incredibly complicated and have
changed with each Windows version, for no apparent reason. As I
recall, folders in Win98 worked properly, but I don't remember for
sure. Win98 was a beauty because each folder window was actually
an IE instance. The view itself was a webpage. What we now regard
as the view of folders and files was a listview control on that webpage.
So much of the folder could be customized. Microsoft demonstrated
that by putting a thumbctl ActiveX control and some graphics on the
left side. The thumbctl showed thumbnails of selected image files. I
miss that on Win10. I don't want tiles or giant previews, but I would
like to be able to click on a JPG and see a preview thumbnail.

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On 17.08.2024 19:29, croy wrote:

If you select "open" in IrfanView a window opens where you can
also select how the files are displayed large/small icons,
details etc. (at the upper right corner).

Right. I'm wondering why I have to do that every time I launch
Irfanview--it always defaults to either huge icons or thumbnails.

That's not normal. Maybe there is a problem with your ini file.

https://www.irfanview.com/faq.htm#PAGE3

Q: Problem: IrfanView won't save settings or there is a warning
about read-only INI file. Why?

A: There are 2 possibilities, first: your INI (i_view32.ini/i_view64.ini)
file (or whole IrfanView folder) is set to read-only, please change that (reinstall IrfanView, put the INI file into the App-Data folder); second:
some "smart" washer/restore tools/plugins are washing too much, please
exclude IrfanView files/folder from such actions. You can also redirect
the INI file to another folder (see another question below); also possible during the installation.

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On Fri, 16 Aug 2024 21:49:22 +0200, Herbert Kleebauer <klee@unibwm.de>
wrote:

On 16.08.2024 20:48, croy wrote:

I have Windows File Mangager set to view files in lists in "details" view. >> Works fine.

But when I open an app like Irfanview (but by no means limited to
Irfanview), and use the open or save dialogs, the files are displayed as
huge icons, with only a very few visible at a time. I've searched high and >> low in the apps, and in Windows, for a fix, but have come up empty-handed. >>
Does anyone listening here have (or had) the same problem, and found a fix?

If you select "open" in IrfanView a window opens where you can
also select how the files are displayed large/small icons,
details etc. (at the upper right corner).

Right. I'm wondering why I have to do that every time I launch
Irfanview--it always defaults to either huge icons or thumbnails.

--
croy

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On 8/17/2024 12:34 PM, ....winston wrote:

 - Though for Irfanview(the op's concern) not entirely applicable.
Irfanview uses File Explorer to do the Open/Save/SaveAs/Save original
folder but for these options the user's .ini file[1] stores its retained history
 [1] Irfanview installation provides the ability to create the .ini
file for each user or a global ini file. The former is recommended.

I think it's actually Windows that remembers, but only for a time.
Perhaps until next boot. I can set the style for IV and it sticks, but
the same works for my own software, which doesn't do anything
to track such things. similarly, my own software will remember where
to start browsing from, even though I'm not doing that.

As for the view style, I don't think that's even possible to control. According to the OPENFILENAME structure docs, one can set the
opening folder but if it's not set Windows will remember it. There's no
setting that I can see to choose display type, so I imagine that's also something that Windows tracks temporarily.

There are other factors, too. For example, Irfan View opens the
dialogue with 5 mostly useless locations on the left. My own software,
and my folder default, shows a system tree of drives.

Fyi...Win10 File Explorer has a Panes category. The Pane's 'Details
Pane' setting when enabled(i.e not the preview setting) shows a
thumbnail and related properties(date, dimension, size, sharing).

It doesn't show a thumbnail for me. It does show properties but
the file is just showing as the icon. In this case JPG. It's not
really what I want, anyway. It takes up too much space. I've
ended up using my own tools if I want to view images in a folder,
and double click, sometimes using Irfan View's Next arrow, if I
just want to see one or a few images. The Win98 version was very
handy. I copied it myself with an Explorer Bar. But my Bar is 32-bit,
so I can't use it on Win10.

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On Sun, 8/18/2024 10:43 AM, ...winston wrote:

Newyana2 wrote:

On 8/17/2024 12:34 PM, ....winston wrote:

  - Though for Irfanview(the op's concern) not entirely applicable. Irfanview uses File Explorer to do the Open/Save/SaveAs/Save original folder but for these options the user's .ini file[1] stores its retained history
  [1] Irfanview installation provides the ability to create the .ini file for each user or a global ini file. The former is recommended.

   I think it's actually Windows that remembers, but only for a time.
Perhaps until next boot. I can set the style for IV and it sticks, but
the same works for my own software, which doesn't do anything
to track such things. similarly, my own software will remember where
to start browsing from, even though I'm not doing that.

Irfanview *.ini retains the path
 Just look in i_view32.ini or i_view64.ini file

C:\Program Files\IrfanView\i_view64.ini <=== Irfanview thinks it is writing here. Folder is owned by TrustedInstaller

C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\IrfanView\i_view64.ini <=== Actual writes are here. The user owns this folder.

The scheme should work. It's a scheme Microsoft put in place,
so older programs that write to Program Files, will be "happy".
They write, and the write is redirected. I don't know if
that's a hardlink, or how it is implemented. A person who is
messing around, could always break the linkage somehow.

Paul

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