Default News Handler

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I'm running Windows Mail, started with the /outnews parameter, under Windows
Vista Ultimate RTM. If I go to Tools | Options, on the General tab, it says
"This application is NOT the default news handler." If I click "Make
default" it changes to "...is the default...," but after OKing my way out
and immediately coming back to the same screen, it again says "This
application is NOT the default news handler."

Why doesn't this setting stick? What's the significance of its not being the
default news handler? Everything seems to work correctly (except for the
minor annoyance that the News button in Outlook 2007 doesn't go to Windows
Mail, but brings up an Explorer window of My Documents; the button used to
work before I upgraded to from Windows XP to Vista and Outlook 2003 to
2007).

 

[Steve Cochran]

Hi Ken,

The default is set here:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\News

For Vista you might try just using /news instead of /outnews.

Office likes to make itself default everything (see
www.oehelp.com/OETips.aspx#13), so I suspect the problem is something Office
is doing.

cheers,

steve

 

[Synapse Syndrome]

Hi Ken,

The default is set here:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\News

For Vista you might try just using /news instead of /outnews.

Office likes to make itself default everything (see
www.oehelp.com/OETips.aspx#13), so I suspect the problem is something
Office is doing.

I have found the same thing that Ken has, and I use /outnews as well. I
have switched to /news, as you suggest, but why do this? What is the
benefit? I prefer the old OE News icons you get with /outnews, heh.

PS. I don't have the problem with the Outlook news button, as I didn't know
there was one. Where is it?

ss.

 

[Steve Cochran]

If you'll examine the registry, then you'll see the Shell | Open command is

"%ProgramFiles%\Windows Mail\WinMail.exe" /news

which is why I suggested using that.

steve

 

[Ken Blake]

Hi Ken,

The default is set here:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\News

For Vista you might try just using /news instead of /outnews.

Office likes to make itself default everything (see
www.oehelp.com/OETips.aspx#13), so I suspect the problem is something
Office is doing.

Thanks, Steve. Changing the parameter to /news worked to make it the default
news handler, but the News button still fails to work.


--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup