Remove Programs from the "Open With" List

  • Thread starter Thread starter Steven
  • Start date Start date
S

Steven

To All:

How do I how to remove programs from the "Open With" List in the right click
menu in WinXP?

Apparently, the Registry fix for Win2000 in MSKB 258860:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;258860

that edits:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
Explorer\FileExts\.extension\OpenWithList

keys

does not work for WinXP, (even though they are both based on the NT kernal).

Thank you,

Steve
 
Thanks to Kellys-Korner for this. Use this site freely for all your
questions and solutions. Great resource
Cheers Doug
Context Menu - Customizing Windows Explorer Context menu (right click menu
in windows explorer)

Ever wondered how does the right click menu (which is actually a context
menu) work? For example, when I right click in windows explorer, I see an
option which says "open command window here". This is seen because you have
following entries in the registry.

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\cmd]
@="Open Command Window Here"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\cmd\command]
@="C:\WINDOWS\System32\cmd.exe /k cd "%1""

If You have never used a tweaking utility and have newly installed Windows
XP, You would not see this option. You would have to navigate to
[[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive] go and create two subkeys ("cmd" and within that
"command" and would have to put the text "Open Command Window Here" without
quotes in default string value of "cmd" key and the text
"C:\WINDOWS\System32\cmd.exe /k CD"%1"" without quotes in default string
value of command key). After this You need to REBOOT for these changes to
take effect.
Context Menus (Right Click) - Deleting entries

Click Start, Run and enter REGEDIT Go to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\OpenWithList
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers

You can also go to a specific File extension (example:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.txt\ShellNew) and right click on the ShellNew key and
select Delete, if the item shows up in the New context menu.

Expand the above branch and look through the sub-keys. Locate the one that
corresponds to the entry you wish to remove and right click that sub-key and
select Edit.

You may wish to right click the desired sub-key and select Export. This will
create a REG file that you can double click to re-import the information, if
you find out you deleted the wrong one, or want it back.

Customizing Right-Click Menu Options in Windows

Right Click - Submenus

The new OpenExpert is the answer to this problem! Instead of messing around
with a fixed association of a file type with only one application, it adds
an "Open with" item to the context menu of the chosen file type with all the
applications you decide.
 
Doug said:
Thanks to Kellys-Korner for this. Use this site freely for all your
questions and solutions. Great resource
Cheers Doug
Context Menu - Customizing Windows Explorer Context menu (right click
menu in windows explorer)

Ever wondered how does the right click menu (which is actually a
context menu) work? For example, when I right click in windows
explorer, I see an option which says "open command window here". This
is seen because you have following entries in the registry.

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\cmd]
@="Open Command Window Here"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\cmd\command]
@="C:\WINDOWS\System32\cmd.exe /k cd "%1""

If You have never used a tweaking utility and have newly installed
Windows XP, You would not see this option. You would have to navigate
to [[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive] go and create two subkeys ("cmd" and
within that "command" and would have to put the text "Open Command
Window Here" without quotes in default string value of "cmd" key and
the text "C:\WINDOWS\System32\cmd.exe /k CD"%1"" without quotes in
default string value of command key). After this You need to REBOOT
for these changes to take effect.
Context Menus (Right Click) - Deleting entries

Click Start, Run and enter REGEDIT Go to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\OpenWithList
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers

You can also go to a specific File extension (example:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.txt\ShellNew) and right click on the ShellNew key
and select Delete, if the item shows up in the New context menu.

Expand the above branch and look through the sub-keys. Locate the one
that corresponds to the entry you wish to remove and right click that
sub-key and select Edit.

You may wish to right click the desired sub-key and select Export.
This will create a REG file that you can double click to re-import
the information, if you find out you deleted the wrong one, or want
it back.

Customizing Right-Click Menu Options in Windows

Right Click - Submenus

The new OpenExpert is the answer to this problem! Instead of messing
around with a fixed association of a file type with only one
application, it adds an "Open with" item to the context menu of the
chosen file type with all the applications you decide.
Click to expand...

Doug:

Thank you for the prompt RE. I appreciate it.

After checking the MSKB, I also checked Kellys-Korner and the same
information that you provided above. I also checked the above Registry keys
for just 2 easy file extensions (.txt and .jpg). From what I found in my
Registry, and from what I read in Kellys-Korner, it did not make any sense
compared to the MSKB article for Win2000 (which made perfect sense to me).

I could run a test by 1) backing up a key and then 2) deleting the key and
the checking the results in the right click menu.

Perhaps you could better explain to me what Kellys-Korner is trying to
explain.

Thanks once again for your help.

Steve
 
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