Desktop Icons without Text


Recommended Posts

I would suggest changing the first lines in the My Computer.reg from:

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{00000000-5000-0000-0000-000000000002}\DefaultIcon]

@="C:\\Windows\\Explorer.exe,0"

to:

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{00000000-5000-0000-0000-000000000002}\DefaultIcon]

@="%WINDIR%\\Explorer.exe,0"

As it is right now, it screws up the icon if are on a dual boot machine with Windows not on C:\ or if you changed your WINDOWS folder name.

I have a Windows XP install in D:\WINXP and this fixed the icon.

Thank you for this great mod, i have been using it for a very long time and it only keeps getting better and better!! :)

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

The links work again!

Virtual Plastic has moved to a new server (Plastic forgot to add my domain :pinch: ).

+ Some of the files where blocked due to the large download traffic from the PowerDVD 7 skins.

Thanks for all the "thank yous"! :D

I?m glad to see that they are useful to so many people!:):)

Redllar has created a greafreeu> gui based reg file editor and viewerRegpadb>.

With Regpad, you can view and edit the expandable string values (see the Tutorial for more info):):)

Heres a little program i wrote to make changing the icon easier.

Can be used as a stand-alone program , or via a "Change Icon" entry to the icon's context menu.

It uses the CLSID ( with the brackets ) as a command line and writes the chosen icon selection back to the correct CLSID in the registry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Enjoy.

Thanks for this great little app!:):)

I do not like winxp,I am using win2000 server . Can I utilize this software?

the settings are too hard.

Yep, should be no problem.

So what exactly is the easiest way to install this mod?

I really would just like the start menu mod that is shown.

I described the easiest way @ post #1.:ermm:m:

I would suggest changing the first lines in the My Computer.reg from:

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{00000000-5000-0000-0000-000000000002}\DefaultIcon]

@="C:\\Windows\\Explorer.exe,0"

to:

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{00000000-5000-0000-0000-000000000002}\DefaultIcon]

@="%WINDIR%\\Explorer.exe,0"

As it is right now, it screws up the icon if are on a dual boot machine with Windows not on C:\ or if you changed your WINDOWS folder name.

I have a Windows XP install in D:\WINXP and this fixed the icon.

Thank you for this great mod, i have been using it for a very long time and it only keeps getting better and better!!:):)

Missed that one...:pinch:h:

Most of the regs already contain variable paths.:):)

Hey herby , Can you make shortcuts for

  1. Yahoo! Messenger
  2. Nokia PC Suite
  3. Flashget
  4. Windows Live Mail desktop beta
  5. Windows Live Messenger
  6. Windows Media Player 11

Than:):)

I'm very busy atm (I just moved to my new house).

I'll get on it (+ the other requests) asap, meanwhile you can try to create them with SCCU (see post #1).

  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Hello and thank you for the excellent desktop mods!

I am running Windows XP Pro. I installed several icons to my desktop: Foobar2000, Firefox, MS Office. I modified shell32.dll as outlined on the first page. After rebooting, the ?create shortcut? menu item was removed. By coincidence, I happened to run Windows Update later that night. I noticed this morning ?create shortcut? was back in the menu. I am guessing this resulted from updating my system. Has anyone else noticed this? I will be look through the pages of this thread to see if this has already been discussed.

In the final steps of modding shell32.dll, these instructions have me slightly confused:

6) Download and extract Create_Shortcut.zip.
7) Copy CreateShortcut.exe to the Windows or System32 directory and
   merge "Create Shortcut - install.reg" into the registry.

I think the purpose here is to allow restoring/removing ?create shortcut? to the context menu without further mods to shell32.dll. Is this true?

Thank you again for the registry mods and especially for the excellent information. It inspired me to clean up my desktop and simplify my start menu.

post-207128-1172396789.png

In the final steps of modding shell32.dll, these instructions have me slightly confused: Is this true?[/strike]

... I wanted to include \n (newline) characters in my shell icon InfoTips. That is, I wanted to enter them using my custom regedit merge file. (I could manually paste them via regedit, but that's a pain). As far as I can tell, the only way to input x0D values would be using a hex string.

Here is a worksheet (Excel 2000) to generate a list of comma-separated hex values when you enter a text string. The tilde character is used to force line breaks. The following (including continuations) was made using the worksheet:

;  Firefox (default) ~~*  right-click for   *~*  context menu  *
   "InfoTip"=hex(2):20,00,46,00,69,00,72,00,65,00,66,00,6F,00,78,00,20,00,28,00,\
   64,00,65,00,66,00,61,00,75,00,6C,00,74,00,29,00,20,00,0D,00,0D,00,2A,00,\
   20,00,20,00,72,00,69,00,67,00,68,00,74,00,2D,00,63,00,6C,00,69,00,63,00,\
   6B,00,20,00,66,00,6F,00,72,00,20,00,20,00,20,00,2A,00,0D,00,2A,00,20,00,\
   20,00,63,00,6F,00,6E,00,74,00,65,00,78,00,74,00,20,00,6D,00,65,00,6E,00,\
   75,00,20,00,20,00,2A,00

post-207128-1172397098.png

Edited by danny_8
nice work i have to say. but the tuneup is outdated.. if u r free please make one for 2007 version :D that is if u r free!

I'm still pretty busy -> added to the 2do list. :)

In the final steps of modding shell32.dll, these instructions have me slightly confused:
6) Download and extract Create_Shortcut.zip.
7) Copy CreateShortcut.exe to the Windows or System32 directory and
   merge "Create Shortcut - install.reg" into the registry.

I think the purpose here is to allow restoring/removing ?create shortcut? to the context menu without further mods to shell32.dll. Is this true?

It adds "Create Shortcut" to the context menu of all files, you can also skip this part and right click + dragg a file to create a shortcut.

Thank you again for the registry mods and especially for the excellent information. It inspired me to clean up my desktop and simplify my start menu.

That's the goal! :happy:ppy:

I wanted to include \n (newline) characters in my shell icon InfoTips. That is, I wanted to enter them using my cusregedit merge file. (I could manually paste them via regedit, but that's a pain). As far as I can tell, the only way to input x0D values would be using a hex string.

You can view and edit Expandable String Values with Regpad (see first post).

It adds "Create Shortcut" to the context menu of all files, you can also skip this part and right click + dragg a file to create a shortcut
Ah ha! I finally see! You added "Create Shortcut" back to the context menu item for all folders and files, but the previous shell32.dll mod removed it from the context menu for shell icons! (Previously I was, like, why?'s he adding the menu itemback> again?) I struggled to realize this. I was distracted by all the other possibilities. Frankly, I'm delighted to have found neowin.net and this thread. I landed here after google-ing to locate the command syntax for sndvol32.exe.

BTW, I'm using the second method you mentioned, simply right-clicking/dragging to make shortcuts. It occurs to me I could enable "create shortcut" menu items only for specific file types as an alternative (I believe this is possible). Although they're sometimes essential, cluttered/complicated menus irritate me!

One thing I notice after reading ≈80% of this thread: you are very patient and helpful. Props! Thanks for the reminder about RegPad. I??'m checking it out now.

Here is a worksheet (Excel 2000) to generate a list of comma-separated hex values when you enter a text string. It's all done with formulas?there are no macros. This sheet helps me to create Infotips containing line breaks.

I revised the sheet I mentioned a few posts back.

string_convert.zip

It is a little bit hard. Myself, I had to re-read the instructions a few times before they sunk in.

Merging means you double-click on registry files to merge them with your system registry. The first order of business is to download the ACM.zip package which contains the registry files. There are 'add' files to add shell icons, and 'remove' files to remove shell icons (in case you don't like them).

If you have any questions or suggestions, please PM me or Post 'em here.

To the ones who rated this topic: Thanks for the 5 stars! :happy:

[/Herby]

? ACM.zip ( 272 KB )

Go to the first page of this thread. Find the end of the first (rather long) posting. It looks something like thequote -> above.

Find the link to ACM.zip and download that file. If Herby updates the zip file, the new download will still be available at that same location.Don't download ACM_dock.zip, by the way.>

Uncompress ACM.zip. Select one of the .reg files (say, control panel) and merge that with your registry. Click on your desktop and press F5. That is your first shell icon. Right-click on the shell icon and you'll see what all the fuss is about.

The following thread may help to explain shell icon usage:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/s...eptember16.mspx

  • 5 weeks later...

Hi, My name is a Danielle de Sanctis and I am just a Physical Ed professor from the U Mass and all this stuff is new to me because I just began to really learn to use the internet and I have been joining all these random sites. I thought this one looked interesting so I joined it and I joined another because a lot of my female students have eating disorders so I thought it would be a good place to go and learn about them so that I know the signs to look out for. Anyway, with all that said, I have the new Vista on my computer so will these instructions for that the same way? Thanks,

Danielle de Sanctis

Edited by Danielle de Sanctis

@ danny_8: Thanks for your help! :D

Hi, My name is a Danielle de Sanctis and I am just a Physical Ed professor from the U Mass and all this stuff is new to me because I just began to really learn to use the internet and I have been joining all these random sites. I thought this one looked interesting so I joined it and I joined another because a lot of my female students have eating disorders so I thought it would be a good place to go and learn about them so that I know the signs to look out for. Anyway, with all that said, I have the new Vista on my computer so will these instructions for that the same way? Thanks,

Danielle de Sanctis

Hi Danielle, welcome to the internet & Neowin! :)

Neowin is a great community, lots of nice folks here.

Some are stuck in an everlasting puberty, but you got that everywhere.

Anyway,.. no eating disorders at my side (I have ADHD). :D

About the Shell Icons: some CLSIDs changed, but most of them should work fine in Vista.

In Herby's zip file of shell icon samples (see the first page of this thread), one example creates an icon (with no text label) for a folder "My Dump." The name of the file is Add Folder Example.reg. Merging this file with your system registry creates a new shell icon on your desktop.

The icon behaves like a folder, except it can't be deleted or renamed. It has no name, of course. When you click the icon, it opens the folder "My Dump". When you drop a file (or other object) on the icon, it moves the file to "My Dump". The dropping behavior is special, not found in the other samples in Herby's collection.

Does anybody know how to create an equivalent to this folder icon, except using an application? For example, an icon representing notepad, upon which you drop files whereupon they'll be opened using notepad. I experimented with attributes described at this page from virtualplastic.net, but did not have success. That information may not be up-to-date. Suggestions would be welcomed.

  • 2 weeks later...
In Herby's zip file of shell icon samples (see the first page of this thread), one example creates an icon (with no text label) for a folder "My Dump." The name of the file is Add Folder Example.reg. Merging this file with your system registry creates a new shell icon on your desktop.

The icon behaves like a folder, except it can't be deleted or renamed. It has no name, of course. When you click the icon, it opens the folder "My Dump". When you drop a file (or other object) on the icon, it moves the file to "My Dump". The dropping behavior is special, not found in the other samples in Herby's collection.

Does anybody know how to create an equivalent to this folder icon, except using an application? For example, an icon representing notepad, upon which you drop files whereupon they'll be opened using notepad. I experimented with attributes described at this page from virtualplastic.net, but did not have success. That information may not be up-to-date. Suggestions would be welcomed.

Virtual Plastic is where I got the info that allows SCCU to create Shell folder and objects, great source.

  • 1 month later...
This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • A few years ago walmart had the 512 models on clearance for $35. I bought 3 of them. I should have purchased more.
    • I'm fine with a little reasonable promotion of Edge, but the degree which they do it right now I consider extremely unreasonable. 
    • Microsoft AI boss no longer believes that AI will replace human workers by David Uzondu Mustafa Suleyman, the head of Microsoft AI, recently took back his statements concerning white-collar jobs that he gave to the Financial Times in an interview made back in February, where he claimed that AI would replace office workers within 12 to 18 months. On Monday's episode of The Verge's Decoder, Suleyman recast the technology as more like a helpmate than a tool designed to take over your job. He explained that smaller office duties will "increasingly become digitized, automated" as people generate more digital materials. During the discussion, Suleyman emphasized a "very important distinction" between "tasks" and "jobs" to clarify his previous claims. He argued that his earlier comments only referred to individual actions that people perform at their desks. Suleyman used to work for DeepMind, the research lab he co-founded in 2010 alongside Demis Hassabis and Shane Legg, before he left in 2022 to establish Inflection AI and build an empathetic digital assistant. Microsoft hired him in March 2024 to lead its newly formed "Microsoft AI" division, placing him in charge of consumer products like Copilot, Bing, and Edge. His February comments also detailed plans for Microsoft to achieve self-sufficiency with a $140 billion infrastructure budget to train frontier models, predicting that creating a customized AI will soon feel like creating a podcast or a new blog: The 41-year-old is not the only AI executive who's softened his "AI will replace you" stance. OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, last month used X to push back against employment panic by arguing that his startup builds tools to assist humans rather than build replacements. He had previously garnered backlash by suggesting that many modern office roles that AI might replace did not qualify as "real work" in the first place, at least when you compare desk jobs to physical, historical labor like farming.
    • Adobe Acrobat Reader DC 2026.001.21662 by Razvan Serea Adobe Acrobat Reader DC software is the free, trusted standard for viewing, printing, signing, and annotating PDFs. Its the only PDF viewer that can open and interact with all types of PDF content – including forms and multimedia. It’s connected to Adobe Document Cloud – so you can work with PDFs on computers and mobile devices. Adobe Document Cloud is a revolutionary, modern and efficient way to get work done with documents in the office, at home or on-the-go. At the heart of Document Cloud is the all-new Adobe Acrobat DC, which will take e-signatures mainstream by delivering free e-signing with every individual subscription. Document Cloud includes a set of integrated services that use a consistent online profile and personal document hub. With Adobe Document Cloud, people will be able to create, review, approve, sign and track documents whether on a desktop or mobile device. Businesses will be able to take advantage of Document Cloud for enterprise which provides enterprise-class document services that integrate into systems of record such as CRM, HCM, CLM, and CMS, adding speed, efficiency and transparency to getting business done with documents. Adobe Acrobat Reader DC new feature highlights: Work with PDFs from anywhere with the new, free Acrobat DC mobile app for Android or iOS. Select functionality is also available on Windows Phone. Use the new Fill & Sign tool in your desktop software to complete PDF forms fast with smart autofill. Download the free Adobe Fill & Sign mobile app to add the same option to your iPad or Android tablet device. Save money on ink and toner when printing from your Windows PC. Store and access files in Adobe Document Cloud with 5GB of free storage. Get instant access to recent files across desktop, web, and mobile devices with Mobile Link. Sync your Fill & Sign autofill collection across desktop, web, and iPad devices. Adobe PDF Pack premium features includes: Convert documents and images to PDF files. Use your mobile device camera to take a picture of a paper document or form and convert it to PDF. Turn PDFs into editable Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or RTF files. Combine multiple files into a single PDF (web only). Get signatures from others with a complete e-signature service. Send, track, and confirm delivery of documents electronically instead of using fax or overnight services (tracking not available on mobile). Store and access files online with 20GB of storage. Download: Adobe Acrobat Reader DC 64-bit | 719.0 MB (Freeware) Link: Adobe Acrobat Reader DC Home Page | Release Notes | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
    • Meta will now use data from outside businesses to personalize AI responses by David Uzondu In an update that's rolling out globally (except in a handful of countries), Meta will use your data from outside businesses to personalize your AI responses and your primary feeds. Meta already utilizes your shopping activity to target ads, but the company now plans to expand this tracking to personalize other "parts of your experience" like feed algorithms and AI assistant chats. The company is replacing the two settings ("Your activity off Meta technologies" and "Activity from other businesses") that currently let you disconnect off-platform activity with a single, renamed setting called Activity from other businesses. If you don't want Meta to manipulate your feed and AI responses using your outside history, you can just turn the Activity from other businesses setting off in your account settings. This toggle resides within your Accounts Center, applying your choice to every connected profile. Turning this off will not stop companies from sending your data to Meta. The company will still collect your web interactions, but it only uses them to train products, while still accessing external accounts you connect. When The Verge spoke to Meta spokesperson Emil Vazquez, the representative said that this update will exclude several locations at launch, including the European region, the UK, Brazil, Thailand, South Africa, Turkey, South Korea, Ecuador, Nigeria, and Kenya. The new update comes at a time when the social media giant is recovering from a major PR disaster involving generative AI. Last week, there was a huge security issue on Instagram where attackers figured out a way to trick Meta AI into handing over account ownership (even if the victim had 2FA enabled). Some of the affected accounts include the dormant Obama White House profile, cosmetics brand Sephora, the Chief Master Sergeant of the Space Force, and security researcher Jane Manchun Wong. Internally, the company also had to scale back plans on its Model Capability Initiative (MCI), an employee-monitoring program designed to train corporate AI models by recording worker keystrokes and screen activity, after employees raised privacy concerns and complained about severe battery life drain.
  • Recent Achievements

    • One Year In
      Primer1st earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Experienced
      JayZJay went up a rank
      Experienced
    • Reacting Well
      Sir_Timbit earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • Week One Done
      rubentuben8 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      ARaclen earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      512
    2. 2
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      229
    3. 3
      Edouard
      134
    4. 4
      ATLien_0
      87
    5. 5
      Steven P.
      80
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!