Icon from shell32.dll displays incorrectly: Can you verify this ?

topgundcp · 19 Dec 2011

I created a new folder on desktop then right click->Property->Customize
and try to change Icon to icon#35 of shell32.dll according to IconExplorer4.2 which is a folder with
a tool picture on it. When I click on Apply the Folder Icon changed to a Control Panel icon which is icon #21 in shell32.dll. Can somebody try this out for me if it's the same on your system. I have 2 PC's both running Windows 7 Ultimate X64 and both behave the same way.
Thanks.
Please look at the picture of the Icon I want to change.

rustberger · 20 Dec 2011

I just did the same as what you did change icon same result as you.

topgundcp · 20 Dec 2011

rustberger said:

I just did the same as what you did change icon same result as you.

Thank you. For most of the icons in shell32.dll, they'll display correctly but quite a few icons that will display incorrectly, another example is the "Hand" icon, it will display a picture of the icon when you share a drive (2 heads).

When you customize an icon for a folder, a hidden file called "desktop.ini" is created in that folder with the icon ID in it, I double checked it and it is consistent with the ID shown in IconExplorer program. I am surprised that very few people have noticed this.

Bongo · 20 Dec 2011

Just checked this myself and you are right that is very strange not that it makes much of a difference but it is actually icon #36.

As a workaround you could put that icon in a folder store that folder is a safe place and when you go to change the folder icon navigate to it and apply it and it will work that way I just tried it.

Here is the icon and a zip folder below if you want it.
Jerry

topgundcp · 20 Dec 2011

Thank you Bongo and that's exactly what I have been doing. I extracted all the Icons from shell32.dll and Imageres.dll and put in a folder and use whenever I need but it seems odd that we have to do the workaround. FYI, the icon# is actually 35 (icon index started at 0), I verified it by opening the hidden file "desktop.ini" created for that folder. If you use icoFX to extract it then icon# is 36 and if you use iconExplorer then the # is 35.

Another thing that I don't understand is by looking in the registry, sometimes the icon index is set to a negative number. I google it and nowhere that I can get an explanation for it.