Looking for solutions to several small Windows 7 Annoyances

Hello Windows 7 Expert.

Below are my Windows 7 annoyances which I am sure must have a solution. I did not experience these annoyances under XP. I have lived with these annoyances for a while but am now looking for a solution.

1) In most Folders I want the files to be sorted Alpha Numerically. There is one Folder specifically I want sorted by Modified date. When I sort this specific Folder by Modified Date all other Folders are now sorted by modified date. How can I set sorts to be specific for each folder and not globally.

2) When I delete a file in a folder it doesn't disappear unless I hit the refresh button. This happens consistently when I navigate to the folder by right clicking a desktop shortcut and selecting Open File Location. If I open a folder regularly and delete files they do disappear immediately.

3) When I have a file on my desktop and I modify it Windows 7 changes it's position on the desktop to some default position. I would like the file to remain in the same location on the desktop after I have modified it.

4) I often do presentations and when I hoop up to some projectors my icons on my desktop get scrambled. Next time I restart my computer all my icons remain scrambled. To resolve this I always save a System Restore Point before a presentation. After the presentation I run the System Restore. I have noticed that the icons on my desktop are not always in the same positions as the original Restore Point. It's fairly close, like 90%, but not 100%. Why?

5) Sometimes when I open a specific email in Outlook it's not maximized and other times it is. This appears to be random behavior. Happens sometimes with other programs other than Outlook too I think. It forces an extra Maximize click and me wondering why it didn't open maximized this time.

6) Not sure if this is Windows 7 or Outlook issue. Ever since I started using Windows 7 instead of XP all my embedded images in sent emails are distorted (much lower quality) than the original embedded image. When I check old sent emails in XP the images are crystal clear. I would like my embedded images to appear the same quality when they are sent.

Thank you for the advice and recommended solutions.

The folder sort issue in #1 is probably due to the issues discussed/demonstrated in this post/thread:
Question about Windows 7 Control Panel\Programs\Programs and Features

The repeated use of System Restore is probably the cause of several of your other items. The System Restore process is far from perfect and (in my opinion) should only be used in emergencies. Use a tool like Desktop Restore to put you desktop objects (shortcuts, files, folders) back in place.

Maybe other forum members have suggestions for your other items/annoyances.

whs said:

ad #4 - Icons do not belong on the desktop. Use this method:

Toolbars - How to Use in Windows 7 and Vista

Sure they belong on the desktop. It is background pictures that do not belong on desktops

I'm just joking with you. That info/video is a good addition to this thread... but now I'll ramble on a bit:

I find that some people use the desktop as a temporary work space; others, not so much. I have items on my desktop that only stay there for a few minutes while I work on them. Then they are moved off to a file server.

That Desktop tool bar method is horribly slow when you have lots of objects on the desktop. It takes much too long between first clicking on the Desktop tool bar and finally clicking on the desired object. Since I'm on a laptop (without a mouse), hovering over several nested folders/menus in the Desktop tool bar is not ideal.

I do use the Desktop tool bar at times. I've used it for many years - long before W7. However, my desktop objects are neatly arranged by theme (e.g. things related to networking are in the lower right corner. Things that I stream several times each day are in the upper right corner. Very temporary objects go in the middle.) I use each desktop object frequently enough to want them on the desktop. It is - of course - a matter of preference.


I do keep lots of shortcuts in about a dozen folders and sub-folders on the desktop - but many of those shortcuts get changed/updated quite often (think m3u8 streams). It is much easier to update those shortcuts using a Windows Explorer GUI than the Desktop tool bar menu.

The repeated use of System Restore is probably the cause of several of your other items. The System Restore process is far from perfect and (in my opinion) should only be used in emergencies.

I wasn't aware of this. I thought System Restore was pretty solid. Thanks for the Heads up.

Use a tool like Desktop Restore to put you desktop objects (shortcuts, files, folders) back in place.

Thanks for the suggestions.

One way that usually ensures that they stay put, once you arrange them the way you want, is to right click on an empty spot on the desktop, then left click on Refresh.

This worked. Thank you.

It was caused by accessing my folders and files through the shortcuts on the Start Menu;

This problem occurs for me even when I access the folder through Explorer.

I much prefer an imaging program called Macrium Reflect (Macrium Reflect Free for the free version)

I image my HD every night with Acronis. Haven't had to use it yet though.

At this point items 3) and 4) are resolved.

Am I to assume that you are not experiencing issues 1), 2) and 5) and these are possibly caused by System Restore?

Thanks for your feedback.

Lady Fitzgerald,
I could be wrong, but I think that ions is saying that he does not access files by "clicking on Documents, Music, or Photos". I don't get to files that way either and yet I've seen the issue in #1.


ions,
In post #2, I link to an old post that shows why issue #1 happens. That old post has a fix. Did you try that fix and it failed?

Here is the link to the old post again:
Question about Windows 7 Control Panel\Programs\Programs and Features

and here is one way to fix issue #1:
Folder View Settings - Reset All to Default