Symbolic Links

[Bill Bridges]

A good article on Symbolic Links. A really good tool where disk space can be an issue. I use them a lot on my flight sim.

[Paul Millner]

Hi Bill,

That was interesting. What I’d like to do is create a shortcut or link that will open file t.txt, buried deep in the directory structure, with notepad. I could do that in Windows 7, but in 10, that shortcut simply opens a dialog box with half a dozen apps that can open text files. Worse... the dialog box requires me to use the mouse to scroll and select notepad, no quick key way to pick notepad.

not sure why the Win7 way went away, but how do I do this in Win10?

TIA! Paul

[Ward Miller]

Hi Bill,

not sure why the Win7 way went away, but how do I do this in Win10?

TIA! Paul

Paul, way back in the daze (!) I was developing operating systems there were always a few developers who would migrate to the development of the new version, thus keeping GUI and other key elements in the same ballpark. With recent upgrades of Windows, it appears a whole new team designed the next version, ground up. Like they either were not familiar with the previous version, or they felt THIS version would be THE version to replace ALL prior versions, conventions be damned, because we are smarter than them, and the users will, with time, get used to the new (and better?) conventions.

Back then I was often heard to say, "A change is not necessarily an improvement!"

[Russell Holton]

but in 10, that shortcut simply opens a dialog box with half a dozen apps that can open text files. Worse... the dialog box requires me to use the mouse to scroll and select notepad, no quick key way to pick notepad.

I'm doing that in Win10. It sounds like you don't have a default program selected to open .txt files. When you go though the dialog, is there a check box that says something like "Always use this app to open .txt files."?

[Paul Millner]

I'm doing that in Win10. It sounds like you don't have a default program selected to open .txt files. When you go though the dialog, is there a check box that says something like "Always use this app to open .txt files."?

Nope, no make this the default checkbox...

[Russell Holton]

Nope, no make this the default checkbox...

Try this: In the list of programs should be something like "choose another program". Pick that. You should see the mentioned checkbox as well as the original list of programs to choose from.