Windows XP in a Nutshell

Name

Icons

Synopsis

Strictly speaking, anicon is any small picture used to symbolize an object or a function in the interface. Icons commonly appear in menus and on toolbars, but the term is most often used to describe the objects that represent files and folders on your Desktop and in Windows Explorer.

Chapter 2 covers the basic use of icons, especially in the way they can be opened, moved, copied, and deleted. Right-click any icon to display its context menu. (See Context Menus, earlier in this chapter.)

The image used for a given icon depends on the type of object it represents, as does the procedure for customizing that icon. For example, the icons for My Computer, Recycle Bin and other Desktop “namespace” objects can be customized by right-clicking on an empty area of the Desktop and going to Properties → Desktop tab → Customize Desktop.

The icon used for a document depends on its type; all .txt files use the same icon, all.jpg files use the same icon, and so on. Icons for most file types can be changed by going to Tools → Folder Options → Files Types tab in Explorer (see Figure 3-11). The exceptions are application executables (.exe files), which have their own icons. All folders (except special folders, like My Documents and My Pictures) use the same icon, and cannot be changed without a third-party add-on like Microangelo (Version 5.5 or later; available from http://www.impactsoftware.com/).

You can change the icon for any Windows Shortcut or Internet Shortcut by right-clicking, ...