Win File association
Windows associates data files with applications so that the appropriate program is launched automatically when you click the icon or name of the file. The file can be on the desktop, in a folder or in an e-mail message. For example, if a GIF image is associated with the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer, whenever you select a file on the desktop or in Explorer that has a .GIF extension, the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer will be launched and immediately open that file. All the popular file types are already associated in Windows, but you can change which program opens them. If for any reason a file type (file extension) has not been defined, you can enter it along with the program that opens it.
To associate the same data files all the time to one program, do the following. To open a data file just one time with a different application, see Win Open With.
Windows Vista
1. Start menu/Control Panel
2. Select Programs/Default Programs
or
2. if in Classic View, Select Default Programs
3. Select Associate a file type...
4. Highlight a file type and select Change Program
Windows 2000/XP
1. Launch Explorer.
2. Select Tools/Folder Options/File Types.
3. Scroll down to the file type you want
and click the line.
4. Click Advanced.
5. Under Actions, double click "open."
6. Edit the contents of
"Application used to perform action."
either by typing in a new path or
selecting Browse, locating and double
clicking the .EXE file.
Windows 98
1. Launch Explorer.
2. Select Tools/Folder Options/File Types.
3. Scroll down to the file type you want
and double click the line.
4. Under Actions, double click "open."
5. Edit the contents of
"Application used to perform action."
either by typing in a new path or
selecting Browse, locating and double
clicking the .EXE file.
Windows 95/NT 4
1. Launch Explorer.
2. Select View/Options/File Types.
3. Scroll down to the file type you want
and double click the line.
4. Under Actions, double click "open."
5. Edit the contents of
"Application used to perform action."
either by typing in a new path or
selecting Browse, locating and double
clicking the .EXE file.
 |
| File Associations in Vista |
|---|
| The Vista dialog is more helpful than previous versions of Windows because it describes both the file and the program. |
 |
| File Associations in XP and 2000 |
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| The XP/2000 dialog is a little less cryptic than the one in 98 (below), because it spells out the name of the application. |
 |
| File Associations in 98 |
|---|
| In the Windows 98 File Association dialog, the name of the application is the executable program name (IEXPLORE.EXE). |
Windows 2000/XP
1. Launch Explorer.
2. Select Tools/Folder Options/File Types.
3. Click New.
4. Type the file extension into
"File Extension."
5. Click OK.
6. Click Advanced, then New.
7. Type open into the "Action" field.
8. Type in the path of the .EXE file in
"Application used to perform action."
either by typing in a new path or
selecting Browse, locating and double
clicking the .EXE file.
Windows 98
1. Launch Explorer.
2. Select Tools/Folder Options/File Types.
3. Select New Type.
4. Identify the file type by filling in
"Description of type:"
5. Type the file extension into
"Associated extension."
6. Click New.
7. Type open into the "Action" field.
8. Type in the path of the .EXE file in
"Application used to perform action."
either by typing in a new path or
selecting Browse, locating and double
clicking the .EXE file.
Windows 95/NT 4
1. Launch Explorer.
2. Select View/Options/File Types.
3. Select New Type.
4. Identify the file type by filling in
"Description of type."
5. Type the file extension into
"Associated extension."
6. Click New.
7. Type open into the "Action" field.
8. Type in the path of the .EXE file in
"Application used to perform action."
either by typing in a new path or
selecting Browse, locating and double
clicking the .EXE file.
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