Win File association

Windows associates data files with applications so that the right program is launched automatically when you click the data 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 display the image. All the popular file types have been associated in Windows, but you can change them and add new ones.

Changing a File Association
If you are changing a file association to a program that is not already in the file association list, you will have to know the name of the executable file (.EXE file) and its location (path) on the hard disk (see Win folder organization).

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

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).

Creating New File Associations
You can add a new file type to the list of file associations by doing the following. You have to know the location (path) of the executable application (.EXE file) you are associating the new file type with (see Win folder organization).

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.