[Req] acces the context menu by clicking on the icon itself

[solid]

From where this hotkey came from?

The problem is that it is TC specific, and I prefer global solutions where it makes sense and in this case it do. I can use settings of Open With in Open, Save, Browse dialogs in any 3td party app that is aware of this dialog, in explorer, in IE..... everywhere... while CE is restricted to TC.

Well, since I started using TC i stopped using explorer, browse, and a lot reduced using open and save dialogs. Just use them to paste the path and filename from TC and forget all about them. Even some utilites for expanding possibilities of open/save dialogs became obsolete. At least for me.

So Choiceditor is smarter choice for me. It is much faster, and can directly open editor for some types that don't need choice. Also wherever i take TC, on other computers, all choices are here.

[majkinetor !]

... but the programs are not, so...

You can't avoid explorers interface... no matter how you try. Explorer IS system.

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications
is the key where Open With apps are obtained. Using this key things can be added or removed. Some batch script can simplify the task.

Open With can be also speeded up, by not using the mentioned procedure to show it, but to display it as a small menu the same way u get in Explorer.

[SanskritFritz]

2majkinetor !
The obvious step is now to write an AHK script to build the menu...

[Stance]

@All
I have edited my first posting: "Parameters".

TychoBarfy,
You are right, I have tested both versions before my posting and found that mine was faster,
snaggy wrote something about 10 seconds on his computer...
I wrote "shell32.dll" as a source for win -standard icons, it is up to him to customize icon and tooltip to his needs.
Both were just examples, I forgot to mention that.

snaggy
"majkinetor !" suggested to use the standard windows "Send To" -Menu for your task.
You can easy add a few links to often used programs into this folder:
(You can also rename these links)
C:\Documents and Settings\snaggy\SendTo\
...this will maybe faster on your computer and allways available in your contextmenu.

(I'm not that good in english)

You are kidding, aren't you?

majkinetor !
Your new avatar look so...mnemonic? I guess he don't use buttons.

The"Open With" -apps are also obtained in:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ FileExts\ <extension>"OpenWithList"

Kind regards
Stance

[XPEHOPE3KA]

2Stance
Why did you use %O.%E in your button instead of %N?

[majkinetor !]

The obvious step is now to write an AHK script to build the menu...

And guess who is the obvous choice to write it

Your new avatar look so...mnemonic? I guess he don't use buttons

Well, you know me, I am all in mnemonics...

And yes, OpenWithList must be iterated to see available handlers for extension. The key I suplied is used to populate longer list, of all applications.

Explorer IS system.

Maybe solid needs this sentence explained:

Operating System serves many purposes like providing unique API for programming, User Interfaces, and among many other things, one of its main purposes is to provide common places that all applications can use/change. Nobody said that MS did the best job trying to reach OS goals, but as any low is better then no low application programers should stick to rules MS declared. IF that was true, you would have your Bookmarks on one place (Favorites dir) and every browser would use this place, and you could forget about Bookmark Export/Import programs. The same is true for Open With and many other.AFAIK Linux is much better in making programers stick to the standards it provided.

To cut this story, applications need to communicate and you create the context by driving them. So you can later create all kind of things that does the job just perfectly to you and are unique because they reflect your style and thinking.

[SanskritFritz]

The obvious step is now to write an AHK script to build the menu...

And guess who is the obvous choice to write it

Hmm, I am pretty satisfied with ChoiceEditor, but maybe one day i will accept the challenge.

[majkinetor !]

bah !

You obviously don't know what superhero role means. Let me put a sunlight on this phenomena for you : superheroes are there for comunity not for themselves. So, if comunity needs something superhero delivers. Take Batman for example or Superman.

So, AHF, the comunity needs you once again...

[Stance]

Why did you use %O.%E in your button instead of %N?

TC -Help: "Dialog box: Change start menu"

Parameters: Here you can specify command line parameters.
Special parameters:
? as the first parameter causes a Dialog box to be displayed before starting the program, containing the following parameters. You can change the parameters before starting the program. You can even prevent the program's execution.
%P causes the source path to be inserted into the command line, including a backslash (\) at the end.
%N places the filename under the cursor into the command line.
%T inserts the current target path. Especially useful for packers.
%M places the current filename in the target directory into the command line.
%O places the current filename without extension into the command line.
%E places the current extension (without leading period) into the command line.
Note: %N and %M insert the long name, while %n and %m insert the DOS alias name (8.3). %P and %T insert the long path name, and %p and %t the short path name. (Same for %o and %e)
%% inserts the percent-sign.
%L, %l, %F, %f, %D, %d create a list file in the TEMP directory with the names of the selected files and directories, and appends the name of the list file to the command line. The list is deleted automatically when the called program quits. 6 types of list files can be created:
%L Long file names including the complete path, e.g. c:\Program Files\Long name.exe
%l (lowercase L) Short file names including the complete path, e.g. C:\PROGRA~1\LONGNA~1.EXE
%F Long file names without path, e.g. Long name.exe
%f Short file names without path, e.g. LONGNA~1.EXE
%D Short file names including the complete path, but using the DOS character set for accents.
%d Short file names without path, but using the DOS character set for accents.

Edit: %N was much slower on my computer.

Offtopic: Could you please upload a image in the english TCWiki, where the windows-contextmenu is shown? (Image:PathRightClick.png)
I can not do this because my OS isn't english...

Kind regards
Stance

[solid]

Maybe solid needs this sentence explained:

Operating System serves many purposes like providing unique API for programming, User Interfaces, and among many other things, one of its main purposes is to provide common places that all applications can use/change. Nobody said that MS did the best job trying to reach OS goals, but as any low is better then no low application programers should stick to rules MS declared.

I agree with the above, but what my meaning was that in a way i perform my everyday work, I hardly need, if at all, "Open with..." dialog box anywhere outside of TC and here is where CE comes. Simply there is no place, from where i call this box (even no use right click, and then open with...)

Choice editor does better job for me than "Open with". At least its speed is uncompareable. And I always prefer faster, lighter or better solutions for many tasks than built in windows features. At the end we are all here because we use TC and not explorer.

IF that was true, you would have your Bookmarks on one place (Favorites dir) and every browser would use this place, and you could forget about Bookmark Export/Import programs. The same is true for Open With and many other.AFAIK Linux is much better in making programers stick to the standards it provided.

Bookmarks, address book, caching and many other modules needs universal access, so any app that needs them, can use them. I remeber back in old days how this issue was solved on Amiga OS. There was filetypes, datatypes and other modules that were os level based, and improving this system modules, makes improvement on all applications. So with time some application expanded their possibilities only by expanding OS possibilities, not with change in application (like plugins for OS, which all apps can use them)

For example, if a datatype for some new image format was added to the system, all application can open this format, no need for newer version or update for each application.

Well, we got quite offtopic here...