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How to customize the context menu for productivity in Windows. Customizing the Windows context menu for yourself 4.5 how to call the sheet context menu

In order for the computer to understand the user, and the user to explain to the computer what he wants from him, there are elements such as menus (there are several types) and graphical interface. We will devote this publication to one of the categories related to this topic - how to call context menu in Windows and what it is.

Menu is an element GUI Windows

When people talk to each other, they do not think about the fact that the language of communication is one of the types of interface. In principle, the user, giving commands from a set of available lists, receiving requests from the OS, opening windows, using scroll bars, uses the graphical interface without thinking about what it is.

The concept of interface is quite broad. If we talk about the Context Menu (English) as a component of the graphical interface, then we should imagine it as an element of dialogue with the operating system (computer).

Calling

Context Menu is a list (list, set) of commands available to the user regarding some object. Now let's look at how the context menu opens. Before opening the context menu, you need to place the cursor (mouse) on some object (activating it). And after that you can call it in different ways:

  • Right mouse;
  • A combination of “Shift” and “F10”;
  • Also, the context menu is called by pressing special button- it is located between “ALT” and “CTRL”.

The set of its commands can be different and depends on what object was called on (in which area of ​​the screen):

Filling

The Context Menu is sometimes also called the “Explorer” or “Action” menu. Its appearance really does not depend on the object of the call, which cannot be said about the different content it contains with commands.

Compare the Context Menu invoked on the desktop:

with Context Menu called above the folder:

Do you feel the difference?

Conclusion - this set of possible actions depends on what type of object is applied to in a particular case (file, shortcut, folder, desktop, etc.).

Pay attention to the first picture - if a triangle-arrow is visible at the right end of the list line, this means the existence of a submenu in it (in this case, the submenu directory is the one that has opened).

Add Shift

If, when calling the Context Menu with the right mouse, we add to this the pressing of the “Shift” button, we will see a list that has increased from one to several lines (on the right). This sometimes gives additional convenience:

Finding a location

Since the Context Menu has a different set of commands for files and directories, its placement (and its settings) in the Windows Registry is different.

For directories, its place is here:

For files - already in another registry branch: in the “shell” and “shellex\ContextMenuHandlers” folders:

Setting up

When new applications are added to the computer, the list is updated with new items and expanded. For some users, working with a window takes on a tinge of agony. Look:

In addition, someone will want to customize the list of right-click commands to suit their tastes and installed programs. Such reformation is carried out either manually, working with the Registry, or using third party applications. Our separate publication will be devoted to this topic.

From the same publication, you now know how to call the context menu, what it is, you got acquainted with the types, content, and location.

The Explorer context menu is the menu that appears when you right-click (Right Mouse Button) on some object (file or folder) or simply on an empty space in a folder or Desktop. If your system is new, then the context menu will be relatively empty. Is it just something added from the video card drivers, for example like this:

but if the system has been installed for a long time, then there will be more such points. For example like this:


As you can see, over time, in addition to the standard menu items, more installed programs were added. On the one hand it is convenient. After all, you don’t need to launch a shortcut or search for a program, but you can directly perform actions right from the context menu. But on the other hand, over time there are a lot of such items and sometimes you even have to scroll up or down the context menu in search of the necessary items.
Therefore, sometimes you want to remove these items so as not to get in the way. After all, you don’t use all the points often.

So how remove item from context menu.

In order to remove a program item from the context menu (CM for short), you can use both standard methods Operating System, and with the help of the programs themselves or specially designed ones.

The easiest way to remove it is to look in the settings of the program (which you want to remove) for the desired item. Usually it is located somewhere in Integrations or Loading/adding. For example, in order to remove the famous WinRAR item from KM, you need to uncheck the Shell integrations:


Other programs may also have similar settings.

It’s another matter when you haven’t found the necessary settings to delete or they don’t exist at all (this happens too). Then you can use in a standard way the systems itself, namely editing.
I warn you right away that before starting work it would be better to play it safe and do backup copy registry
So, let's launch the registry and go to the branch
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/*/shellexe/ContextMenuHandlers


and we see here these same items from the context menu.
Now right-click on the desired item (the item from the KM that you want to delete) and select Delete:


We agree with the following warning:


reboot and check. The item should disappear.

If you haven't missed it, check out the thread.
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFileSystemObjects\ShellEx\ContextMenuHandlers
and do the same.

On a note:
If you want to delete an item specifically from KM -> Create


then you need to know the type of file () that is being created. For example for Microsoft Office Access file extension is .accdb, which means you need to look for it in the registry branch HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, and then delete the ShellNew subkey there

If you want to remove from KM those items that appear when you RMB on folders, then you need to look at the branches:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers

For the item "Open with..." the thread answers
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\OpenWithList

For KM Logical drives branches:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers

You can also delete items using special programs. For example using ShellExView


Its principle is simple: select the desired item and click on the red circle at the top of the program. The main thing here is that Type was Context menu

Now a little about how create your own item in the context menu.
The fact is that adding such an item for folders or specific files, as well as in an “empty” space using the registry will not work. You can only assign it to when it opens with RMB on the Desktop. Therefore, I recommend reading the article and taking advantage of what is described there.

Well, or use another utility - Ultimate Windows Context Menu Customizer() which has a bunch of features, but in English. And there we only need to select the item and delete it:


If anyone is interested in more details and can’t figure it out, write in the comments and I’ll help. There, in the left column you need to select an item (computer, folder, files, etc.) where the context menu is called up, and to the right, select what to delete and click the Remove Item button at the bottom. If you are fluent in English, you will understand.

You can guess how to add your program to KM -> Create if you read the entire article carefully, namely about deleting one of this items. You just need to create a subsection on the contrary and write for the desired extension.

In general, the article turned out to be a little chaotic and more about removing it from the context menu, because... I think this is more relevant, and there is an article about adding. Therefore, if something is not clear, write in the comments. Let's figure it out.

In this lesson we will look in detail at the functions of very useful key, which is on any keyboard. This key is called the "Context Menu key". It is located in the lower right part of the keyboard between ALT keys and CTRL

When you press this key, a CONTEXT MENU CALLS UP, exactly the same as if you pressed the RIGHT mouse button.

The trick of this button is that the menu called up when you press will display functions (menu items) that can be applied in the current program, in active window, on the desktop, etc. Those. This menu adapts to the process in which you are directly working, and this is very convenient.

Now let's take a closer look at the main options for displaying the context menu in different environments and the functions that can be performed using this menu.

1. Pressing the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key on the Desktop Windows desktop

For Windows 7
When you RIGHT-click or right-click the Context Menu key on the Windows 7 desktop, a menu appears the following type:

1. At the very top of the menu - setting parameters Your video card.
2.View- customize the display of icons on the desktop

3. Sorting- setting up sorting by displaying icons on the desktop

4. Update- updating the display of content on the Desktop.
5.Insert- if you copied something, you can paste it onto the Desktop.
6. Create. Here you can create on the Desktop: a folder, a shortcut, Text Document, archive, MS Office documents - Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc. (if installed)


7. Screen resolution. Here you can install necessary settings screen: select a screen (there may be several), find out or set the screen resolution, determine the screen orientation, and also configure other parameters for working with the screen, for example, connecting a projector.

8. Gadgets- selection and installation Windows gadgets 7. Windows XP does not have this feature.

9. Personalization. Here you can configure appearance The worker began to change the background, screensaver, sounds, theme, window color, etc.

For Windows XP

In Windows XP, as many people certainly know, the context menu looks simpler, but performs almost the same functions.

When you press the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key on the Windows XP desktop, the following menu appears:

1. Using the first menu item Arrange icons we can perform the following operations:

Screen resolution configured on the tab Options

2. Clicking the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key on a file or folder in Explorer or any other file manager.

When you click the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key on a file in Explorer or any other file manager, the menu is also adjusted to the file of a certain type. For example, I clicked by video file. The following menu opens:

In this case, the menu offers functions that correspond specifically to the video file: play, add to the list of the player that is selected by default for of this type file. And a number of standard functions: open with, add to archive (if the archiver is installed), send, cut, copy, delete, rename and file properties.

If you click with the RIGHT mouse button or on the “Context Menu” key on graphic file , then a menu will open that will correspond to the graphic file type:

Here you can immediately open, edit or print the selected file in your default image program. In my case, this is the ACDSee program.

You can immediately make the selected file background image for the Desktop, very convenient when you choose from a large list. And then they go again standard features for working with files.

There are no significant differences in Windows XP,


standard functions for working with a file are called by the command Change

I will dwell in more detail on the “Open with” and “Send” items.

Why is the “Open with” function useful?

Here you can select or assign any installed program, which understands the selected file format. In this case, I clicked on the video file and several programs can work with this format on my computer: Light Allow, WinAmp and of course Windows Media Player.

If not on the list the desired program, but you know for sure that it is installed, select the menu item "Select program". Windows will prompt you to select programs from a list of recommended or other programs.


In Windows XP, the appearance of this window is slightly different, but the meaning is the same:

If you want the selected file format to always be opened by the program you choose, then check the box “Use the selected program for all files of this type”.

If the desired program is not in the list of recommended programs or in others, but you know for sure that the program is installed, then press the button "Review…" and select it from the folder where the program is installed.

Why is the “Send” function useful?


Using this function, you can, so to speak, “without leaving the cash register”, you can send (transfer, transfer) the selected file via BlueTooth (bluetooth), Skype, mail, to the Desktop, to the archive, for burning to a CD/DVD disk, to a flash drive etc.

3. Press the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key in any Internet browser.


And here, too, the menu adapts to different situations, depending on where you click on the web page. For example, if you click link, then the following menu will open:

Using this menu, you can open the contents of the link in a new tab or window, add the link to bookmarks, send the link, copy the link, if the link is a file, then you can save it using “Save Target As...”. If you have download programs installed, you can download the contents of the link using them.

If you click the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key from the picture on the web page, then a menu with other functions will open:

Here you can copy the image to the clipboard and paste, for example, into Word document, you can save the image to your computer using “Save image as...”, send the image by mail, make the selected image the desktop background, find out information about the image (type, size, file name), etc.

Let me sum it up. In this lesson, we looked at the most popular options for using the context menu, which is called by clicking the RIGHT mouse button or pressing the “Context Menu” key on the keyboard.
Namely:
1. Click the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key on the Windows Desktop

2. Clicking the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key on a file or folder in Explorer or any other file manager.

3. Press the RIGHT mouse button or the “Context Menu” key in any Internet browser.

The essence of this lesson is to learn how to use the useful functions of the specific active environment of your computer. In any environment, by RIGHT-clicking or pressing the “Context Menu” key, you will get a list useful functions available in this moment time relative to the selected object.

Right-click menus are called contextual menus because their contents depend on context—in other words, on what program you're in and what you clicked on. File utilities, many free programs and other applications, to make them more convenient to use, often add their own commands and entire sections to the context menus. This is done, in particular, by the WinZip and WinRar archivers, as well as email clients Outlook Express and The Bat!, which add packing and sending commands to the context menus of files. e-mail in the form of investments.

Unfortunately, the more such programs are installed, the longer the context menus, the more cluttered they are, and the more difficult it is to find the right command. The situation is further aggravated by the fact that many programs, especially free ones, have the problem that the context menu commands they created remain even after the programs themselves are uninstalled.

However, some utilities provide convenient ways to configure and delete context menu commands. This is the best and most reliable way to restore order. But if there is no such function in the program (or if you managed to remove it), the composition of the menu can be changed using the Windows system registry.

However, before you go into the registry (which is not always safe), let’s look at several of the most common programs that provide not only the creation of context menu commands, but also the ability to safely delete them.

WinZip Archives

The popular archiver utility WinZip adds several commands to file context menus (such as Add to Zip) or highlights them in the WinZip submenu. To configure these commands, start WinZip in "classic" mode (not Wizard mode) and select Options > Configuration. In version 8.1 and later, go to the System tab under Explorer Enhancements. In order not to rummage around for too long in search of the desired command, in these versions you can disable the Display context menu items in a submenu mode - and then the archiving commands will be placed in the main menu, as in previous versions WinZip.

To change individual commands, select or disable the appropriate items in the Context menu commands section. By disabling the Display icons on context menus mode, you can leave the commands in the menu, but remove the icons.

Finally, to completely eliminate WinZip commands from the context menu, disable the Use mode shell extension(Use shell extensions, in versions 7 and 8) or Enable Explorer enhancements. However, keep in mind that you will lose the ability to extract content from the archive by right-clicking it, and you will not be able to expand the archive by dragging files onto its icon.

Configuring context menu commands created by the popular WinZip archiver

Music Winamp

The free Winamp media player adds three commands to the folder menu: Play in Winamp, Enqueue in Winamp, and Add to Winamp's Bookmark list. To remove them, Open Winamp and select Options > Preferences (Tools > Options) or right-click in the program window or on its panel and select the same command from its own context menu. An image of the hierarchical menu structure will appear in the General Preferences section on the left side of the window. General parameters) select the File types branch - more earlier versions it's called Setup - and disable Show Winamp in folder context menus in Windows Explorer or, in earlier versions, Directory context menus and click the Close button ( Close).

Explorer context menus

In Windows 2000 and XP Pro, you can use the Group Policy tool ( Group Policy). Let's say we want to remove the Manage command from the My Computer context menu, which launches the Computer Management administration tool. To do this, select Start > Run, enter gpedit.msc and press Enter. A window will open, the left panel of which will display a hierarchical tree of commands. Go to Local Computer Policy\User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Windows Explorer, double click on Hides the Manage item on the Windows Explorer context menu, select Enable mode and click OK.

This utility can also be launched by clicking Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Computer Management (Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Computer Management) and selecting Start > Run, entering compmgmt.msc and clicking OK.

To remove the entire folder context menu in Windows 2000, go to the Windows Explorer icon in the left pane and double-click Remove Windows Explorer's default context menu. In Windows XP you need to select the element of the same name, activate the Enable mode and click on the OK button The next time you right-click on a folder located on the desktop or on an icon in Explorer, nothing will happen - however, the context menus of other objects. such as toolbars will still work. To cancel these changes, simply return to the described dialog box, select Not configured, and click OK.

In Windows 9x, to edit the context menu for a specific file type, open the My Computer window and select View > Folder Options. The Folder Options dialog box opens. If you go to the File Types tab, select the file the right type and click on the Edit button, another window will open - Edit File Type. This window has several useful functions, in particular you can change its icon or description. But the main thing is that at the bottom of the window are those of the context menu commands that can be changed, and a number of buttons for this: Remove, Set Default, as well as Edit and New.



Configuring Windows 9x Explorer context menus

As you can see, context menu commands can not only be deleted, but also created. True, for this it is necessary to be aware of certain agreements adopted when drawing up such teams. You can, of course, read smart books on this topic. However, for educational purposes you can use free program with a set of ready-made context commands. It's called Send To Toys and is located at http://www.gabrieleponti.com/software. Many of them, such as passing the file name and path to the clipboard, are useful in their own right - but even more so as a visual aid for composing your own context menu commands.

Every Windows OS user knows that, regardless of the program, with the right mouse button you can call up an additional, so-called context menu, which contains a set of special commands and links. Let's try to figure out why it is needed and how to work with it correctly.

What is the Windows context menu

Speaking about the context menu of “operating systems” of the Windows family, I would immediately like to note the fact that it is not some kind of exclusive development of Microsoft Corporation. Mac OS X or Linux also has such an element.

In general, if you understand what a context menu is, it can be characterized as an additional set of commands for quick access to some functions, say, without calling a specific application or control.

For example, everyone knows that the context menu always contains the “Open with...” command, after which a list of the most suitable applications for working with the file is displayed. You understand how much more convenient it is to open a file here than to call up the program, and then go to the “File” menu and use the “Open” line or the Ctrl + O key combination.

In addition, in addition to commands, there is also a set of special tools with which you can learn many things. But more on that later.

Type and organization of the context menu

Let us now consider how the contextual Windows menu 7. Probably everyone noticed that the menu itself contains special dividers in the form of thin horizontal lines. The meaning of their use is to distinguish between similar actions or commands belonging to the same program.

Here it is worth paying attention to the fact that the context menu in a so-called “clean” system, immediately after installation, may be very different from what the user will see after installation additional programs and utilities. This is due to the fact that many installation packages integrate quick access commands to some of their main functions directly into this menu during the installation process.

Most of all, this applies to anti-virus software, media players, programs for working with disk images, archivers, etc. In principle, the user can add his own items to ensure ease of use.

Additional menu on the Desktop and in program windows

Surely, every user noticed that the context menu in different programs or on the same desktop differs in the list of items and commands. It `s naturally. For example, if you call up the menu on the desktop, it becomes clear that the “Open” line used for folders and files is not needed there. It’s another matter when the mouse button is clicked on a shortcut or saved file located exactly on the desktop.

As is already clear, in different programs the context menu may also contain different items. In this case, everything depends on the specifics of the application. Compare at least the regular Explorer and text editor Word. But for now we will talk about the “native” Windows OS commands.

Main context menu items

Drop-down menus are present almost everywhere, even in the main Start menu. In any of them you can see some points marked with arrows. This is done to show that the clause itself contains additional subclauses.

As usual, for files and folders, at the very top there is always an “Open” command, highlighted in bold. When you click on this line in relation to files, they will be opened in some program. You need to know that selection occurs only if the application itself sets the file association with this particular program. Otherwise, using this command will only result in the system prompting you to review and select the most suitable application. If several programs are associated with a file, you can use the line “Open with...”, which will contain a list of programs that work with the extension of the file you are looking for.

It goes without saying that the context menu of the same Explorer contains commands such as “Copy”, “Delete”, “Cut”, “Paste”, “Send”, “Rename”, “Create a shortcut”, etc. Even a child knows this. On the other hand, there is also a “Properties” line, the use of which provides the user with complete information about the object being used.

So, for example, when calling such a command by clicking on a computer icon on the desktop, you can get general information about the main parameters computer system and the installed operating system. For the desktop, the context menu mainly provides only the use of settings and options for synchronizing folders with shared attributes.

Some menus also provide tools for administering or inspecting selected items.

Using additional context menu commands

Now let's talk about some additional commands. To give an example installed antivirus, you will notice that the context menu will always contain lines like “Scan” or “Check with...”. Agree, it’s very convenient.

The same applies to archivers, because you can add a file (folder) to an archive or extract it from there with one click.

Many media players behave this way, integrating their own commands into the system's context menu. Most often, items for adding to a playlist or playing (video and audio) appear here for multimedia files, and for graphics this is the viewing command. In general, it all depends on which program integrates its own into the menu command lines, and what objects are associated with it.

Adding and removing commands in the system registry

So we got to the solution to the problem - how to add your own items to the context menu. There are several ways to do this. In this case, we can offer at least three options. Two of them relate to editing the system registry, and one concerns the use of specialized utilities.

IN system registry you can use adding keys, but if you don’t know which keys and their values ​​are responsible for a particular process, you can waste a lot of time, achieve nothing in the end, and bring the system to a state of complete inoperability.

Therefore, let's consider the simplest way to work with the registry. First, in the Run menu, use the regedit editor access command. Here you need to go to the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT section, find AllFilesystemObjects, then shellex and finally ContextMenuHandlers.

In the last section, select an additional menu by right-clicking and execute the command to create a new object and key “New” and “Key”, respectively. Now you need to enter a name for the newly created key, which will be displayed in the context menu, after which we select the “Change” command and in the overview indicate the location of the program or application that will be responsible for the new action. We confirm the choice and reboot the system.

Removing keys in this section will cause the corresponding command from the menu to disappear. But if you don’t know which key is responsible for what, it’s better not to change the standard configuration.

Using the Context Menu Tuner

However, as practice shows, no one really wants to rummage through the registry (you never know what can happen). Therefore, we can advise special utilities to add and remove items to the OS context menu.

One of the simplest, but very functional, is a utility called Context Menu Tuner. It will help you quickly change the menu beyond recognition. Everything is simple here. The main window includes two panels. On the left are commands, on the right are folders and basic parameters. As is already clear, there is nothing easier than selecting the desired command and using the button to add it, say, to the desktop menu. Removal is carried out in reverse.

It is worth noting some additional options. First, you can select a file extension, and only then associate the corresponding command and program with it.

Changing the context menu access button

In the standard version, the default context menu button is right button mice. It’s very easy to swap the buttons and call up the context menu with a left click. To do this, you need to go to the mouse settings in the Control Panel and make the necessary manipulations. That's all.