1. Improve the context menu by adding (or removing) destinations for the “send to” option

Translators could use this function to instantly create a backup copy of the document they are working on.

The right-click context menu has one useful option, Send To, which allows you to send the file to any of a list of programs or locations: a drive, a program or a folder. To edit that list, go to C:\Documents and Settings\User Name\SendTo (where UserName is you). The folder is filled with shortcuts. To remove an item from the SendTo menu, delete the shortcut. To add an item (f.i. your backup folder or drive) add a shortcut by highlighting the SendTo folder, choosing File > New > Shortcut and following the instructions for creating a shortcut. The new setting will take effect immediately.


2. Generate folder and file listings for printing or editing

Translators could use this function to check/print the list of the files they are about to zip up and send back to their client(s). I find this function quite helpful, especially with the -s switch (to list all subdirectories).

How many times have you been browsing through directories in Windows Explorer and wished you could generate a text file or printout listing the files and folders? It seems like such a simple request that it's amazing the option isn't available. But it is not.

To create the entry in the context menu it's necessary to first create a batch file. A batch file is a text file that contains a sequence of commands for a computer operating system and uses the .bat extension. The format for the .bat file is:

dir /a /-p /s /o:gen >filelisting.txt

Create the file in notepad and save it in your WINDOWS folder making sure to use the .bat extension and not the default .txt extension. It's important to set "Save as type" to All Files and "Encoding:" to ANSI.

To make the .bat file functional and easily accessible from the context menu, please refer to this web page:

hacks.oreilly.com

All you need to do is integrate the “filelisting” function into the New Action box. The procedure to do that is simple and clearly explained by Preston Gralla, a real hacker and the author of more than 20 books about computers and the Internet

Hacks.oreilly.com is a community site for developers and power users of all stripes. Readers learn from each other as they share their favorite tips and tools for Mac OS X, Linux, Google, Windows XP and more.

“This collection is based on the hands-on, real-world experience of those who in many cases have been using PCs well before any version of Windows even existed. They have wrestled with each new version of Windows as it was released, and found ways to take advantage of every nook and cranny of the operating system.”

Hack, en français, peut se traduire par « haridelle « ou « rossinante » (mauvais cheval maigre et efflanqué) ou « piratage informatique ». Au choix.

M. Devroye