Windows 7 Explorer Layouts – How to Set Different Layouts for Different Windows

windows 7windows-explorer

Frequently I'd like to open a Windows Explorer window and turn off the Navigation pane so it's nice and compact. But in my other Windows Explorer windows I want the Navigation pane to still be visible. If I use the Organize > Layout > Navigation Pane option to remove the navigation pane from window A and then in window B I navigate to a different folder window B's navigation pane disappears. i.e. layout changes made in one window apply to all windows.

Note I don't want the layout to apply to specific folders, but rather to specific Explorer windows. I'm not concerned about these changes persisting across windows restarts.

Best Answer

Since we're name twins, I feel like I really have to try and answer this one.

It's not a perfect solution, but I'd suggest installing AutoHotKey and creating a shortcut key which toggles the navigation pane on and off. In Windows 8 This can be done with the keys Alt,V,N,Space. In Win7 it should be very similar.

After installing AutoHotKey, you can create the following script

F12::
ID := WinExist("A")
WinGetClass,Class, ahk_id %ID%
WClasses := "CabinetWClass ExploreWClass"
IfInString, WClasses, %Class%
{
    Send !vn{Space}
}
return

This maps F12 to toggle the Navigation Bar, only when in Explorer. In any other app F12 will continue to do whatever it does in that app.

If it turns out the shortcut keys in Win7 are different then it's easy enough to discover and change them. Just press Alt in explorer and see what comes up!

It's not a perfect solution of course. As you switch between windows you'll probably need to continually toggle it on and off, but it's a lot faster than running .bat files off the desktop.

Another alternative, as some mentioned, is using an alternative explorer. I couldn't work without xplorer2, I'd highly recommend it.

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