Lost left pane when viewing a folder

[videobruce]

Running Win 2k:

This isn't using explorer, but just opening up a folder or drive with the web view on the left and the entries on the right. The preview pane is gone. Happened before and I had to re-install Win 2k to get it back but I reaslly don't want to do that again.

I'm sure it is a registry edit solution. If you look under: winnt\web the wvleft.bmp is the file that creates this view. I know this because I deleted it once before (not on this machine) and the same thing happened. It would be the same as checking under folder options the use windows classic folders instead of web view. You CAN'T just re-check that and then click on folder views: like current folder. That WON'T work!

Something changed the registry so that the bitmap that windows needs to create that view doesn't get pointed or referenced to.

At least that's what I think. I hope you understand that I'm NOT refering to the dual pane of Explorer!

I have run a virus check and it comes up clean.

[Paul Komski]

If this is a system folder then (depending on which one it is) the folder may be recreated by making a new folder and then changing the name of it to NewNameOfFolder.{Relevant CLSID}

Generally it is the settings in a hidden Desktop.ini file (within that folder) that determine the way it displays as classic, web, customised, etc and with a path to any pic file that is required included in the lines in Desktop.ini).

If the underlying CLSID for the object is corrupted in the registry then using its CLSID, anywhere, obviously won't work; but I don't think the answer will lie in hacking the registry.

If you have another folder that is displaying the way you like then try copying it's desktop.ini into your problem one. There may sometimes be a second hidden file that needs to be copied along with it, but its name escapes me for now.

FWIW the The Directory Tree (after Windows3.1) is referred to by Windows as a collection of Namespaces rather than a collection of Folders/Files, should you want to delve deeper into how M$ developed their customisation of Windows Explorer.

He he, I may have made this seem more complicated than necessary; I was presuming you had gone the normal route of Customize this Folder from the View Menu. "Like this folder", like you said, only works for "non-customised" folders including those customised, by default, like My Pictures.

[videobruce]

Yes on the "like current folder" as I said in my first post.

The only folder that works is the one the "wvleft.bmp" is in (winnt/web)!

I'm sure it is a registry problem. Something isn't pointing to that bitmap that all folders need. It isn't a matter of adding the bitmap to each folder I view. That would or could be dozens or even hundreds considerating how many folders are in a O/S and how many I wnat to view!

I'm thinking it was System Suite's Registry Cleaner that took the entry out altogther, but that is only a guess. Problem is, there are way too many entries on the undo list to put them all back in on the chance that that is the problem/solution!

[Paul Komski]

Just to be sure of no misunderstanding:
1) EVERY folder except the winnt/web folder is NOT a webview.
2) The Webview Option in the FolderOptions is set to "Enable Web Content in Folders".

The fact that wvleft.bmp happens to be in that folder does not seem specifically important; it is just one of many graphic files and html templates that are used to display all the Web folders in explorer (whether classic or webview). It is just a part of the image rendered by the default folders' "html" in explorer at the top left of a webview window; other graphics are needed too and it would be the "htm/htt" files that any references would need to point to.

Repair Web View (http://www.mvps.org/serenitymacros/repair.html) by running regsvr32.exe webvw.dll described for Win98:-

"This restores the default registry entries for Web View, though it doesn't restore the Shell's registry entries also used in Webview. Webvw also contains the htt template and graphic files used in Web View and this command will extract them".

RegSrv32.exe Usage (http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;EN-US;q249873&) should be the same for Win2K.

Other Technical Stuff Relating to Web View (http://www.clipcode.net/content/shell_guide/11_webview.htm)

[videobruce]

Thanks for the links, BUT the first one is a ultra-lame site: doesn't work in Opera or Mozilla!

I will look at the 2nd link.

[videobruce]

The 2nd link is over my head and the third I will read.

[videobruce]

Someone suggest upgrading to IE6 (though I never use it) so I downloaded and installed IE 6 with the update after that.

Nothing different, didn't fix anything, still no left pane!

[Paul Komski]

With the Webview Option in the FolderOptions set to "Enable Web Content in Folders", if you create a new folder and then from the View Menu choose "Customize this Folder".

(1) Does the customise Wizard Open?
(2) What happens when you have finished the wizard, having chosen "Image Preview"?

[videobruce]

Yes the wizard works, but only for that folder. I don't feel like doing that 20 times for all the folders I usually open!

In the mean time see this link for the million dollar solution:

http://discussions.virtualdr.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=568574#post568574

[Paul Komski]

He He; it would be more than a million I'm sure. ;)

So are you saying that running regsvr32.exe webvw.dll, as mentioned earlier, worked for you after all??

Ok, would you tell me exactly what I did and why it needed to be done? The message was registring a dll or something like that.

As also mentioned earlier, it restores the default registry entries for Web View (though it doesn't restore the Shell's registry entries also used in Webview). Webvw also contains the htt template and graphic files used in Web View and this command will extract them. (These templates are what are required to make the display(s) in Windows Explorer).

If the customise wizard worked on a single folder, you could use Standard instead of Image Preview for that folder and THEN use the "Set all the folders" to "Like Current Folder" instead of going to each one individually. ;)

[videobruce]

Yes it apparently did! That link you first gave me had 98 in it and since I am running 2k I didn't think it dealt with my problem. I glanced through the M$ KB article (again, most of that is over my head) and I see this regsvr32.exe dates back to IE4.

When I see "running regsvr32.exe webvw.dll" it really doesn't mean anything to me since I'm not that familiar with command lines! I didn't get off the boat yesterday, but that stuff sometimes confuses me since there wasn't any other instructions with it. I guessed you figured I knew what it meant.

I have been going to different ramdom folders and all have the left pane back and that was without doing anything else! If knew all the time I spent on this silly problem and then see a simple (sort of) act that fixes the problem, I almost fell off my chair!

I guess you get the million! The only thing remaning is: what caused the problem in the first place? Especially since it happened twice!