blue text?

[irmarky]

recently some folder title text and the text for c\ drive in my computer has turned blue.1 video file,a program folder called audio grabber and the c\local disc text in my computer.Any one know why?

[mjc]

What version of Windows are you running?

[irmarky]

i am running xp home

[johnny_quest]

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,1134385,00.asp

By Neil J. Rubenking
I am running Microsoft Windows XP Home. Within the past month, the font color of many of the filenames (not folder names) in Windows Explorer has changed—for no apparent reason—from the default black to a bright sapphire blue. The filenames in a given folder can be black, blue, or both.

All files seem to be affected: those in folders I have created, files native to Windows programs, and files from third-party software packages. I tried several system restore points, scanned and defragged the hard drive, and scanned for viruses—but all to no avail. Is this a software, OS, or hardware problem? Have there been any other reports of this type of behavior?

Rita Schick


This phenomenon is not new, but for some reason quite a few readers have written about it recently. The blue color is not harmful in any way. Windows XP supports the NTFS file system, which in turn supports NTFS file compression. By default, NTFS-compressed files are displayed in a color, specifically the bright blue you mention.

You say you haven't compressed any files, but if you've used the Disk Cleanup applet, you've probably done so without realizing it. The Disk Cleanup applet includes an option called Compress old files, which saves space. You probably selected that option without realizing that it would change the appearance of the filenames in Windows Explorer.

If you prefer, you can select Folder Options from Windows Explorer's Tools menu, click on the View tab, and uncheck the item that says Display compressed files and folders with alternate color. But now that you know the cause of the color change, you may want to retain this visual indication that a file is compressed.

[irmarky]

That sounds like it may be whats happened,thanks for the info.