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pin a document to start menu
gdv22:
Thanks Stoic! (Can we be on a first name basis now? ...just call me gdv :P)
Well, not that I have any reason to doubt it, but since i can't try it out on my own network right now, I'm still eager to know if it works for you, techidave
Thanks again! :)
techidave:
Ok here is the low down on my network.
A school network with Windows 2003 Server, Active Directory, and yes we are redirecting my documents to the server. All machines are running XP Pro SP 3. While most machines are also redirecting the desktop, mine is not. Which further complicated things.
Because early on, I did move and also created a shortcut from my documents to the desktop but was unsuccessful in pinning it to the start menu. So I thought, must not be the folder redirection that is causing the problem.
I also was running on my desktop with 3 monitors, Monitor switch and z bar and since they do some flaky stuff once in a while... maybe. NOT!
All the time though I could pin an executable file but it was in C:\downloads and not my documents.
Now my laptop is also joined to our domain and has the same polices, etc., on it as my work desktop does. But it is usually at home. But trying it in the relaxed atmosphere of my house allowed me to think about it more. I also tried gdv suggestion with the ctrl+shft+rightclick on some other files and was able to see the pin to start menu option. So that helped in the troubleshooting also.
I was just trying to pin a excel spreadsheet to the start menu...a xls format.
I was hoping like Deozaan in reply #11 for a simple program to:
Something that would be useful is something that adds to the context Menu
Send To -> Start Menu (create Shortcut) would be awesome in XP.
I did try each and every suggestion as it was explained. I had already tried April's suggestion about using Explorer and actually tried it again in case I missed a step.
Thanks to all for the help!
techidave:
The problem with copying that file to the local machine is when I sync my laptop with the network at school, that file won't get copied over automatically.
Is it possible for some program or coding snack to override the network polices and pin a file to the start menu from my docs?
gdv22:
Maybe I missed it, but did you try what Stoic Joker suggested (and I summarized above in item 4 of my list)?
If not, I still think it will work. But I think I've figured an even simpler way, where you won't have to edit the shortcut itself (i.e., Path/Target or "Start in" folder). It's simpler to do than it is to explain, but here goes (in more detail than I'm sure you need, but I'm hoping it will be clear enough for any less experienced future readers):
* 1. create two shortcuts on your desktop [RightClick > Send To > Desktop (create shorcut)], one shortcut to your My(Redirected)DocsXLS file in the redirected MyDocs folder and another shortcut to AnyOtherDocument from anywhere on your local machine (can probably be a shortcut to any kind of file, but I'm going to stay with documents just in case Windows does something invisible based on the filetype when pinning shortcuts that I don't know about)
* 2. rename the Shortcut to AnyOtherDocument (not the file it points to) whatever you eventually want your XLS pinned Start Menu shortcut to be named (e.g., MyPinnedXLSLink)
* 3. unless you want to permanently keep the MyPinnedXLSLink shortcut on your desktop, move it and the Shortcut to My(Redirected)DocsXLS to wherever you want to keep the MyPinnedXLSLink shortcut on your local machine
* 4. pin the MyPinnedXLSLink shortcut to your Start Menu with the Ctrl+Shift+RightClick context menu (or Ctrl+Shift Drag&Drop... ...your choice)
* 5. click on the Pinned MyPinnedXLSLink link on the Start Menu (it should still open AnyOtherDocument... ...just checking to make sure it's working properly ;))
* 6. ...(now here's the sleight of hand)... ...rename the MyPinnedXLSLink shortcut on your Desktop or in its permanent location (i.e., NOT the Pinned MyPinnedXLSLink link on the Start Menu) AnythingYouWant
* 7. and finally, rename the Shortcut to MyDocsXLS on your Desktop or in its permanent location as MyPinnedXLSLink
* 8. click on the Pinned MyPinnedXLSLink link on the Start Menu, and (cross your fingers ;)) it should open your My(Redirected)DocsXLS file in the redirected MyDocs folder :)
* 9. if it all works the way you want, you can delete the renamed AnythingYouWant shortcut
This is essentially the same method outlined earlier, but instead of "modifying" the shortcut to point to a different Path/Target, I'm just renaming one working pinned shortcut so I can then rename another shortcut that points to the desired Target in the redirected MyDocs folder with the original pinned shortcut name. (And maybe I could have just said that and not been so detailed above, but sometimes I can't figure out how to summarize until I've already written it out in detail... ...oh, well!)
Unfortunately, I can't try this on my own network right now because my other machine is down... ...but I've tried it with shortcuts I modified to use the UNC (\\ComputerName\SharedFolder\Resource) network path to files in shared folders on my own working machine (\\WorkingMachine\SharedFolder\TestXLSfile.xls instead of G:\SharedFolder\TestXLSfile.xls) and it worked. So I think I've tricked my own machine to open a file from a pinned shortcut to what looks (to the machine) like a remote network file (analogous to your situation), even though the files are actually on my local machine. (I hope that's clear enough... ...can't figure out a clearer way to say it right now.)
So I'm smiling now, thinking it will work for you... ...but I hope I'll still be smiling when I see your reply ;D
The problem with copying that file to the local machine is when I sync my laptop with the network at school, that file won't get copied over automatically.
--- End quote ---
Sure, that would be one of the advantages of a redirected MyDocs folder. Another might be that if the IT department has a strong backup system in place, all users' MyDocs are regularly being backed up and retrievable if a local machine goes down. [EDIT: Oops, I just realized Stoic Joker already said that above: "The point being that everybody's documents are stored in a central location so they can be backed up in a reliable and expedient fashion."]
Let us know if the above works. :)
Stoic Joker:
Is it possible for some program or coding snack to override the network polices and pin a file to the start menu from my docs?-techidave (November 13, 2010, 08:28 AM)
--- End quote ---
Good News & Bad News:
Microsoft does not allow direct programmatic access to Start Panel (and Taskbar) pinning to prevent installers from abusing the feature.
You can indirectly access the pin-to-start panel option, but the script is dependent on which verbs are applicable to the file. So if file X is on a location that does not permit verb Y ... the script will fail.
TechNet Link: Pin Items via Script
Note: This article is Win7 specific, but others state this has held true (applies to) since the WinXP feature premier.
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