assign default program to always open file without extension?

[urlwolf]

can one assign default a program to always open file without extension?
when you right-click/open with... the box "always use this program" is grayed out.

Any workarounds?

[Liquidmantis]

This has bugged me before but not enough to bother looking for a solution.  A quick Google search for default program extensionless file turned up this on WindowsITPro.com though:

A. Normal files with an extension can have a program associated however this is not the case with files that don't have an extension. If you double click on one and select an application and check the box to always use that application it is ignored and every time you select a file you have to choose the application.

You can force this using the registry:

  1. Start the registry editor (regedit.exe)
  2. Move to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT
  3. From the Edit menu select New - Key
  4. Enter a name of '.' and press Enter (don't type the quotes)
  5. Select the new '.' key
  6. Double click the (Default) value
  7. Change to the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT used to open, e.g. NOTEPAD for the notepad.exe application
      NOTEPAD
  8. Click OK

[f0dder]

Hm, I thought you had to assign it to '*' and not '.'. But yeah, it does work, used it for ages to fire up either a hex editor or text editor for files without file extension, based on file contents, but have been too lazy to re-assign for the last couple of years :$

[CodeTRUCKER]

Seems like it should be possible to script this.  Would it not be possible to parse a file name and if none is found, then append a ".txt" or whatever the need is at the moment?

Edit - Hmmm. anyone know why the "4" won't allow the strikethrough? 

[tinjaw]

Edit - Hmmm. anyone know why the "4" won't allow the strikethrough? 

It's in there. It's just difficult to see because it bumps up against the horizontal line of the 4.

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[CodeTRUCKER]

Ah!  I never would have found that!