How in the Tech

Open Icons with a Single Instead of Double Click in Vista

Do you know when to single click or when a double click is necessary? Likely so, but for many the inconsistencies of when to do what is often very frustrating to novice users. Web links open with a single click, icons on the desktop require two clicks to activate, yet items off the Start Menu are back to one click. Most of us don’t really think about it, it’s second nature and we do take it all for granted.

I got a question today from a user about how to adjust this behavior, specifically regarding icons. While this isn’t new to Vista – it’s been around for as long as I can remember – it is possible to configure the icons, typically on your Desktop, to open with just a single-click.

1. From within a Windows Explorer window click Organize and then Folder and Search Options.



2. Under Click items as follows select the radio button next to Single-click to open an item.



3. You’ll notice you have two sub-options available from step 2 both relating to how and when to underline the icons. You can chose to either underline when pointed on by the mouse, or always to underline – similar to the behavior in most web browsers. The choice is yours.

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