Windows explorer moves the selected folder to bottom of folders list. How do I stop this?

Anonymous
2009-12-27T19:25:21+00:00

THIS PROBLEM DOES NOT HAVE AN ANSWER.    I DID NOT MARK ANY REPLY AS SUCH.

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Open a windows explorer

show folders on left

Double Click Computer

Double Click C disk

Scroll to windows   Double Click 

Double Click diagnostics  (example)

The folder is now moved to the bottom of the folder list.

This also happens when any folder is clicked once and the the open gadget is clicked once.

This is increadably annoying.  How do I stop it?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Files, folders, and storage

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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Anonymous
2010-03-22T08:24:10+00:00

Hi j1234567890j - and everyone else that repsonded to this post. 

I also expierence this problem and like with everyone that replied on this post an many others that this is driving me insane. To make matters worse, this problem presents itself also on the Open or Save file dialogs in any application that relies on the Windows File Dialog.

In my case I also found that the behaviour is inconsistent. Sometimes the problem presents itself and sometimes it does not. - This is why it is difficult to zero in on the behavior and some folks cannot replicate the problem. So, I believe other replies on various posts where this problem cannot be replicated. As a developer I understand this, since we often have the response: "...but it works in my computer..." - And yes it does, because typically a dev/support machine is set up for ideal circumstances. I am digressing...

Trying to understand the Problem

I have noticed a pattern, however. I have found that if I collapse the folder in question and expand (double click) again, that the navigator moves again, this time exposing all sub-folders that are direct descendants of the folder in question. I have also noticed that if the sub-folders are too many to display in the navigation panel, that the selected folder is scrolled to the top of the panel, exposing as many folders that can be viewed. 

I think the intention of the navigation behavior is that when the user expands the folder, it will show as many as possible sub-folders in view - but I also think that this is where there is a bug - or at least where some other setting has an impact on the behavior. - For some reason, when a folder is expanded the navigation pane only finds the first sub-folder and exposes that one - hence the anoying movement of the selected folder away from the current mouse pointer position.

Finding an answer

And yes - even though I think I understand the problem - I agree with everyone elses user experience - This must be fixed!

I am not sure that a moderator will pick this up as this post is marked as awnsered - even though in my opnion it is not.

But if someone does: I think providing an option on the General tab of the Folder Options dialog for a user to turn off this behavior and just expand the folder without attempting to present all viewable folders in the navigation pane.

Regards

Andre Coetzee

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  1. Anonymous
    2010-08-08T21:39:28+00:00

    ClassicShell does help. The problem is ... it doesn't work in the open/save dialogs.

    And, despite the great idea ClassicShell is ... I can't understand WHY do I have to use a 3rd party software to solve a bug Microsoft don't even acknowledge or cares about. It's Microsoft duty, it's their responsability.

    This wouldn't have happend in Linux. I highly doubt something so annoying would have survived for a year in macOS. A year waiting for this sh*t to be solved .... and no one seems to care.

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  2. Anonymous
    2010-08-08T21:25:20+00:00

    Open a windows explorer

    show folders on left

    Double Click Computer

    Double Click C disk

    Scroll to windows   Double Click 

    Double Click diagnostics  (example)

    The folder is now moved to the bottom of the folder list.

    This also happens when any folder is clicked once and the the open gadget is clicked once.

    This is incredibly annoying.  How do I stop it?

    This is the Left Pane Scroll Bug.

    See the bottom of this post for help with the left pane scroll bug.

    Tell MS you want it fixed by voting at the Microsoft Connect website:

    **http://connect.microsoft.com/WindowsServerFeedback/feedback/details/621426/bug-when-expanding-folders-in-explorer-server-2008-r2-and-windows-7**

    Watch the left pane scroll bug: Video evidence of the left pane scroll bug using Windows Explorer in Windows 7

    This shows one way to reproduce it, clicking the triangle to expand a folder you're currently viewing also reproduces it.

    Left Pane Scroll Bug threads: 1. Bug: Windows Explorer expands folders inappropriately, jumping the folder you expand to the bottom of the navigation pane 2. Windows explorer tree view expands at the bottom, not at the top as it used to be 3. Windows Explorer navigation pane issue 4. Windows explorer moves the selected folder to bottom of folders list. How do I stop this? 5. Strange folder behavior in left pane of Windows Explorer

    Unfortunately when Microsoft redesigned Windows Explorer they made some pretty horrendous decisions - of which many people have complained about. There are many other file managers available, both free and for a price. One of them might be easier to use and have the features you want, here is a list of most that are available:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_file_managers

    Classic Shell

    • Customize Windows Explorer with removed features (more helpful options and info below):

    http://classicshell.sourceforge.net

    Xplorer² Lite

    • single or dual pane file browser with tabs and many features:

    http://www.zabkat.com/x2lite.htm

    Guides on how to manually make changes to Windows Explorer

    How to Fix The Left Pane Scroll Bug

           See the bottom of this post for help with the left pane scroll bug using Classic Shell.

           Click here to view one of several methods to reproduce it.

           Click here to vote for fixing the left pane scroll bug.

    Note: The links below involve editing the registry - be careful!

    **Auto Arrange Option #1 - How to disable Auto Arrange in Windows 7**

    Auto Arrange Option #2 - How to disable Auto Arrange in Windows 7****

    Libraries Folder - How to Add or Remove the Libraries Folder from the Navigation Pane

    User Folder - How to Add or Remove your User Folder from the Windows 7 Navigation Pane

    Full Row Select - How to Disable Full Row Select (details view) in Windows Explorer

    _________________________________________

    Extra links - help guides for using Windows Explorer

    Folder Options   Change View Settings   Using Search   Change User Folder Icon   Associate File Type   Share Folders - XP & Win7   Add/Remove Columns   Add Folder To Library

    Most important features to fix or return to Windows Explorer:

    1. The option to disable Auto Arrange.
    2. Fix The Left Pane Scroll Bug: If you are viewing a folder and expand it in the left pane to show it's subfolders, the folder is annoyingly auto-scrolled to the bottom of the pane causing the subfolders to not be shown, making it difficult to work with. Double clicking a folder in the left pane can also cause this problem.  Vote to fix it.
    3. When multiple files are selected they should stay selected when changing the sorting order (ex: Name to Size). Maintaining selected files when sorting should be a requirement and this feature should not have been removed.
    4. The option to remember each folder's view settings (remembering individual folder window sizes and positions).
    5. The option to remove "Full row selection" for details view. "Full row selection" is very annoying when the folder is full and has no empty space to click on. Also, when dragging/dropping files to a different folder - if you release the file on the row of a subfolder or .exe/.zip/.rar file "full row selection" causes the file to be moved into the subfolder or .exe/.zip/.rar file rather the the intended folder.
    6. A search window with all the advanced search options. No syntax required.
    7. The option to always show free disk space and folder size in the status bar and/or details pane. Also always automatically show the size of selected files (when many files are selected it will not show the total size).
    8. The option to scroll the pane your mouse is in with mouse wheel even if that pane is not selected.

    Let Microsoft know you want Windows Explorers features returned:

    Since many people seem to agree that some or all the changes made to Windows Explorer have actually made it less user friendly, you can go to the Windows 7 Feedback page and (politely) let them know your suggestions for improving it:

    http://mymfe.microsoft.com/Windows%207/Feedback.aspx?formID=195

    Note: don't make the message too long, there is a size limit to your message even though the page doesn't tell you about it. Also, don't just copy and paste from the list above - they will think the same person is repeatedly submitting feedback.

    Left pane scroll bug (and other fixes):

    Using Classic Shell To Restore Some Features To Windows Explorer

    After installing the free Classic Shell you can customize Windows Explorer closer to how you want it, the quote below is just one way to do so. Click here to see some of the options you can customize, and here is the FAQ page for Classic Shell.

    A solution which did work for restoring some features.

    1. Install the free Classic Shell.  This is very customizable, and works as a mod for Windows Explorer rather than a full blown replacement. You didn't need to install the Classic Start Menu option, but you can if you want.
    2. Reboot the computer.
    3. Launch Windows Explorer (Start - Computer) and turn on "Always Show Menus" (Organize - Layout - check Menu Bar). This is just for configuration, you can turn it off again afterwards if you want.
    4. Right click on the menu bar and turn on the "Classic Explorer Bar". This adds a series of cut/copy/paste icons to Explorer. Crucially, it also adds the "Configuration" icon.
    5. Go into the configuration and from here you can tweak things to your heart's content. To kill the horrible Windows 7 folder-jumping, switch the "Navigation Pane Style" to Vista. You can even knock it back to XP mode if you want (this adds in the lines to the folder tree and adds a classic "+" icon for expanding folders). The Windows Vista style folder view looks pretty much the same as the Windows 7 view, but gets rid of the horrible jumping.
    6. Tweak any other settings you want.

    After this, you can turn the toolbar and menus back off in Explorer if you wish. Windows Explorer looks largely the same, but folders no longer jump around. Vote for Microsoft to fix this bug.

    Now, if only MS could code properly so that we don't have to mess with third party apps to get Windows to actually work properly...

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  4. Anonymous
    2010-08-05T14:00:31+00:00

    I'm throwing my hat in the ring too.  This is extremely irritating to have to scroll up after I expand a subdirectory in the left pane.  I had vista for only a short time, but didn't notice this annoying behavior with it.  I'm starting to look at FileBoss, a 3rd-party utility from TheUtilityFactory.  Sigh.

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