Why can't PSD thumbnails be displayed in Windows 7?

Anonymous

I use Windows 7's File Explorer to upload or open graphics files in other apps. Thumbnails are very handy in seeing at a glance that I have the right picture. PNG,JPG,and even PDF thumbs are supported,but not PSD. I have to rely on a third party solution. A programmer from Adobe has answered that Microsoft has the PSD documentation and this implies that the ball is in their court. I hope a Microsoft tech can pass this concern on or give me a reason why it can't happen at least in Windows 7.

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Anonymous

Just install Pictus. Free.

http://poppeman.se/pictus/

Associate with PSD files, done.

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Anonymous

Check out Mystic Thumbs, donation-ware for now, 32 or 64 bit versions. Works good for me on windows 7 pro: http://mysticcoder.net/MysticThumbs/Default.aspx

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Anonymous

PSD is as common as PDF and it has been around as long. The reason psicon.dll was dropped was over "file locking" issues with Windows.

I"pestered" Adobe,this is the answer I got:

Apple has been able to add support for PSDs in Quick Look without relying on Adobe, and MSFT has the PSD format documentation. That's not to say we shouldn't step up, too. We just haven't been able to find time yet.

I had hoped MSFT would have given some sort of direct statement on this issue,which is why I asked. Something other than the third party solutions have been given. Perhaps this is not the forum to bring this up.

I really won't say anything more about this. I think I have gone as far as I can.

psicon.dll for the free fix,Ardfrey if you can spare the $20.

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Anonymous

The FREE Solution:

This is a FREE and open source PSD viewer for windows 7, 64-bit and 32-bit. Made for Vista, but I tested on Windows 7.

http://www.codeproject.com/KB/vista/PhotoshopPreviewHandler.aspx

Download links are at the top of the article...

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83 additional answers

Anonymous

2011-12-07T02:40:26+00:00

As the one who originally submitted this question,let me explain why I did.

Windows OS has the File Explorer which functions at the OS level. If I want to quickly check the contents of a folder,open a file in a program or upload a file to the internet,it is the Explorer that pops up.

The Explorer allows me to see files as a list or as thumbnails/icons depending on the view I select. I work with mostly graphic files of the type jpg,png,tif,ai and of course psd which is very common and has been around for as long as I have been using Windows,since 1993.

Thumbnails are extremely valuable to me,because it is a way of easily finding and visually certifying it is the proper file before I click the Open or Upload button. At one time Adobe provided the file to allow Windows to see PSDs as a thumbnails instead of icons, but Adobe did away with it over "file-locking" issues with Windows or perhaps they wanted their customers to use their Bridge file manager,which does not perform the Upload or Open functions that Explorer does. That goes for any third party psd viewer.

Since I have asked about it,Ardfrey has come up with with a satisfactory answer on this issue. I not only have psd thumbnails,but ai (Adobe Illustrator) and Adobe PDF thumbnails as well that display directly in the Explorer. Plan A was to ask both Adobe and Microsoft to solve this,but for reasons I don't know it hasn't been. Plan B is to pay for a third party solution and be done with it.

It has been worth the license fee,which is one time.
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