re: All folder are read only in XP Home Sunday, December 7, 2003 at 4:50 pm Windows XP Annoyances Discussion Forum Posted by Mike Flanery (1 messages posted) Thank you for explaining the read-only attribute display. Been looking for 3 days for the "virus" that makes the read-only block look green. Now I can get on with my life!! On Saturday, October 11, 2003 at 6:14 pm, jagged ben wrote: >Folders in Windows XP can not be read-only. Windows will never display a regular >check-mark in the read-only box when you open a folders properties, unless the folder >is on a read-only disc such as a CD-ROM. Normally you should see a greyed out check >mark, a green square, or whatever symbol your theme uses. > >As Microsoft would say: "This is by design." > >The square (or greyed out check mark) for a folder means NOTHING, NO CHANGE, WAITING >FOR YOU TO USE ME. This is because the read-only box in a folder's properties is >only used to apply or remove the read-only setting from all of the folder's files >at once. If you clear the box and click Apply, then the files in the folder will >be cleared of any read-only attributes they have. Like wise for checking the box >to apply the attribute to all files. The square reappears the next time because, >once again, you haven't used it. > >FOLDERS do NOT have a functional read-only attribute in Windows. The read-only attribute >is only for files. The read-only check-box for folder properties is a bad and confusing >design. If you want to avoid read-only confusion, check individual files, ignore >folders. > >Windows file systems actually use the read-only attribute for a folder to make it >customizeable, but the checkbox in a folder's properties has nothing to do with that. > You cannot prevent a folder's contents from being changed using the read-only attribute. > You can read more about that here: > >http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;326549 > > Written in response to: re: All folder are read only in XP Home (jagged ben: Saturday, October 11, 2003 at 6:14 pm) Responses to this message: re: All folder are read only in XP Home (anthony: Sunday, December 14, 2003 at 2:42 pm) All messages in this thread [show all] All folder are read only in XP Home (Mike: Sat, Oct 11, 2003, 5:33 am) re: All folder are read only in XP Home (jagged ben: Sat, Oct 11, 2003, 6:14 pm) re: All folder are read only in XP Home (Mike Flanery: Sun, Dec 7, 2003, 4:50 pm) re: All folder are read only in XP Home (anthony: Sun, Dec 14, 2003, 2:42 pm) re: All folder are read only in XP Home (Frank Liu: Sun, Dec 21, 2003, 8:38 pm) Reply or follow-up to this message Search this forum Start a new thread on a different subject Report abuse of the forum Return to the Windows XP Discussion Forum