Favorites sort order

**Christer** · 11th June 2003

Hi all!

I know that this has been discussed before but no solution was found.

When I was on ME, I liked to group my links within a subfolder. Needless to say they weren´t in alphabetical order.
When I added a new link it ended up at the bottom and I had to drag and drop it where I wanted it.
From time to time they were reorganized, not by me but by a gremlin, a nuisance that I could live with since it happened in a subfolder, not all folders.

When I migrated to XP, I imported my Favorites by copying the subfolders without system files (*.ini) to CD and then pasting to the new installation.
All folders and all links within them ended up in alphabetical order and I decided to keep it that way. I assumed that new links would be added in alphabetical order.

However, no such luck.
In one subfolder, new links were sorted alphabetically but in another subfolder they ended up at the bottom in the order of adding them.
I can, in the left hand Favorites panel, drag and drop to correct but the next time i run IE they are back at the bottom.
I can in the upper menu bar, right-click / sort by name but this doesn´t affect the left-hand Favorites panel and as You may suspect, the next time I run IE they are back at the bottom.

This is no longer a nuisance but a real pain in the mid rear region so, my question is, is there a registry hack to rectify this?

Thanks for Your time,
Christer

Edited:

The subfolder that works contains 5 subfolders and 19 + 2 added links.

The subfolder that doesn´t work contains 0 subfolders and 39 + 4 added links.

Total contents of the Favorites folder are 80 subfolders and 638 files (637 links and 1 *ini-file).

sunny · 11th June 2003

Try this.

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=177482

**Christer** · 11th June 2003

Hi Sunny,
thanks for Your reply!

I have already read that and other MS articles, none of them provides the solution.

Christer

Abraxas · 11th June 2003

At first I didn't understand the problem. My favorites are all in alphabetical order and have always stayed that way!

So, I am assuming you must be talking about the toolbar button rather than the menu item next to "View". I never use the button and have removed it since I find the other more convenient.

But, if I understand the problem correctly and you access your favorites through the menu, you have the right-click option to "Sort By Name". Doing this from the menu sorts the favorites as accessed under the button, too.

**Lonny Jones** · 11th June 2003

Christer
Dont know about that ini, you might should have used the export favorites or the migration ,,

Did you find the sort by name ?
I have to do that with in each folder.
Lonny

**Christer** · 11th June 2003

Abraxas,

I actually discuss both, lingual confusion again ......

The menu item "Favorites" can be sorted by name and it is transferred to the left hand panel, accessed via the toolbar button. I can´t explain why I didn´t notice that earlier.

However, after shutting down IE and restarting, the links are again out of alphabetical order.

Lonny,

I have tried both methods on different occasions. As long as the *.ini file isn´t copied, it works well.
Actually, copying works better since the folders and links end up sorted alphabetically, whereas the export utility places them almost randomly.

When I had them grouped and organized out of alphabetical order, they were still in alphabetical order in the Favorites folder in Windows Explorer. That´s the reason I assume it has something to do with the registry ......

Welshjim · 11th June 2003

From time to time I copy my Favorites folder to a floppy. The next time I open Favorites everything is alphabetical, but then as I add new Favorites they usually go to the bottom. Sometimes old ones will jump around. And sometimes when I add a new one, but send it to a specific folder, it actually places itself alphabetically. Seems to be the nature of the beast.

Barbara-Ann · 11th June 2003

Back up your registry first and the following key as well just in case you wish to revert.

From the following URL

http://www.theeldergeek.com/sort_fav...phabetical.htm

Sort Favorites Menu Alphabetically

[Start] [Run] [Regedit]
Registry Key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MenuOr der\Favorites
Right click the Favorites key and click Delete
Exit registry and reboot.

**Christer** · 12th June 2003

Jim,
that´s my experience from IE on WinME. I always thought that the inconsistent behaviour was because of me grouping links out of alphabetical order.

Barbara-Ann,
thanks for the link. I´ll try that registry hack tomorrow.

I have added links to a few folders and with one exception, they ended up in alphabetical order. The exception is the default, ever returning, Links-folder.
I don´t know if the fact that I´ve moved the Favorites folder from its original location to D:\Favorites has any bearing on this.

**Christer** · 12th June 2003

From a previous post:

Quote:

The menu item "Favorites" can be sorted by name and it is transferred to the left hand panel, accessed via the toolbar button. I can´t explain why I didn´t notice that earlier.

Well, now I can explain. Not why I didn´t notice because there was no change to notice. The sort by name is transfered to the left-hand panel at random ......

Christer,
still on the hunt for Gremlins

**Lonny Jones** · 12th June 2003

Christer
You might rub two sticks together and tinker with tools Internet options advanced uncheck personalized favorites menu for a day or two ,,reboot then reboot a little harder ..

I know there should be no limit to amount but gee
""Total contents of the Favorites folder are 80 subfolders and 638 files"" think Ive got maybe 300 at the most.

Might make some odd sense to stay away from 666 or 333,999

From the link sunny provided , (correct me if I'm wrong)
If a person never manually organizes favorites they when added too, get sorted alphabetically,
but once we manually arrange it upsets something and a added link will show at the bottom of whatever folder we put it in ?
we then have to either sort by name or drag an drop...

Quote:

Well, now I can explain. Not why I didn´t notice because there was no change to notice. The sort by name is transfered to the left-hand panel at random ......

I notice that to ,It might help to remove the button for awhile
when added back they should be sorted just like the other favorites dropdown

Regards
Lonny
I have to agree BillyBob

BillyBob · 12th June 2003

I gave up a LONG time ago and if needed just right click and sort by name.

I figure it is just Windows being Windows and as such is at times very unpredictable.

Seems to be no ryhmn or reason. Things just all of the sudden change.

98FE did it. 98SE did it. And now XP is doing it.

I repeat. I gave up.

I do not have a problem if I have to look for a shortcut in a folder. But When I can't find it on the HD, THEN I get a little peeved.

Right now I am finding links & shortcuts in at least three different places. Three different users ( I only made one as Admin ). No wonder it takes 3.2gig for XP to do the same job as SE does in 1.2gig.

I am over and out. and XP just might be going with me.

BillyBob

**Christer** · 12th June 2003

Lonny,

I checked that setting and the box was unticked, probably by default since I don´t remember having changed anything there.

The number of subfolders and links have been discussed and if I remember correctly someone mentioned in excess of 3.000 links ...... we´re way behind ......

BillyBob,

You´ve been my inspiration and mentor when it comes to not letting Windows have its way ......

...... and now You tell us that YOU GAVE UP ......

...... what´s next ......

......

Well, on a more serious note, I´ve tried every way of importing the subfolders and links but the result is the same. That specific folder, the default-not-to-get-rid-of-links-folder, doesn´t function properly.
The registry hack, suggested in Barbara-Anns post, didn´t do the trick either.

My practical solution was to create a different folder and move the links there. It works nicely and I´ll either give the Links-folder the hidden attribute or use it as a "temporary links folder" to put links that I´m not sure I want or sure I want to get rid of.

The gremlin won ......

......

Thanks all for Your input,
Christer

BillyBob · 12th June 2003

I did not give up on XP really I am just going to try puttin it in differently and as a dual boot .

But I did give up on the sorting bit. I would get it fixed and then in a day or too it was right back.

And I just do not ( no, make the DID NOT ) see XP as doing anything more or better than 98SE other than take up 3 times as much disk space to do it.

And apparently there are millions of others that agree according to the post in ( General Discussion I think ) that I read last night

And I can't print what I think of the defrag in XP.

98FE to 98SE I saw some slight improvement ( mostly being all on one CD ). But from SE to XP I see no imporvement * in preformace anyway ) at all.

And I just gotta get used to Windows running the show and not me.

And I do not like the loss of having MY CHOICE as to where software, Favorites, and shortvuts etc. are installed. One place is enough two is too many but three is REDICULUS. ( to put it politely )

Well, three kids are here now and they want to use this PC so I gotta go for now. 3 are here and two more are no the way.

HEHE. I am thinking of leaving.

See y'all later.
BillyBob

BillyBob · 12th June 2003

The post I refer to is in the 98 forum by schamish

BB