The right-click tweaker displays ten different features and options that can be added to the right-click menu of the Windows operating system. It includes the following options:

• Create File List: Create a file list of the current folder.
• Copy to Folder: Copy the selected files and folders to another folder.
• Move to Folder: Similar to copy to folder, but files and folders are moved instead of copied.
• Open in Notepad: Open the selected items in the Notepad text editor.
• Administrator Command Prompt: Launch an elevated command prompt from the current location.
• Encrypt: Encrypt and decrypt files using the NTFS file system’s encryption options.
• Print File List: Print the current file list on a connected printer.
• System Configuration Utility: Launches the system configuration window to manage startup related tasks and settings
• God Mode: Add all Control Panel applets to the context menu
• Problem Steps Recorder: Launch the problem steps recorder from the current location.

The second program, My Computer Manager, can be used to add files or folders to My Computer or the Windows Control Panel. These folders and files can then be opened directly from those locations.

The right-click cascading menu shortcuts creator can be used to add cascading menus to the right-click menu. Files and folders can then be added to those menus easily.

Right-Click Shortcuts Creator works only under Vista or Windows 7. Offers to add or delete files and folders to the Windows right click menu. It basically offers the same as the cascading menu creator, with the difference that items are displayed on the root level and not in cascading menus.

Send To Manager finally offers to add and remove items from the Windows Send To menu.

All of the tools are easy to use, even inexperienced computer users should not have problems using them. The changes take effect immediately on the system, which means it is directly possible to test them on the system.

Right-Click Enhancer’s focus lies on adding features to the various context menus of the operating system. The program is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of the Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 operating system. It should be compatible with Windows Server systems as well. The program requires the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5. The program is available at the developer’s website.

Program links in the Windows Explorer context menu – commonly referred to as the right-click menu -  can be edited in the Windows Registry. Users wary of hand-editing the registry can use the Your Menu application to generate new program links easily.

One outstanding feature of Your Menu is the fact that the program generates a Registry file giving the user full control when the new entries are added to the Registry and assurance that only those are added to it.

Your Menu allows users to add both single commands and submenus to the context menu. Single commands are usually links to executable files, such as Thunderbird or Firefox. Submenus contain several commands. Note that Your Menu refers to submenus as “cascading commands”. Each single command and cascading command also has an associated Menu Name.

A click on the “Generate REG file” button will create the file that needs to be executed to add the new entries to the Windows Registry. There is also an undo file to later remove the context menu entries from the Registry. Upon execution, the entries become available immediately. There is no need to restart or kill the explorer.exe process to see the changes to the context menu.

A click on a newly added link will automatically launch the program. Your Menu is a free program designed for the Windows 7 operating system. It is compatible with both the 32-bit and 64-bit editions of the operating system, and probably also with previous Windows versions.

Menu Maid (via Tech Quest) displays two tabs after startup. The first displays right-click items in Internet Explorer while the second does the same for Windows Explorer. The entries are divided into categories. The Windows Explorer entries are for example divided into Everything, Directories, Drives and Folders. Each category lists items that are displayed when right-clicking specific icons in Windows Explorer.

You can disable any item with one click which means that it only takes a few seconds to remove all entries that are not needed in Windows Explorer. Changes will be visible immediately. There was however on entry (Groove folder synchronization) that continued to show up even after it was disabled in Menu Maid. Since it is installed with Microsoft Office it seems to be that it is controlled by other settings in the operating system.

Menu Maid has a size of 123 Kilobytes and can be helpful if you prefer an efficient interface without in depth information about the context menu handlers.

The interface itself has been streamlined for ease of use. Each of the three options can be configured in their own tabs by checking or unchecking checkboxes. All of the 27 new functions are added by default after installation. They range from deleting locked files over displaying information about the size of folders to synchronizing directories. Most users will probably stick with a basic set of functions and disable the ones that they do not need. Another option would be to add all functions to a submenu for a better overview.

The commands of other applications that show up when a file or folder is right-clicked that is triggering the event are shown as well. They are divided into submenus like Drives, Folders or Printers. A click on an entry will display the context menu entries that have been added by third party applications.

Each entry can be removed to optimize the menus.

File Menu Tools provide access to separators and folders that can be added to further optimize the display of the context menu entries. It is furthermore possible to move the entries around.

File Menu Tools provide an easy way to configure and optimize the Windnows Explorer context menu entries.

The software with the rather strange name MMM steps in and lets you rearrange all menu entries. This is done by offering a way to hide entries that you never ever use and a way to add entries that you rarely use to a submenu. My initial right-click menu had ten items listed of which I moved five to the hidden area making it look so much better afterwards.

MMM remembers the latest right-click menu that was open and display the entries of that menu in its list. It is then a matter of drag and drop move move entries into the hidden or rare area. The software is resource friendly – using roughly 400K in memory after closing the interface – and easy to use, perfect for creating the perfect right-click explorer menu.

Make sure you check the menu that opens when you right-click a blank space on your desktop and the menu that opens when you right-click a file. Both have different entries.

Read More:

Mmm Homepage

Folder Guide makes it possible to reach any folder that you have added with just two clicks. Adding folders is pretty easy as well. You click on Add in the main program interface and choose an alias which is the name that will be shown in the right-click menu and a path to the folder that should be opened when you select it. The program can add any folder that is accessible on the system. You can also right-click any folder in Windows Explorer directly to add it to the folder list this way.

It is furthermore possible to sort the folders in the right-click menu to create a structure that you are comfortable with. You can add folders from removable drives or network drives which is nice if you are connecting those to your computer.

Selected paths are opened automatically when you select them in the right-click context menu.

Update: Folder Guide has been last updated in 2008. It is still compatible with all recent versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system. I have tested it on a 64-bit Windows 7 installation and the context menu showed up fine in Windows Explorer.

Please note that you may need to log out and in again, restart the computer or kill the explorer.exe process before you see the new context menu entry in Windows Explorer.

The program ships with import and export options, which is useful if you want to have the same folders accessible on multiple Windows systems.

All versions of XP Context Tools add the following menu entries to the explorer context menu:

• Copy This Path
• Copy Dos Path
• New Folder Here
• Select All Items
• Move to Folder
• Copy To Folder
• Add Your Own

The last option makes it possible to add custom applications to the context menu. You may choose to add some or all of the context menu entries when choosing the custom setup option during installation.

If you download the Windows XP version you have the option to add more context menu entries to the my computer context menu. Those are the following: (as always it is up to you if you choose custom setup)

• Add / Remove Programs
• Control Panel
• Device Manager
• Disk Defragmenter
• Disk Management
• Msconfig
• Registry Editor
• Services
• Logoff
• Restart
• shutdown

XP Context Utilities is a great asset for everyone who misses one or more of the context menu entries that can be added by this freeware utility.