[franca]

Q. I am using Windows XP. Can I change the folder icons in Windows Explorer?

A. Windows XP includes more than 200 icons that can be used instead of the standard yellow folder. They're easy to change. Heck, you can do the same in 98 and ME too. Let's cover how to change them in XP first.

To find them, first go to Windows Explorer (Start>All Programs>Accessories>Windows Explorer). Right-click on the folder you want to change, and click Properties. Select the Customize tab.

At the bottom of the window, click the Change Icon button. That will present you with more than 200 icons. When you find one you like, click it and click OK. Then click Apply>OK.

You also can place pictures within the folder icons. However, you can only use Thumbnails view for that (click View>Thumbnails). The picture must already be on your hard drive. You can scan the picture in or download it from the Internet or a camera. Save it as a JPEG (.jpg).

To place a picture within an icon, go to the Customize tab as before. Click Choose Picture. At the top of the Window, navigate to the picture on the hard drive. Click it and click Open. Click Apply>OK.

Custom icons also can be designed in Paint, which is part of Windows (Start>All Programs>Accessories>Paint). Click Image>Attributes. Height and width should be set to 32 pixels. After your design is drawn, click File>Save As. Save it to any folder on the hard drive.

Users of Windows 98, ME and 2000 can use software to change icons. Here are some free programs:

http://camtech2000.net/Pages/IcoFolder.html

http://www.cursorarts.com/ca_aifw.html