QUICK PREVIEW

Here’s a nifty little Windows XP trick that lets you quickly preview multimedia files (AVI, CD Audio, MP3 etc.) in Windows Explorer, without having to wait for Windows Medial Player or your chosen media player to open. All you have to do is open Windows Explorer then go to Tools > Folder Options and select the File Types tab. Scroll down the list and click to highlight the multimedia file type you want to be able to preview. e.g. avi movie files, then click the Advanced button then New. In the Action box give the function a name, i.e. ‘Quickview’ then in the ‘Application used to perform action’ box copy and paste the following command:

C:\Windows\System32\Mplay32.exe /Play %1

Click OK to exit the dialogue boxes and it’s done. Now in Windows Explorer find an avi file (or your chosen file type), on the menu that appears select Quickview and the file will immediately start playing.