Adding Items 

To add a new item click on the "Add" button, select "Add" from the "Actions" menu or right-click on the file type listing and select "Add" from the popup menu. In the window that appears select the item you want to add and enter the necessary information. Required items appear in bold.

Note that the item will be added as soon as you press "OK" or "Apply", there is no way to undo your actions.

File Types 

The image below shows the "Add" dialog when adding a file type:

File Type Manager allows you to define several values for a file type to be added. See the list below for an explanation of the different values:

  • Name: the user-readable name of the file type, the name under wich the file type will appear in Windows Explorer.
  • Internal Name: the internal identifier of the file type. You should choose something that reflects the user-readable name.
    • you may enter an internal name that is already used by another file type. In that case you have the option of keeping the file extensions, actions, shell extensions and other properties of the already existing file type.
    • choosing an already existing internal name will cause the previous file type to be removed.
  • Extension: the extension you enter here will be the first extension to be associated with the new file type.
    • you may enter an extension that is already associated with another file type, in that case it will be re-associated with the new file type.
  • Default Icon: the path and number of the default icon that will be displayed for the file type.
    • to browse for an icon file and select the icon from a list click the "Edit..." button.
    • the path does not have to be fully qualified, for example "shell32.dll,2" would select the third icon inside the file "shell32.dll" that must be located somewhere within the %PATH% environment.
  • CLSID: the CLSID you enter here will be used for the new file type.
    • click on the "Generate" button to generate a new CLSID.
  • Flags: the value you enter here is a combination of special flags assigned to the file type.
    • to generate the value from a selection of flags click the "Edit..." button.
File Extensions 

The image below shows the "Add" dialog when adding a file extension:

Below is an explanation of the different values you can define:

  • Extension: the extension you want to add.
  • Associated With: the file type the new extension will be associated with.
    • click the "Change" button to select an existing file type.
  • Content Type: the MIME Content Type of the extension.
    • the MIME Content Type of the extension will be set to whatever you enter here. Note that this will not actually create a new MIME Content Type. Use the "MIME Content Type" tool to create a new MIME Content Type.
  • Info Tip: text that will be displayed in an info tip when you hover the mouse over a file with the given extension in Windows Explorer.
Actions 

The image below shows the "Add" dialog when adding an action:

Below is an explanation of the different values you can define:

  • Name: the name of the action. The name will appear in the context menu when you right-click on a file in Windows Explorer.
    • several special names are pre-defined in the list. These have special meaning in Windows.
    • File Type Manager builds the internal action name by replacing spaces in the name with underscores. If you select one of the predefined "special" names then the correct "special" internal name will be used.
  • Command: the command that will be executed when the action is selected.
  • Associated With: the file type the new action will be associated with.
    • click the "Change" button to select an existing file type.
  • Uses DDE (Direct Data Exchange): select this checkbox if the action should use DDE.
    • DDE is a Windows feature that allows applications to exchange information. If you let an action use DDE it will send the specified DDE message to the specified application when the action is selected.
  • DDE specific options:
    • Message: the DDE message to send.
    • Application: the application the message should be sent to.
    • Application (Not Running): the application to receive the message if the previous one is not running or not available.
    • Topic: the topic of the DDE message.
Shell Extensions 

The image below shows the "Add" dialog when adding a shell extension:

Below is an explanation of the different values you can define:

  • Name: the name of the shell extension.
    • the name is not used anywhere within the normal user interface (ie: Windows Explorer) but is useful to programs like File Type Manager.
    • File Type Manager will use the CLSID for the internal name of the shell extension.
  • Associated With: the file type the new shell extension will be associated with.
    • click the "Change" button to select an existing file type.
  • Inproc Server 32: the 32-bit inprocess server DLL to use for the shell extension.
    • the inprocess server is a special program that will be loaded into the Windows user interface by Windows Explorer and implements the shell extension.
  • CLSID: the CLSID of the shell extension.
    • every shell extension must have a unique CLSID.
    • click the "Generate" button to generate a new CLSID.
  • Threading Model: the threading model to use for the shell extension.
    • normally shell extensions use "Apartment" threading.
    • the "Both" value indicates a shell extension supports both threading models (I think).
  • Extension Type: the type of shell extension you want to add.
    • Property Sheet Handler: this adds an additional sheet (tab) to file type property dialogs.
    • Context Menu Handler: this adds an additional menu item to right-click context menus.
    • Copy Hook Handler: this extension hooks into a copy operation when it is performed on the associated file type.
    • Drag-Drop Handler: this extension hooks into a drag-drop operation when it is performed on the associated file type.
    • Data Handler: not sure what this type does.
    • Drop Handler: not sure what this type does.
    • Icon Handler: this extension displays a custom icon for a file type (ie: a thumbnail for an image).
    • Column Handler: this extension adds an additional column to a folder's detailed view.
  • Approved: when this is selected a shell extension is approved to be used on a system.
    • if this is not selected a shell extension will not be loaded.
    • this only takes effect on Windows NT/2000/XP.