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With Windows XP and in [My Computer] Windows Explorer when I right-click there is a option "arrange by".

I want to know when arrange by comments is selected, how does Windows arrange drives in [My Computer] Windows Explorer?

enter image description here

barlop
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  • you are almost the only person on the internet using the term "arrange by comments" So include a screenshot – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:01
  • now I dont have access to windows xp. I will add it. but if you have xp you can right click in my computer and select arrange by. – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 16:08
  • Yes of course there is an "arrange by" But we're speaking of "arrange by comment" – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:09
  • see https://www.microsoft.com/library/media/1033/athome/images/moredone/5xptricks_img4.gif and http://www.watchingthenet.com/wp-content/uploads/wegroups1.jpg no "arrange by comment" (added- those are xp by the way.. I think 7 might use 'sort by') – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:13
  • yes we have arrange by in seven too but it have different options than xp. I found a picture form internet and add it to question. you can check it. – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 16:13
  • you can see comment too. yes first one is name and then size, type, .. and comment – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 16:15
  • unfortunately I dont have access to xp operation system now. this is in my work. I will take a screen shot. – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 16:19
  • Your pic is good. I just improved it by adding a circle around the option you speak of. And an answerer mentioned in comment, a reason why it may not appear / one of the requirements to make it appear. – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:21
  • Let us [continue this discussion in chat](http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/33822/discussion-between-barlop-and-user123). – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:33

1 Answers1

2

How does arrange by comments arrange drives in my computer?

With Windows XP and in [My Computer] Windows Explorer when I right-click there is a option "arrange by".

I want to know when arrange by comments is selected, how does Windows arrange drives in [My Computer] Windows Explorer?

Group Files by Using Folder Views (arrange by field with no value)

From what I read on Files Using Folder Views in Windows XP and from what I tested, it appears that if you "arrange icons by" "comments" or any other field that does NOT have a value, then those items are grouped under the heading of Unspecified.

When this occurs and there are absolutely no values for any of those items in that group for that field you sort by, it appears it orders them by "name" alpabetically in ascending order (A to Z).

WHAT ARE COMMENTS AND HOW TO MANIPULATE (plus resources)

In this context, the "comments" field is an attribute (or perhaps an extended attribute) of a file system object such as a file or folder. In a sense you can think of this as metadata I suppose but it's just an attribute of a file system object that can have an empty or some value as assigned.

  • As far as assigning a file system object a value for the comment attribute, there are some mixed answer on this subject but below is what Microsoft has to say about this with Windows XP.

    enter image description here

Sources

(Some parts of these posts are specific to Windows Vista or Windows 7 while other parts are specific to Windows XP so pay special attention when you read these to clearly indicate which comment or answer is referring to XP.)

Answer Notes

  1. Please note that you will not be able to 'arrange icons by' any column field header that is NOT set to show with the Windows Explorer options. So in order to arrange (or sort) by "comments" the "comments" column in that view needs to be available.

    enter image description here

  2. See this post here: Windows Explorer Edit Data Attribtes. It just appears that some file system object types can have their attributes\metadata changed more easily than others natively with Windows, and some may not be able to be updated. There are some third party tools that could potentially be used for this as well but I'll not list any to keep it Windows native.

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  • what is comment in drives? how can I see them or change them? – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 11:55
  • I will try it and tell you. thanks for your answer – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 14:20
  • can you show some screenshots, for the "details" box, and the "arrange by comments" option(that the questioner speaks of) and whether the "details" box is for any file type or just some. – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:04
  • by the way, you should point out, that the main part of those links you mention is for vista or 7.. maybe you can quote the relevant parts. . And anyhow, a google for "arrange by comments" doesn't give much other than his question. – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:06
  • also see my comment on his question with some screenshots from xp found from google images, no "arrange by comment" option. – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:13
  • I think sometimes whether a question gets votes or not depends on structure and conciseness.. so it is possible to add detail after one has got to the point and answered it for example my answer here http://superuser.com/questions/168202/difference-between-unxutils-and-gnuwin32 – barlop Jan 04 '16 at 16:37
  • accroding to your answer it is not possible to set comment for drives. yes? I can set and change comment for the files like image but for drives I cant set it. I try these in windows 7. – user123 Jan 04 '16 at 17:25
  • I accepted the answer and I understand what are comments in file and folder but I dont know how to set it for drives. – user123 Jan 06 '16 at 11:33