Windows 8 chooses its default players to run your music and video, but what if you want different programs to open your files? Here's how to change them. John Thompson John Thompson has been addicted ...

When you open files that have a particular file extension, Windows will look at its configuration to determine what the default program should be in order to work with these files. The default program ...

When you double-click on a file in Windows 8, Windows will automatically open that file using a program that has been associated with that file's extension. There may come a time, though, that you ...

Often when you install a new application, it asks you to make it the default program for certain file types. If you're too quick with the "Enter" key during installation, you might inadvertently grant ...

Windows sets Notepad as the default program for opening text files. Although you can use Notepad to create basic documents that don't require formatting, Wordpad lets you add images, customized text, ...

Windows 11 (and Windows 10, which reached end of support in October 2025) lets you assign default apps for file types, protocols, and links. But a persistent and frustrating bug causes these settings ...

Every file on your hard drive (.jpeg, .html, and the like) can be associated with a compatible program, which will open that file format by default. Some applications will change a format’s default ...