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The Windows Right-Click: Send To
In this article we will continue our exploration of the many facets of the right-click begun on the previous page by looking at the "Send To" function. Sadly, this useful and quite versatile feature of the right-click context menu seems to be much under-utilized. This may be true in part because realizing its full power requires customization by the user. However, the steps necessary to modify the "Send To" menu are actually quite easy and learning the process of adding functions provides the PC user with a whole new array of possible applications. A typical simple "Send To" menu is shown in the figure below.
Send To menu

This example contains some basic default entries plus an entry for Notepad that has been added by the user. Depending on the configuration of a given computer, certain other entries may be present as defaults. In the particular case shown, the options are to send (i.e., copy) a file to the A: drive, create a shortcut to a file on the Desktop, send the file by e-mail, copy the file to My Documents, or “send” the file to Notepad (i.e., open it with Notepad). This last action illustrates the fact that “Send To” does not have to refer to a location but can refer to the use of a software executable to carry out an action on the file. More actions are easily added to the Send To menu. The menu entries are created by adding shortcuts to the folder \Windows\SendTo\. (Note that the name of the SendTo folder is written as one word.) For example, adding Notepad to the context menu entries for Send To is accomplished by putting a shortcut to the file \Windows\Notepad.exe into the \Windows\SendTo\ folder. Similarly, removing an entry from the menu is accomplished by deleting the appropriate shortcut from the \Windows\SendTo\ folder. The first figure below shows a Send To menu with more user-added functions and the next figure shows the contents of the corresponding \Windows\SendTo\ folder.

This modified menu contains new locations for copying files, the portable drive H: and the CD-RW drive S: This provides an easy and convenient way to provide backup for files. Also added are the executable program files for the browser Opera and Microsoft Word 2000. The entry for Opera allows for opening HTML files in a browser other than the default browser. The entry for Word 2000 allows this way for opening files where a different Word Processor program is the default (for example, when Word 97 is also on the system).

Adding the SendTo folder itself to the menu provides a quick way to add new functions to the Send To menu. This somewhat tongue-twisting procedure is done by sending a shortcut to a desired program or location to the SendTo option.

One peculiar omission by Microsoft from the standard Windows 95/98 setup is the facility to use Send To for any folder of your choice. In Windows XP this omission is obviated by the presence of readily available "Copy to" and "Move to" functions

There are many possible ways to use Send To; each individual PC user can customize the menu to add all sorts of convenient and useful procedures.

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