As regular Hassle-Free PC readers know, I love my keyboard shortcuts. And one of my favorites by far is the Windows key plus E (Win-Efor short), which instantly opens Windows Explorer.
(Aside: It always amazes me how many people don’t really know that Explorer exists. But it’s the go-to tool for finding and managing files. End of aside.)
By default, tapping Win-E opens the Computer folder (formerly known as My Computer), which affords quick access to your drives.
That’s fine for some, but I prefer quick access to a specific folder, one that’s buried a few levels deep and would require a bunch of extra clicks to reach.
Thanks to free scripting tool AutoHotkey, it’s possible to remap/redirect Win-E to whatever folder I want. Just create a new script as follows:
#e::run explorer.exe {FolderPath}
Keep the brackets, and insert the exact folder location between. So, for example, if I want the remapped key to open C:DataWordBlogposts, that’s what I would insert between the brackets.
Needless to say, this will work only when you run the script. So if you want Win-E to go back to its normal function, just skip or disable the script.
What do you think? Would remapping this keyboard shortcut prove handy for you? Or can you get by with its default behavior?
Contributing Editor Rick Broida writes about business and consumer technology. Ask for help with your PC hassles at hasslefree@pcworld.com, or try the treasure trove of helpful folks in the PCWorld Forums. Sign up to have the Hassle-Free PC newsletter e-mailed to you each week.