How do I add "Edit" entry to context menu for one filetype?

[Mzy]

Hello,
Windoows XP had some simple means through the Explorer menu system that allowed me to customize the right-click menu for individual file types. But some of that functionality is lost in Windows 7 as far as I have been able to determine.

In addition to opening an HTML file with Firefox by default, I want to right-click and select a secondary function, such as "Edit," which opens up Arachnophilia 4.0 and loads the source code for editing. But I don't want to see Arachnophilia as an edit function in every file on the system..

In Windows 7, I can use the Control Panel to arrive at a screen that lists file types, like I saw in XP, and I can select a given file type and change its default program, but there is none of the capability to add new or to edit existing secondary functions in the menu.

I found this walkthrough in Nathon Dalton's Blog, but it adds an "open with Notepad" to everything, using a Registry edit. It works as advertised, but adds the edit with Notepad function everywhere, including in places that make no sense.

What I tried:
HKEY_CLASSRS_ROOT key expands to include * and many file extensions. Following Nathon's walkthrough, I expanded * and saw a shell key. Under shell I called a new key Arachno and filled its contents with "Edit in Arachnophilia," then added a command key under Arachno and filled its contents with "C:\path\to\arach..exe" "%1" . The quotes are required here. .The "%1" tells arach.exe to load the file I right-clicked. With quotes included, it picks up file names with spaces in them.

I tested it and it did add "Edit in Arachnophilia " to every file and folder context menu,

I discarded the change, and went down to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.html which had no shell key.. So I created one and under it I put new kwy Arachno and its "Edit with" contents, followed by the new command key under Arachno. And I entered the path as before in its contents. This did not work. There was no "Edit with Arachnophilia" on the context menu for index.html..

The shell key under the * key had no contents, and so when I created a shell key under .html I also left its contents empty.

Please advise how I may accomplish my goal to add an editor to the context menu for just the html filetype.

[Edit: I improved some wording and replaced a mistyped word. These are italicized. /edit]

 

[TrainableMan]

You need to put the entries under the specific file extensions that archno should Edit, not under *. Put it under .htm.

So at \HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.htm\OpenWithList you need \Archno\Shell\Edit\command and then under command set the default to "C:\path\to\arach..exe" "%1"

 

[Mzy]

It would seem that I should be able to build a menu entry under any one of the extensions listed in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT below *, but where I found *\shell and added Arachno\command under *\shell and saw immediate results, even without closing the Regedit, I did not see the shell key under either .htm or ,html. I even restarted Windows.

I added the shell key under .html and added Arachno\command under it, and had no luck adding anything to the index.html context menu.

You used the .htm extension in your answer, TrainableMan, and it does have the OpenWithList key, but .html does not. So I added that key to .html and built my keys under it, still without success.

I added a test.htm file to my Desktop and followed your advice exactly, and still no luck.

Apparently there is some foundation laid that empowers *\shell\something\command to add "something" to the context menus everywhere, but that foundation code does not enable the same functionality under the specific extensions I am looking at.

I will expand several extension keys and see what exists under each, and see if it is enabled to add something to a context menu for that extension.

I guess further, I should look under HKEY_??? for a list of extensions headed up with a * and see what is under * there that may be the foundation laid to let the walkthrough instructions work.

 

[TrainableMan]

You need the shell under Arachno, not Arachno under shell.

It should look like \HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.htm\OpenWithList\Archno\Shell\Edit\command

But even once you have it there I'm not sure what makes that act as the default EDIT, so if there is another it may be what you get when you select EDIT.