Is there a way to copy a list of
filenames in a folder, as viewed in Windows Explorer, into a Word document
without having to copy and paste each filename individually? If you open a
folder and then highlight and copy a list of pictures, for example, and then
paste into Word, all of the pictures are actually inserted. I want to copy just
a list of the filenames of the pictures instead. ~ Jeffrey Pickle
Yes, you can do it with a little help
from the Command Prompt. First open the folder in Windows Explorer. Highlight
its name in the Address bar and copy it to the clipboard. Now launch Command
Prompt from the Start menu. Type CD " (that's C, D, space, double quote), then
right-click, choose Paste, and press Enter. If the folder of pictures is on a
different drive from the Windows drive, type the drive letter and a colon and
press Enter. The prompt string in the Command Prompt window should be displaying
the name of your folder; for example, "G:\Photos\Concert>". Now enter the
command below exactly as shown:
DIR /ON /B *.* >
C:\folderlist.txt
The /ON switch means Order by Name; in
other words, sort the listing. The /B switch yields a "Bare" listing of just the
filenames without the size and date/time stamp. And the "greater than" sign
redirects the output of this command into the file C:\folderlist.txt. Open the
folderlist.txt file in Word and you've got just what you were looking
for.
If you don't mind spending a few bucks,
TechSmith's SnagIt ($39.95; www.snagit.com ), our favorite screen capture tool, does this
also—and a lot more. See our review of SnagIt at http://go.pcmag.com/snagit .
You may also want to test-drive
Kleptomania 2.5 ( www.structurise.com ). Kleptomania is designed for exactly this application. It
takes screenshots and converts any text in the graphic to usable text. There's a
21-day trial version, then it's $29.95 for the Private version, $49.95 for the
Commercial version.
Document Management 
