In reply to a post by XRaySpeX:

I can't! I don't possess W7! So I don't bother to offer fatuous remarks!

On the contrary, that's all you do.

Careful with that li'l ole attitude now...

In reply to a post by nemeth782:

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

The permissions appear to be correct, but access is still denied. It's almost as though I'm not being recognised as me via one path, but accepted via another.

But - more to come, as I have found something very odd.

Simples!!!

Vista and 7 no longer use the same file paths as XP etc.

In XP, a users music would be in "C:\documents and settings\<username>\my documents\my music"

That is, a subdirectory of their "my documents" folder, which in itself was within the "documents and settings" folder.

Vista onwards saw fit to change this file path to "C:\users\<username>\my music". Note that this is NOT a subdirectory of my documents, nor is it within the documents and settings folder.

With you there. This makes sense.

I realised long ago that My "anything" and their contents do not exist in Vista. These are just some clever sort of envelope of further pointers/links.

As Microsoft realise that some programmers will have hardcoded "C:\documents and settings\<username>\my documents\my music\" as where music is stored, there is a link which shows in my computer (but isn't an actual directory, and won't open if clicked) within the C: drive called "Documents and settings" that points to the Users folder, and another link within the "My Documents" folder which points to "My Music", which is now parallel with my documents rather than within it.

The purpose of this is not for you to navigate via the old path, but so that a hardcoded link will still work. If you try to open these links, you get "access denied".

I need to re-read that a few times, because although it is clear in itself and I understand what you are saying, I don't quite get how the hard-coded link works when a click doesn't.

Ahhh, now wait a minute ... (I'm on the Vista downstairs and don't want to alter things on it) ..., I always set to see system and hidden files as soon as I have a machine up and running ... back in a minute!

Bingo! Thanks!

It's in Tools >> Options >> View. In there I have always set "Show hidden files, folders and drives" as I used to need that. That does not affect this issue, and having just turned that off I have turned it on again. But was does is a couple of entries lower down, "Hide protected operating system files". I unticked that initially. Ticking it eliminates all the icons with the arrow-box that I had narrowed the problem down to.

On the Vista machine I did work out how to make those links clickable lol, but eliminating them didn't half clean up the Win 7 Windows Explorer screen!

Windows 7 complicates stuff slightly more by including the stupid "libraries" rubbish.

Just coming to terms with that. Strangely I installed a Vaio for a friend about a year ago, with Win 7, and was so impressed this new one is a Vaio, and don't remember Libraries. Or maybe that's a setting as well. I shall find out. "Folders" still stick in my gullet, but I have had to start using the word otherwise most people haven't a clue what you are on about if you mention directories.

Thanks again! (Your post was while I was composing my earlier long investigation as well as eating and watching the Prom on TV).

Thanks also to all who joined in. XRaySpex also hit the nail but I didn't see that until after it was sorted, including finding what I had done to cause it.

As I said at the start, it had to be me or else there would have been uproar.

When you open Windows Explorer, it defaults to 'Libraries' view.

Yes, this one does. Just I don't remember it doing so on the one I did before. Or maybe it did and I turned it off either deliberately or accidentally.

If I plough around it might come back to me. Just this other question was driving me scatty as it just didn't make sense, so most of my spare time since 14:30 has been spent on it.

That can be changed. Libraries can be removed almost completely in fact.

Now that is not something I've seen.. Normally, I do a virgin install on a new disk and then move the Libraries form the old disk, which is when I get the permissions thing..

In reply to a post by Spasch:

Now that is not something I've seen.. Normally, I do a virgin install on a new disk and then move the Libraries form the old disk, which is when I get the permissions thing..

It was because immediately after installs I go into Folder Options and set to see Hidden and System files, which doesn't cause a problen, but on Vista and now Win 7 there is the option to hide protected files etc., and turning that off which I had done without really knowing why it wasn't covered by the previous option is th cause.

The Vista machine now has that turned back to "Hide" as well. D'oh!

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

but on Vista and now Win 7 there is the option to hide protected files etc.,

As there is on XP!

I always have both options unhidden/shown on all my OSs as well as "Show extensions" as I want to have complete visibility of all my files.