How do I add thumbnail images to folders...?

[Otilio]

Hello guyz,I am using Windows XP and was wondering how do i add my own thumbnail images to the folder.I want every folder to have a different image so that i can know the content without opening it.Do i have to install any software or is it possible to do without any software..?Does it require only JPG image or other formats also work like Bitmap and GIF.?Any suggestions are welcome...

[FlashX]

There are number of softwares which you can use to create thumbnail images from a Jpg image.Irfanview is one of them it is easy to use and free software.Once downloaded and installed you can follow this steps to create a thumbnail image.
Click on File menu--Select Thumbnails--a Thumbnails control window will open--now browse and select the image you want to be created as a thumbnail and save it as an .ico file.Now Right-click on the folder to which you want the thumbnail to be applied and select properties--Now change the default icon to the one you've made using Irfanview.

[XDRoX]

In Windows Xp there is no need to install a 3rd party software to add thumbnails to the folder.If you have a jpg file and you want to add it as a thumbnail to the folder then the simplest way is to copy the jpg file to the folder for which the thumbnail has to be made and then rename the file as "folder.jpg".Now you this file will be added as the thumbnail image of the folder.You can also set the attributes of the jpg file to hidden so that it doesn't get in the way.

[SpearMan]

The Windows default way of setting the thumbnails is not that great and does not provide flexibility to users as how the folder should look.It only sets a thumbnail image on to the folder icon so if you want to customize how the folder should look and also customize the icons then ICOFIX is the software which will help you.It also help in customizing folder icons as per the user wants.Other than Icofix you can also use Folder Marker which also has same features as of Icofix.Both are freewares and easily available.