QTTabBar v1.2.3b5

QTTabBar v1.2.3b5 494KB + Microsoft .NET Framework v2.00

QTTabBar is a shell extension for the standard Windows Explorer, like others found in Best Free Windows Explorer Add-ons. It transforms the Windows Explorer into a tabbed browser with many other customizable functions and features. This extension, if properly configured and customized, could make Explorer a serious rival for other file managers reviewed in Best Free File Manager, and indeed betters all the other file managers I have tried.
The software extends the capabilities of Windows Explorer considerably, and can be extended itself with various add-ons and plugins if desired. It may be used by average users with the default installation, but it is probably best suited for intermediate to advanced users who wish to spend some time setting it up and harness the extra power and functions available to the program

QTTabBar works on Windows XP with .Net Framework 2.0 or later, without having loaded other Explorer extensions which use .NET Framework 1.0 /1.1. This program works well on Vista although some minor problems have been reported. Unfortunately, a large part of QTTabBar does not work on Windows 7.

Quite a few people asked about the speed. As far as I can determine it only slows Explorer down by milliseconds, if at all. This is of course difficult to measure. It is faster than any other file manager I have tried. The exact behaviour of many functions also depends on how your standard Explorer default options are set.

This article may be considered as a basic QTTabBar guide, QTTabBar manual or QTTabBar tutorial. I have tried to make it as comprehensive as possible, but it does not cover every single detail of the software, neither does it describe every single possible customization, setup, or mouse click. Except where specifically specified, the illustrations in this article apply to Windows XP Home or Professional.

Installing QTTabBar

To install the basic QTTabBar, go to the download site and download the zip file. Unzip the file to a folder of your choice and run QTTabBar.exe to install the software. After successful installation, you must either log off and then log in again, or re-boot your machine.

The current stable release of the program is Version 1.2.2.1, which applies to this article.

Activation

Open "My Documents", and the Explorer Window will open. Click on "View/Toolbars" in the menu (press to show the menu bar on Vista).

If "Lock the Toolbars" is checked then uncheck it, click on "View/Toolbars" again.

Select "QT TabBar" to enable the toolbar. You may also check "QT Tab Standard Buttons", a component mentioned on the QT site as "Button Bar".

As you can see here, a bar called "QT Breadcrumbs Address Bar" is enabled. This is an extension I will cover later in this article. I have disabled the Standard Buttons as they are not necessary. The QT TabBar appears after a short delay.

Options

If you now right click on a blank part of the tab bar or a blank part of the QTTabBar icon tool bar, you get another context menu.

This is also a powerful menu, and contains the entry to the control centre for customising QTTabBar. Most of these menu items are once again self-explanatory.

Some items are grayed out here. They will only be enabled when you use the related functions in the tab bar, or actually have some content, such as "Groups" and "Recently opened files".

The last item on this menu however, "Options" opens a large window with a number of tabbed folders where you can configure every aspect of the tool bar -- how it looks, how it behaves, add plug-ins, what commands or mouse actions do what, and how, and a lot of other options.

Download Link :

QTTabBar

Microsoft .NET Framework v2.00