I have been wondering about something for a long time, but it is so minor, I never bothered to ask. But here it is.

I just swapped out my hard drive with a new one, and cloned the old OS, files, and programs on to the new drive.

When using my old drive, the PC displayed, and I had to type in, the file extensions, or it was considered an invalid file name. For instance: FileName.doc

If I left off the .doc extension, it was not recognized by Word, or whatever program I was using.

With the new hard drive, and no other changes, all my files in folders are listed without the extensions. No .doc (which I prefer).

Can someone tell me why the difference?

I've noticed this on my wife's PC as well. No file extensions needed.

Is there a setting for this?

Thanks...

I don't know why this would happen if the drive was an exact clone. I suspect it is just a display setting - the extensions are there, just not displayed. Files have to have extensions to be properly associated with registered applications. Not sure what OS you're using, but the setting to show extensions in XP is in Windows Explorer > Tools > Folder Options > View Tab. Check and see how it is configured.

Thank you Scleros.

It is so great when the solution is easy and straight forward like this!

I hate having to type in the extensions...