Windows XP (and I think Vista too) shows all folder contents in the ‘Icons’ view by default. I know very few people who actually find that useful though. Typically, any filename more than a dozen characters long is pretty much useless in this view, so whenever one want to read all filenames, they switch to the ‘List’ or ‘Details’ view. Here’s a quick tutorial on making sure Windows always lists files exactly the way you want.

Click here to view the embedded video.