Viewing a file in Windows is quick and easy. There are several different methods you can use to view a file in Windows, depending on the type of file, your operating system, and the applications you have installed on your computer.
The simplest way to view a file in Windows is to double-click it. This will open the file in its default application, or prompt you to choose an appropriate program if one is not already set. For example, if you double-click a .docx Word document, it will usually open in Microsoft Word; for a .txt text file, you may be asked to choose between Notepad and WordPad.
If you do not know what type of file you have, or want to view a file without opening it in an application, you can use the Preview pane in File Explorer (Windows 7 and up). Open File Explorer, navigate to the folder containing the file, and select it. You will see a preview of the file’s contents to the right of the list of files and folders.
You can also use the Quick Look feature of Apple’s macOS Finder in Windows via the NTFS for Mac by Paragon Software utility. This will display a full-screen preview of PDFs, images, videos, and other formats.
If you need to view more than just basic information about a file, such as its size, creation date, and attributes, you can open the file’s properties. Right-click the file and select “Properties” from the context menu. This will open a window with tabs that offer various details about the file.
In addition to the built-in Windows tools, there are many third-party tools that allow you to view files in different ways. For example, Hex Workshop Hex Editor Pro is a powerful hex editor that you can use to edit and view binary files. WinHex is another popular hex editor.
Finally, if you need to view an image or document in multiple windows at once, or compare two versions of the same file side-by-side, you can use a file comparison tool like Beyond Compare or ExamDiff Pro.
No matter what type of file you need to view, there is likely a tool that can help. Windows has built-in features to view a variety of files, and there are many third-party applications available that can enhance your view capabilities.