I have an annoyance that I can't get rid of. I use Visual FoxPro at work. In the past, when I double clicked on a *.dbf file it would load into the already running instance of FoxPro.

Last month, I got a new computer and installed everything fresh onto the new hard drive. Same version of XP (Professional) and same version of FoxPro. But now when I double click a *.dbf file it loads into a new instance of FoxPro even if there is already one running.

Anyone know how to change that so it loads into the one already running without starting a new one?

I've hunted through the help menu and googled until my eyes are blurry and it's driving me nuts :bonk:

Thanks :)

Prolly some sort of command line thing for FoxPro that you can enter in the My Computer -> Tools -> Folder Options -> File Types section for DBF files.

I dont have FoxPro installed, but as an example, if I look at the one for DOC files (MS Word) and click advanced, one of the options there is "Browse in same window", perhaps your DBF one has something like that?

Yes, look for a "open only one instance" type option (or the opposite, "allow multiple instances) in Foxpro. When Windows associates a file extension with an application, all it does is run the application and feed it that file. It's up to the application to decide whether to open it in a new window in the same instance, or run a new instance of the program.

I can't say how to fix this problem in Visual FP but I can tell you exactly how to do it in Excel and maybe you can apply that to your program:

Under Tools > Options go to the 'View' tab and check the box labeled 'Windows in Task Bar'

This is the exact same thing you describe so maybe that will help you locate it in Visual FP.

Thanks for the tips - no luck yet. I've been through all the option menu settings and find nothing like that anywhere. I'm looking for a good Foxpro board now to bug them :)