WinXP deleting media files.

[alienationware]

I have a problem deleting video files (mostly .AVI and .MKV) in WinXP. Part of the problem is that whenever I try to open a folder containing these files, WinXP becomes a smartass and tries to generate thumbnails instead of icons. As a result, I get the "cannot delete file... Blah blah blah... File is in use... Blah blah blah..." error messages. So, how do I turn off the automatic thumbnailing feature or get around it?

P.S.: I hate having to reboot just to be able to delete those files! ><

 

[porterjw]

I have a problem deleting video files (mostly .AVI and .MKV) in WinXP. Part of the problem is that whenever I try to open a folder containing these files, WinXP becomes a smartass and tries to generate thumbnails instead of icons. As a result, I get the "cannot delete file... Blah blah blah... File is in use... Blah blah blah..." error messages. So, how do I turn off the automatic thumbnailing feature or get around it?

P.S.: I hate having to reboot just to be able to delete those files! ><

May be too simple to work, but what about right-clicking and highlighting View, then clicking Icons? I'm not sure why you can't delete Thumbnails; no matter how the files are listed, you should be able to delete them. Is your music or video player active in the background playing (or have paused) the specific files you are trying to delete?