Freeware Tools: Folder Actions 1.1

Folder Actions enables you to automatically perform certain actions if files are added to a specified folder. The available actions include: New file alert, copy/move file, rename file, convert image, convert audio, convert video, compress/decompress file and an option to perform a custom action via .bat command execution. You can configure multiple folders and each can have its own folder action assigned. Unfortunately the program only supports a single action for each folder, which means you cannot combine any of the available actions, nor can you apply them in sequence.

Folder Actions for Windows is a file management application built specifically for helping you perform batch operations when it comes to converting files, receiving alerts when a new item becomes available, compressing or decompressing items, and automatically moving or copying a file to a user-defined location.

Although it comes packed with several dedicated parameters, the layout is clean and intuitive.

The batch processing operation can be carried out by adding folders to the list and assigning the action to be triggered for the selected directory.

You can add folders to the list using the built-in browse function, so you cannot rely on the “drag and drop” support. Folder Actions for Windows gives you the possibility to add multiple directories, delete the selected ones, as well as open their location directly from the primary pane.

What’s more, you can make the tool display alerts when a new item become available, and move or copy the files to the specified location.

When it comes to image conversion, you are allowed to select the output format (JPG, BMP, TIF, GIF, PNG), pick the compression level and quality for some of the file formats, rotate the images to different angles, save the pictures to a subfolder or select a new location, as well as delete the items at the end of the task.

Last but not least, you can make the utility run at Windows startup, monitor the file processing operation from a dedicated window, and perform user-defined actions which can enabled by loading BAT files or scripts.

All in all, Folder Actions for Windows comes bundled with a decent pack of features for helping users perform several tweaking operations to files. Thanks to its intuitive layout, it is suitable for rookies and professionals alike.