Change VLC multimedia icons (Windows)

Question

I want VLC as my universal player.

It has a lot of qualities that everybody acknowledges and a few shortcomings which made me use other players in time. But in the end I have to concede it is still the best - especially while used on different platforms.

One of the small but annoying short-backs is the ugly and universally known orange cone.

I would like to have other icons than the same orange cone for all media files.

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Have tried to use VLC Icon Changer, but it does not work for me. Instead of the normal icons the program shows yellow triangles

and then its effects are absent in spite of an ok message.

Solution

To change the all-around vlc icon (except for taskbar and system tray, see below):

Use Resource Hacker and change icons in "C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe". That will just replace the universal VLC default icon with a different one, excepting for the taskbar and system tray icon, which will stay the same

To go back to the original icon, you may find it in the backup file called 'vlc_original.exe' in C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC.

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To change filetype-specific icon:

Use FileTypesMan an edit each file type. This will be VLC-independent and will make sense if you want all or a part of the media icons to be different for each file-type. But installing a new multimedia player may reset this. It is a procedure that requires more effort, because a separate edit is required for each type of extension. (When using MPC-HC as default player, which has separate icons for each type of multimedia file, all is very simple; - but as here we are talking about VLC, a good solution may be to use the MPC-HC icons with FileTypesMan, as these icons have the extension name on them. If MPC-HC is installed, you may find the icons in the file 'mpciconlib.dll'. Other file-type-specific icons may be found in the icon sets of Gom Player, KMPlayer, and on the web, like here.)

Open FileTypesMan and wait to load the data. Then, use CTRL-F to find a type of file (like '.avi'), double-click it to open, and set the default icon.

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I do not have a complete solution on how to change the task bar and system tray icon. I found the problem discused here but without an answer. This solution for changing the taskbar icon (changing icon in properties) has not the full desired effect in Win 7, except that the icon set in this way is visible when searching VLC (with the Win key) and when right clicking the task bar icon (but it does not replace the task bar icon itself).

That changed icon can be pinned to taskbar, but once VLC is running, it changes to the default orange cone. After closing the player the new pinned icon reappears on the taskbar.

Comments

[Doktoro Reichard]

Let me check an answer I gave about modifying file assigns. The advantage is that you can set by filetype the disadvantage is that you need to set by filetype.

[Admin]

@DoktoroReichard - i have found it i think. see answer

[Doktoro Reichard]

Well... not exactly what I had in mind, but close enough. I'll leave the link to the question I had in mind (as it is now too much to add). The method I present in the link can be adapted; it is the "native" method of changing file type icons in Windows, since 98.

[Admin]

@DoktoroReichard - I will edit my answer and add your comment as source when I have more time

[Doktoro Reichard]

To help other people that might have the same problem, can you give a small description of what the programs do and how should one use them?

[Doktoro Reichard]

I posted that comment before you did your remark, at the time it was valid.

[Admin]

@DoktoroReichard - edited the answer and will in the future if needed