How to get IE8 to auto-save downloaded files to a specific directory

Question

I'm primarily a Firefox/Chrome user and I want to get IE8 to exhibit the same behavior of Firefox wherein I can specify that if I download files of type "x" they get auto-saved to the preference-specified download directory without being prompted to "Save or Open" and/or specify the save location.

Solution

A bit rusty on IE8, but if memory serves ...

Go into the Internet Explorer Options and in the Advanced tab turn off "Notify when downloads complete", that should stop it asking you for a location.

If you want to set the default download location, you need to change a registry setting in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer. Create a String key named Download Directory (or update it if it's already there) and set the value to the directory you want.