Windows can't Find the target

[RockFox]

This problem has existed prior to version 5.64 and continues in 5.64 in Windows 7 and Windows 8.

I click on File -> Play Folder -> Public Music -> OK
and a window pops up with "winamp.exe" in the title and says "Windows can't find the target". I click OK and Winamp plays the folder without problems. Of course Winamp does not play anything until I hit OK.

I have no empty folders in Public Music. If I select a folder within Public Music I do not get this error.

So it's not causing any problems except that it is annoying. What causes it and how can I fix it?

[DrO]

currently i've no idea what is causing it as i'm not even sure i'm trying to replicate the same thing as you. plus it's not something i've heard of before (and see no mention of it in your previous posts which is likely why there's no fix in 5.64 for it as no one has known about it).

is 'public music' a shared network folder or something else? (as that's the only thing in Windows 7 that i'm aware off which comes close to that name).

are you loading this inside of Winamp from one of it's menus / dialogs or doing it say in Explorer (really isn't clear from your post).

also could do with an info report being attached to this thread (see http://forums.winamp.com/showthread....161361#plugins).

[DJ Egg]

At a guess, it's one of those "special" folders that looks like the folder name is "Public Music"
but the actual path is: C:\Users\Public\Music

[RockFox]

As I stated in my original post, I start Winamp and then:
I click on File -> Play Folder -> Public Music -> OK
"Public Music" is the Library name in Windows 7

The actual path to the files is: C:\Users\Public\Music
This is a standard folder in Windows 7

The msg "Windows can't find the Target" indicates that Winamp (or Windows) can't find something in this folder. If I open a subfolder like C:\Users\Public Music\Jazz I do not get the message. I have over 2,842 folders. One of them must be missing something.

If Windows or Winamp would put the name of the target it is looking for into the message it would be a whole lot easier to resolve the problem.

[Aminifu]

Originally Posted by RockFox

...

The actual path to the files is: C:\Users\Public\Music
This is a standard folder in Windows 7

The msg "Windows can't find the Target" indicates that Winamp (or Windows) can't find something in this folder. ...

On my system the folder is named, "C:\Users\Public\Public Music". It has a sub-folder named, "Sample Music" that contains 3 mp3s.

Anyway, using the context menu of the main Winamp player panel, I select the "Play" command followed by the "Folder..." command. In the dialog that opens, I select the "C:\Users\Public\Public Music" folder and the mp3s in it's sub-folder are loaded and played with no problem.

If you have a "C:\Users\Public\Music" folder (not a typo) then it may be a false directory entry (that points to nothing) left over from an in-place upgrade of the OS or something else. If it is a false entry, you can use a Linux boot disk (that runs from the CD/DVD drive) to delete it from the Windows NTFS directory.

I had a false directory entry once (from an in-place OS upgrade) that showed in Windows Explorer, but Windows 'said' it could not find the target when I clicked on it. I could not use Windows to do anything with it, since Windows could not find it (even though it was listed in explorer). Linux was the only thing that 'saw it' and let me delete it. Weird, but true story.

If it is a broken symbolic link or something, it probably can be fixed (check with Microsoft support). In my case, it was easier to use Windows to move all the sub-folders (about 30) somewhere else, use Linux to delete the broken root folder entry, then use Windows to re-create the root folder and move all the sub-folders back.

[DrO]

the message is coming from Windows as we don't throw such a worded message. if Winamp is then parsing things then i'd probably go with Aminifu's observation.

and i had to query the paths as the only instance of that folder name on my setup is from network shares as my music library is under a different name and also directory location, hence the need to ask for clarification as clearly i was not testing against a comparable setup to yours (as i was looking at the instance on my setup which matched what you had said but transpires as not being the same).

[DJ Egg]

It's as I said above, it's a special folder which looks like it's named "Public Music" but the actual path is C:\Users\Public\Music

However, I can't reproduce the problem.
When I try play it via Play/Add Folder, everything works as expected, no error messages....
(it adds and plays the 3 mp3's in the "Sample Music" subfolder).

[Aminifu]

Originally Posted by DJ Egg

It's as I said above, it's a special folder which looks like it's named "Public Music" but the actual path is C:\Users\Public\Music
...

I see on my system that the folder named "C:\Users\Public\Public Music" in Windows Explorer is called "C:\Users\Public\Music" on the "Location" tab of the Explorer properties dialog for the folder.

It can be confusing knowing which name is symbolic and which is actual. I don't know if Windows allows the actual names for special (symbolic) folders to be the same names used for non-special folders. If it does, I can see how that could cause further issues. Since Windows normally does not allow the same total path name for multiple folders on the same drive, it would have to somehow change the subsequent names to something else when written to the NTFS directory and the user would not know what they are.

Anyway, it seems that the Winamp folder dialog shows the special (symbolic) names used by Windows Explorer and not the actual names show on the location tab of their properties dialog. If RockFox has a folder showing in Explorer with the same name as the actual folder name for a special (symbolic) folder on the same drive, that may be the reason for his problem.

[RockFox]

Maybe I didn't make this clear in my OP. All of the music in the C:\Users\Public\Music plays in Winamp. I play the whole folder in shuffle mode and never once had a problem.

If I select any of the subfolders I do not get the message.

All I'm saying is that the message from Windows that says: "Windows can't find the target" is a little annoyance when I select this folder. No music plays until I click "OK". After I click OK everything is golden. I didn't intend that such a big deal be made of this little inconvenience.

I have attached an image of the window with the message.

[Aminifu]

Originally Posted by RockFox

I didn't intend that such a big deal be made of this little inconvenience.

Thanks for responding back. It is not a big deal. It's only that those responding to your post are not able to replicate what you are seeing. I only provided my experience with such a message. The only other times I see it, or something similar, is when I click on an orphaned shortcut.

I love using Winamp and get a little concerned when it seems to be malfunctioning.

[DrO]

it's possible that the cause of the Windows generated message is due to a broken shortcut link in one of the folders (based on what another user experiencing the issue let us know).

[RockFox]

I have solved the origin of the error message. There were two Shortcuts in my Music folder that were no longer valid -- thus the message "Windows can't find the target"

I removed the Shortcuts and everything is run fine in my newly upgraded Windows 8.1 to 10.