Ray Blackburn

A: If you have installed Tweak UI (formerly part of MicrosoftÆs unsupported PowerToys), thereÆs an easy way to do this. Select StartòSettingsòControl Panel. Double-click Tweak UI, then click the Explorer tab. In the Settings section, uncheck Prefix "Shortcut to" on new shortcuts.

If you donÆt have Tweak UI, thereÆs a method that sounds like it shouldnÆt work but does. Open two folders side by side on your desktop: one full of files, the other empty. Right-drag a file to the new folder. At the pop-up menu, select Create Shortcut(s) Here. Now select the new shortcut and press <F2>. Then delete the words Shortcut to and press <Enter>.

Repeat the process, dragging another file to the once-empty folder to create the shortcut, then manually removing the unwanted words. Eventually, usually by the eighth repetition, Windows will create the shortcut without adding the extra verbiage. This is the only case I know where Windows actually seems to learn from experience.

install Windows 98 Updates when you like