Symptom

I have downloaded and used the CD Slide Show Generator PowerToy for years. Recently, whenever I try to write pictures to a CD, I am no longer asked to add the Picture Viewer to the CD. I have already uninstalled and reinstalled the CD Slide Show Generator PowerToy several times, but in vain.

Resolution

To reinstate the missing dialog, follow these steps:

  • Click Start, Run and type:

regsvr32 shimgvw.dll

  • Press Enter. Similarly, run the following command:

regsvr32 slideshow.dll

Restart Windows and check if the missing dialog box is reinstated when writing pictures to a CD. If the problem persists, here are some checkpoints to follow:

  • If you're writing mixed content, make sure that the 1st file (sort by name) in the list is an image file.
  • Repair the file associations for the image file types which you're writing to CD.
Editor's note: If you're writing mixed content to a CD, make sure that the picture files constitute more than 50% of the total number of files you're trying to write. This worked successfully in my systems. Though I can't provide a guarantee that this rule will apply in every case, but it's certainly worth a try.

More information

Using the CD Slide Show Generator PowerToy you can view images burned to a CD as a slide show. The CD Slide Show Generator PowerToy adds a CD Writing Extension (slideshow.dll), which prompts the user to add a picture viewer when writing image files to a CD. Here is how the dialog looks like:

If you choose the option Yes, add a picture viewer, it adds the files autorun.inf and autorun.exe to the CD automatically.