How can I preview j2k images in Windows 7 explorer

Question

I have Windows 7 and I have some image files with the ending .j2k on my computer. These are jpg2000 images.

Unfortuantely Windows 7 doesn't offer a preview of the actual image in the Explorer window like it does for .bmp, .gif and .jpg.

Do you know what tool, hack or trick will help me to preview .j2k images in my Explorer?

Answer 1

In Windows XP I'm using a little gadget called 'Thumbnails'.

Xentient Thumbnails is a utility for replacing the generic icons of image files with thumbnail icons of the actual image. These thumbnail icons are much easier to recognize and they work everywhere icons are displayed, including on the Desktop, in Open and Save dialogs, and in Windows Explorer. The utility automatically generates thumbnail icons for most popular image types including JPG, JPE, JPEG, JP2, J2K, GIF, PNG, BMP, WBMP, EMF, WMF, PCX, PBM, PGM, PNM, PPM, RAS, TIF, TIFF, and TGA. Xentient Thumbnails is licensed as freeware, full size of the download is 0.71 MB.

Xentient doesn't offer the program for download anymore, but here's a working link from Brothersoft.

Thumbnails works with Windows 7. Voilá, JPEG2000 preview in Windows 7 Explorer :)

However it doesn't stop there: see the 'thumbnailed' desktop shortcut of the same JP2 file? sweet! :)

Answer 2

Irfanview can handle j2k files. Also, there is an option in the folder settings that says that Windows can generate a thumbnail for all the possible files. Try it.

Answer 3

Try installing an app that can open j2k files (Picasa?). Then, to have previews, try using The How-To Geeks suggestion for Vista (I think it should also work in Windows 7).

Answer 4

There's a JP2-ShellExtension that is supposed to view thumbnails of JPEG2000 files in the Explorer.

I haven't tried it so can't tell if it works fine or not with Windows 7 (XP is the max OS listed).

Answer 5

Are you sure you cannot simply rename them to .jpg or .jpeg?