Add item to "New" context menu in Windows 8

Question

I would like to add an empty markdown file to the "New" context menu in Windows 8. I see at least two solutions to this problem, but neither of them work for me.

Is this possible? FWIW, a markdown file is a just a plain text file with a .md extension.

First try

I made a .reg script as shown here.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.md\ShellNew]
"NullFile"=""

But, even after a restart, I don't see markdown under the "New" context menu. Here is my registry after running this script, which seems correct.

Second try

I also tried new menu editor as shown here. This works in general, but the .md extension doesn't appear in left pane.

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Update 1

ShellNewHandler shows the markdown extension. Do I have to somehow add a template file?

Answer 1

You need to add some more registry keys:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.md]
@="markdown"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.md\ShellNew]
"NullFile"=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\markdown]
@="Blank Markdown file"

@=markdown points to the new registry key, whose default value ends up being the description and name of the new file.

You may also need to add the following to set the icon (but I think it is optional):

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\markdown]
"DefaultIcon"="%SystemRoot%\system32\imageres.dll,-102"

Finally, from ShellNewHandler you may have to:

1. uncheck .md
2. apply
3. check .md
4. apply