@Alan-Kilborn said in Rename the TAB, not the file.:
use mklink /H instead of a plain mklink
However, what it needs is a little bit of a script wrapper …
It’s possible that the project names or whatever it is then generates the log files don’t change often. In that case, a one time setup from the command prompt, without bothering with scripting it, will do.
It’s also possible the log files live on different servers and the OP is accessing them via drive shares. In that case, mklink /H won’t work. However, the mklink version without the /H will work but also requires extra steps. If the OP is in this situation then Google for mklink, the error message, maybe “drive share” will lead to forums where solutions get guessed at.
As I am trying to keep this as a Notepad++ oriented post. I guess I can say that a colorful Notepad++ flew by my office window but then we’d get distracted discussing its size, arrangement of feathers, etc…
Something else is that when you hover the mouse on a tab in Notepad++ the hover-tip has the full path.
On my machine file://c:/some-path gets underlined in Notepad++ and can be double-clicked to open the file. I have some projects that include sets of related text files. I have been in the habit of adding an Also see section at the tops of the files that contain links to all of the files in the project. That allows me to Ctrl-Home to the top of a file and then to double-click the Also see link for the file I want to view. If the file is not open then Notepad++ opens it. If it’s already open then Notepad++ jumps to that tab. It still means the tabs would say “log.txt” but I at least can reliably get to the one I’m seeking with a little effort. I put the Also see on the same line in each file and they have the same layout meaning the screen instantly jumps to the desired file and I can easily jump around between the files as the text in the area of the the mouse is not changing.
Web browsers do not offer the ability to rename tabs but each site offers an icon file that the browsers include with each tab. We look at the bower tabs and get used to using the icons to know which tab is the one we are seeking. That concept may be an interesting and potentially useful add-on to Notepad++. It would be a mapping table that translates a file path into the icon, color styling, and text to display on that tab for that file path.