Nexus One: How to Prevent a Directory from Showing Up in Gallery

Contributed by Rob Rogers  
Tagged: Android  

At this point, there there are no settings for hiding undesired directories from the Gallery. If you have a directory that keeps showing up in Gallery, but you don’t want it to, here’s a method that will prevent that from happening.

In a nutshell, what we need to do is place an empty file named .nomedia into the directory that is to be hidden from Gallery. Since it can sometimes be tricky to create a file that starts with a dot, we will start with a blank text file. You will also need to install a file manager application from the Market. I use the ASTRO file manager application, but others will work for this.

Note: Make sure that there are no other media files (like mp3s) in the directory that you wish to hide, as it will be hidden from media players.

1. Connect your Nexus One device to your computer using the USB cable.

2. Go to the Nexus One and pull down the Notifications bar.

3. Select USB Connected.

4. Select Mount.

5. Now go to your computer and open the USB drive (your device).

6. Open the desired directory and place a blank text file into it.

7. Eject the USB drive.

8. Go to the Nexus One device and open the ASTRO file manager.

9. Browse to and open the desired directory.

10. Long press on the newly created text file.

11. Select Edit.

12. Select Rename.

13. Change the name to .nomedia.

14. Click OK.

15. Confirm the rename by clicking Change.

16. The .nomedia file will be hidden, but it’s there.

Go to Gallery and note that the directory in question is no longer displayed.