Nope it was defo not because it was a text file.
for 1 i do not have my extensions hidden.
for 2 i had the cogwork symbol not notepad symbol.
Anyway just to let you all know in the end i uninstalled the full game and started from scratch without any character.ini files etc, and the default layout.
Worked a treat first time, also to make sure it was not somehting wrong i was doing, i just drag and dropped the eq2.ini file i was using when i was saying it did not work and also i drag and dropped the custom ui folder back to where it was.
SO it was neither being in wrong place or wrong extension, it was something unexplainable probabally from something i have chanegd in the past somehow.
I thankyou all for your help, i just wish i knew what was wrong the first time so i could report it for future people having problems.
But i suggest anyone in future tries a re-install if the forementioned stuff does not fix it.
Right time to have some fun with some custum UI's
