NAS access denied, Windows does not prompt for name and password

I've reported this before, as have some others.  As of one of the Windows updates a couple years ago, I lost the ability to click on a share in the Network display window and have it prompt me for a user name and password until I put the IP address in the HOSTS file.  Later, it also started not prompting for mapped drives and I also had to add a batch file that asked for my user name and password and then mapped the drives.  I believe this is inherently a Windows problem, not a ReadyNAS one, because I've seen similar postings regarding other NAS brands.

Something StephenB said in another post spurred me to re-post and see if anyone has any additional ideas.  What he said was that the NAS acts differently with a valid user name and bad password than with a bad or missing user name.

So, some additional background.  My PC user name and NAS user name are the same.  My passwords are intentionally different, and I intentionally do not store the NAS password in the credential manager.  So what used to happen is that Windows would report I used the wrong user name and/or password and ask to the right ones, which I would enter.  But, that changed and it now just denies me access and does not re-prompt.

It seems that Windows is now reacting differently to the NAS's reaction to my bad password and that likely explains why only some have this issue -- those with matching user name and different password.  So does anyone know if there is a setting that will go back to what it used to do?  Suggestions that I change what I state above is intentional are not helpful.

I'd post this on a Windows forum, but I've never received a useful response there.  The mods just want to blame the user.  Typical response to this one would effectively be "don't do that".