XYplorer Beta Club

Hello all,

My current explorer is expanding in directions that ... disappoint me. So, I'm looking to switch. I look at my needs from a Windows Explorer replacement and I find myself with these requirements/questions/pie in the sky wants:

[1] I use the mouse extensively. The first need that I have is the ability to select/deselect files with middle clicks. That produces a new tab in the free version. Is that modifiable with the professional version? I'd like to say that a new program deserves learning new tricks, but I'm old and very much stuck in my ways [G]

[2] I use drop targets on a customizable toolbar. A lot. With a lot of targets. I currently have approximately 100, which is the limit of the current program. But I'd like something in the neighbourhood of 130 if I could have my druthers. I see, or perceive, from the feature docs that XY has something similar but different. And of course, I could go crazy with a send to context menu. But how close to an easy drop and copy/move (or the entire context menu in toto) in whatever extra toolbars does XY Pro have to offer. I'd like it to be a one-and-done drag and drop with occasional use of the context menu one level deep, but I just don't see that conceptually from inspecting the site.

[3] I understand I can have several columnar views (I use Details view almost exclusively). But I don't see any that list such data as media length, either audio OR video. And while I'm here in this area, can I set it up so that each folder retains a usual column sorting scheme, that will allow me to switch temporarily, but that will revert back the next time I click on the folder in the tree? For example, I have my normal FileIncoming folder. I want it in reverse date order ALMOST all of the time, but occasionally I will sort into name order. But I want it to go back to reverse date order the next time I visit, NOT the order I used last. I hope I've been clear in this need. And, since I'm a creative guy with wanting much, much more than is reasonable, can I total columns that have numeric values, such as total time for Audio length or total time for video length? Can't hurt to ask [G]

[4] I like quick filtering on PARTS of file names. For example, I'd like to type in DOC and see essay.doc, Documentary Listings.txt and Proposal from Doctor X.xls. An easy removal of the filtering would also be handy. Doable?

[5] I'd like something easier to get a handle on than the compressed file handling that I see in Free. My goal would be to see each compressed file as ONLY a compressed file, unless single clicked on, or someModifier-clicked on to expand it as if it was either a sub-folder or just an in-line expansion of the file. I know that sounds like I want it like water, able to exist in three different states. But that's what I'm shooting for.

[6] I didn't see the facility of a separate tree for each window pane. Is it possible in pro?

[7] Speaking of dual pane, I occasionally get caught doing this: I open up the second pane to look at a removable drive and do things with it. I then close the pane and remove the drive. Later, I open that second pane up with no removable drive in place. It gets stuck looking for that removable drive. Urk!!! It stalls. What I'd like is the ability to set the default opening location of the second pane to be where ever I would like. Or failing that, would quickly understand the last-used location is now no longer available and would default to the same location as the first pane. Gracefully and quickly.

[8] Refreshing is always an issue. As I see it, the best refresh system lets me set the way it does it, but is smarter than me. I'd always like the option of immediate refresh over caching refreshes. It's off-putting trying to rename a file that has already been renamed and you're just trying to re-do it into a cached display. Or delete it. Or move it. At the same time, there are some folders (icons for example), where the sheer numbers suggest not immediately refreshing is a good idea. And there's always the network issue too. So, how much control and just how smart IS refreshing in XY?

[9] Hotkeys. My immediate wish is a one-click removal of all hot-keys and then the ability to assign them as per my own muscle memory. That way, I can slowly changeover. I'm a little frustrated over the middle-click thing. But that's me. I just need to be sure I'm not triggering something DRASTICALLY different than what I want accidentally. And that one-click clearing of everything is a REAL GOOD IDEA.

[10] There are time where I just want a list of sub-folders inside of a particular folder or the folder path or the file name with or without the folder path in it. What's the process for extracting those four quite different pieces of information?

That's quite a list of wants. I didn't even get to the need for selecting all of the UNIQUE file names in a folder, using a particular file type to choose from different actual file types when there are more than one file with the same root name (i.e. essay.htm vs essay.docx vs essay.txt vs essay.pdf). But, within the list of the 10 most important things to me, is the seed for knowing whether I can switch to XY. I appreciate any time anybody has to contribute to my better understanding of the program's capabilities and limitations.

Thanks, GM

First of all, welcome to the club! Happy explorations!
[ed]

here's a quick brief briefing:

1) not entirely possible. Although you can disable both "Middle-click opens..." options @ Config->Menus, Mouse, Safety, then hold CTRL and middle click on items to [de]select.

2) XY allows max 64 custom buttons. After running out of these, you can create catalog items with drop targets.

3) You can add new columns. (follow the linked directions, but pick "Select Special Property"/"Select Property" instead of "Select Custom Column")
XY has Folder View Settings, but there's no auto-toggle option yet.
Total length: Yes that's possible, but not inline. You can get that info via a simple script.

4) Look up Visual Filters in the manual. Also there's a plugin of sorts that allows live filtering.

5) Sorry, XY can't yet do that. Although it's possible to view select archive formats as a popup or in the preview pane.

6) Nope.

7) I haven't noticed XY behave like this. It just unobtrusively informs that the location is unavailable. You can assign a default location for new tabs, but defaulting to that location when current path is unavailable is not possible.

XY auto-refreshes. You shouldn't get that kind of conflict you described.

9) all shortcuts can be cleared via the "options" button in Tools -> Customize keyboard shortcuts.

10) That can be very easily scripted.

[whewh...]
[ed: fvs link]

Thanks for taking the time and effort to go through my essay [G]. Some of the answers were encouraging, some discouraging. I truly value the select toggle with middle click (no extra key adulteration), so that's VERY tough. I'm willing to approach scripting with an open mind, but I come from the Pascal world and the 'translation' is tougher than it looks. in fact, my pascal background might actually be a hindrance.

I'm playing with my various right click enhancer type programs to see if I can live with a super enhanced send to menu through two or maybe three levels. It's doable. But i REALLY REALLY like simple drag and drop. It matches my reflexes.

Food for thought. Thus far my current explorer alternative is still ... comfortable. But I see a direction that will lead to a completely new product chasing a new user-base and leaving the old Windows crowd behind. Sort of like what Microsoft did with Win8. I'm NOT ordering XY just yet. Work intrudes and I have to decide to spend a week depending on the free version. One of the tasks I do regularly is something I'm going to try in XY since it has the all file list WITH path column capability that might actually make it MORE usable than the one I use right now. That would be a good start.

I'll be lurking and watching the change logs. There might be something in there that does make me get out my electronic plastic and join the XY club.

Thanks again for your efforts. Much appreciated.

[1]

Depends a bit on the used mouse. A 3/5 button one (left, wheelclick, right)? In that case you could use https://github.com/XYplorer-Scripts/ItemUnderMouse and a simple Autohotkey script that calls a XY script when a.) XY is the active window and b.) the wheel click is used...

[1] All you need is middle click do-some-thing? A trivial thing if you are willing to run an external helper to remap keystroke. For example, this Autohotkey script will make Middle mouse to send Ctrl+Left click (toggle selection) to XYplorer windowUsage: Save as *.ahk then open with a parser here: http://ahkscript.org/download/

G_Mugford wrote:I'm NOT ordering XY just yet. Work intrudes and I have to decide to spend a week depending on the free version.

You can trial XY pro to get more familiar with it and test all of it's capabilities.

SammaySarkar wrote:3) You can add new columns. (follow the linked directions, but pick "Select Special Property"/"Select Property" instead of "Select Custom Column")
XY has Folder View Settings, but there's no auto-toggle option yet.

If you edit the Folder View Settings for a folder and disable auto-save changes then it will restore the saved settings next time you browse the folder. I do this for my downloads folder so that when I browse the folder is automatically sorted by last-modified date even if I occasionally change the sorting to something else.

SammaySarkar wrote:10) That can be very easily scripted.

There's also many report options in the information panel plus the File > To Clipboard menu which when combined with branch view becomes even more powerful.

Thanks to highend and binocular222. It does appear the highest of the hurdles is now surmountable. I have had no time to further trial the product, but the weekend draws near. The fact that two options were presented leaves me confident the issue will not be an issue. I'm willing to have autokey programs sit there in the systray. It's what I bought all that extra memory for, after all.

As to the folder 'individualization' end goal. It appears there are are a kludge or two to get around things. A LITTLE surprised the extent that might be involved. But maybe a concrete example or two would be appreciated.

[1] Folder IncomingFiles, sorted normally in reverse date order and having an extra column to show file version info. I want EACH new time I bring that folder up to ALWAYS revert to this layout, no matter IF I had changed to name sort order before closing the application or the folder or both, the previous time.
[2] Same situation, but a column layout that includes Audio length as the special extra column. Call it Music.
[3] A folder called Reports that I want in the name sort order, with columns for File Created and Last Modified. I always want the two file columns to be flush right, each showing the full width necessary to show all data, even if the colour chooser had emboldened the data (assuming that's possible, I didn't think to look). The shrinking would always occur in the name field, which MIGHT shrink to less than the width necessary to show each file name. Again, I want that layout FOR THAT FOLDER to be in stone, until I consciously change it in a memorized sort of way.

Beginning to sound like I'm awfully finicky with a variety of needs. Guilty. Do I get this from my current product? Surprisingly close, but the bold thing beats it. So, close. And to compete, XY has to be close too ... and obviously not go the way of turning into a too-general app trying to fill too many niches. I just want to find the right Windows file explorer that wants the be the best in the Windows sector. ANd likes things that finicky ui snobs want.

Thanks to everybody who's helping out here. XY is looking better and better with every board posting, here and elsewhere on the board. Appreciate everybody's time.