Tabbed Exploring

[RalphM]

Thanks, Ralph. I could fix the hang-bug, but could not reproduce the crash-bug Right now I'm out of ideas. Maybe it's gone with the next BETA...

Hi Donald

Well, it's almost solved with beta 4.00.0027.
No more hang-ups and crashes and if I select a currently unavailable tab, I get a message telling me so and asking if I want to open it anyway with refocussing to the Desktop. Ok so far.
But if the active tab on last exit isn't available on next startup anymore, the file list diplays the Desktop contents anyway without any message, which is a bit confusing.

Enhancement suggestion for finding tabs:
Wouldn't it be less confusing, to set the focused folder of the tree view equal to the location of the search? (at least if the finding tab is "homed")

[admin]

But if the active tab on last exit isn't available on next startup anymore, the file list diplays the Desktop contents anyway without any message, which is a bit confusing.

Yes, I know. Thanks for complaining (sometimes I need a kick like this to do some nasty work)
EDIT well, I just remembered why it is like it is: the problem is not tab-specific but has been there all the time. When you restart TV3 with an unavailable startpath, some reaction is due. E.g., if you have just one tab and this tab is unavailable, what use is a message box?

Enhancement suggestion for finding tabs:
Wouldn't it be less confusing, to set the focused folder of the tree view equal to the location of the search? (at least if the finding tab is "homed")

This is on purpose. The thought was: when I do some regular search jobs (like checking sys dir for new files after an installation) there's no need for any tree action. On the other hand I agree that sometimes you want to go there by tree, too. What to do? I don't think that making this dependent on "homed" is a good idea.

[admin]

But if the active tab on last exit isn't available on next startup anymore, the file list diplays the Desktop contents anyway without any message, which is a bit confusing.

I did something in the new BETA, check it out.

[RalphM]

I did something in the new BETA, check it out.

Hi Donald
Checked the new tab behaviour - almost there I think.

If the active tab isn't available on startup you can add a new tab, but if you delete that new tab lateron with the second but last tab unavailable as well, that one changes to the Desktop without any hint of a warning.

Suggestion:
-Why don't you check all the tabs on startup for availability and if there are some available (hopefully) but the current one isn't, allow the user to decide either to activate one of those or create a new one. (or if you wanna keep it to simple yes/no: Yes = activate the first available tab, No = create a new tab with focus on Desktop)

-Right now you can't get any information about unavailable, named tabs, though the information is in the config anyway. Why not displaying the tool tips of those as well?

- Is it a must to have something displayed in the file list pane? Otherwise it could just be empty with unavailable tabs.

- The only things I'd like to be able to do with unavailable tabs is:
1) Getting the info where they point and what they do in the environment they were created in, and
2) Delete 'em if I believe I don't need 'em anymore
Because I think it's no good changing the settings of a tab without having the before - after effect at hand.

Thanks

[admin]

If the active tab isn't available on startup you can add a new tab, but if you delete that new tab lateron with the second but last tab unavailable as well, that one changes to the Desktop without any hint of a warning.

Yes, I'm aware of it. I call this "passive selection": if you close the current tab, some other tab has to be selected. Now the possible problem here: if I ask "Want to open it anyway?" and you do not want that (but the current tab is closed already)... what then? OK, create a fresh Desktop-tab, that would work.
Damn, surprising how complicated simple things can get... what do other tabbed file managers do??? Why are so few people attending this forum??? Questions...

Suggestion:
-Why don't you check all the tabs on startup for availability and if there are some available (hopefully) but the current one isn't, allow the user to decide either to activate one of those or create a new one. (or if you wanna keep it to simple yes/no: Yes = activate the first available tab, No = create a new tab with focus on Desktop)

Yes, but complicated, too. More simple would be: if startpath is unavailable, open a new tab at desktop, accompanied by a simple OK-only-message telling you this. I think this is cooler than letting the app chose what other tab to open... (who knows what's in there? )

-Right now you can't get any information about unavailable, named tabs, though the information is in the config anyway. Why not displaying the tool tips of those as well?

They have tooltips! Or?

- Is it a must to have something displayed in the file list pane? Otherwise it could just be empty with unavailable tabs.

Not bad. But what does the tree?

[Gandolf]

Why are so few people attending this forum???

Because I don't like, or use, tabs. Hence I have no comments to make on them!!!

Dave.

[admin]

Ok ok, Gandolf, I know you are special

But I meant it more generally: less than 10 people are regularly taking part in any of the discussions here. Other software forums have hundreds of active users... well, maybe they are all just reporting bugs

[admin]

Is it a must to have something displayed in the file list pane? Otherwise it could just be empty with unavailable tabs.

That was a golden idea! You'll see in the next BETA...

[RalphM]

That was a golden idea! You'll see in the next BETA...

You asked what should happen with the tree view in this case, well I thought it could show and focus an inactive network share under nethood, which it actually is in that case, isn't it?

Checked out the new beta and like the empty list view for unavailable tabs.
But don't you wanna do the same thing for finding tabs with unavailable find location? Those still produce messages "...check location combo...".

Thx

[admin]

Inactive network shares or other unavailable folders are often not present in the tree so there is nothing to focus. But I think it works very well as it is now.
Concerning the "recheck location..." messages: I leave it as it is now.

[RalphM]

Inactive network shares or other unavailable folders are often not present in the tree so there is nothing to focus. But I think it works very well as it is now.

Would just have helped consistency by means of "what you see in file list pane is focused in tree view pane".

Concerning the "recheck location..." messages: I leave it as it is now.

Any specific reason to leave it this way?

[admin]

Would just have helped consistency by means of "what you see in file list pane is focused in tree view pane".

True, I originally planned to remove any focus in the tree when there is nothing to focus (instead of leaving the focus where it was before), but that lead to certain complications. But I think you're right, it's worth looking at it again.

Concerning the "recheck location..." messages: I leave it as it is now.

Any specific reason to leave it this way?

It's consistent with general Find Files error handling: if you enter a non-existing search location manually or by template, you'll get the same message. You would rather see a greyed list I assume? Treat it as a (temporary) system property and not as a user input error...

[RalphM]

But I think you're right, it's worth looking at it again.

Hi Donald
Apparently you changed it in 4.00.0041. Checked it and like it in general, but I guess there slipped another bug in:
If I select unavailable tabs, I get a greyed out file list pane with the text telling me it's not available, but when I return to the system configuration, where the folders are available again and start TV3, all the tabs that haven't been available in the other system config point to "C:\Documents and Settings\...", which definitely wasn't intended, right?
I might have to check again, if it happens to those tabs only, that were focused (selected) while not available.

[admin]

If I select unavailable tabs, I get a greyed out file list pane with the text telling me it's not available, but when I return to the system configuration, where the folders are available again and start TV3, all the tabs that haven't been available in the other system config point to "C:\Documents and Settings\...", which definitely wasn't intended, right?

Sounds weird. How do you do this? TV3 should (and does here) start exactly as it was closed before.

[RalphM]

Sounds weird. How do you do this? TV3 should (and does here) start exactly as it was closed before.

Well I closed TV3 (v4.00.0040) in the system config with the network shares available (SYS_NW)
Installed v4.00.0041 in the config with the shares not available (SYS_SA)
Then started TV3 again
Checked all the tabs, which were greyed out as designed
Closed TV3 again
Started TV3 in SYS_NW again and the tabs focused "C:\Documents and Settings..."