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Idea #19774: Easily open newly created or downloaded files

Written by acesuares the 12 May 09 at 00:42. Category: Usability. Related project: Nothing/Others. Status: New
Rationale
For example: I save an attachment from Thunderbird. Now where did I put it? I don't remember. Could there be a 'Places' where I could easily find newly created files?

Another example: I create a file in Open Office. Now I want to attach it in Thunderbird. Where's that file? Under 'Recently Created'?

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Developer comments
Gnome Zeitgeist is shaping up along these lines.

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Solution #1: Use inotify to monitor files and have an applet or a menu item in 'places'
Written by acesuares the 12 May 09 at 00:42.
Someway to monitor files. Then add them to something easy to find , like Places-> Recently Created or Form the File->open menu something similar.

It needs to look trough the users entire homedir. But maybe exclude some files and dirs like .thumbnails and .cache and .mail ?
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Solution #2: Set all programms to save files on the same place the first time.
Written by Ssdg the 12 May 09 at 12:11.
Use a directory created to this goal, say "~/newFiles" and check that every programs saves to this directory by default.

This solutions won't kill the hard drive where #1 will (such a solution will keep scanning the directory, killing the watched directories's sectors when the cache will be full (and on most /home it will be full really fast ;) )
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Solution #3: Get Yourselves Organized
Written by Akerbos the 12 May 09 at 18:04.
Surprisingly, I never (or at least negligible seldom) lose files. For I do not think an OS should substitute user's brain, but only aid it, I expect from users to be able to build up a directory structure they can handle. So, in my opinion, there is no need for such a thing.

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Darwin Survivor (Brainstorm moderator) wrote on the 12 May 09 at 18:04
Solution #2 would drive me nuts. I like it when my programs remember where I last saved something, or where the current version of the file is (exporting to another format). Saves me a LOT of clicking when working on multiple files in the same directory.

Akerbos wrote on the 12 May 09 at 18:06
Nothing against individual applications keeping track of the directories you accessed. But still, no need for a solution by the OS.

@ starter: You could also use your desktop. Anything you save there you will always be able to see *rolleyes*

Ssdg wrote on the 12 May 09 at 20:18
Darwin Survivor > I never said it will be definitive. It's the DEFAULT saving directory. My idea stops after the first use.

I'm sorry if it's not clear. So I put an "Edit"

McIvor wrote on the 12 May 09 at 20:20
I'm with number three - I'm all for user-friendly, but if it gets too easy, you will inevitably get idiots (meaning no offence to the original idea) who have no business even using a computer trying to do things, and then demanding that we cater to them. I don't want to start drawing lines, but I honestly think you should at least be aware of where you are saving a file to instead of relying on the program to remember it for for you.
Also, isn't that what 'Recent Documents' is for?

kpeiruza wrote on the 13 May 09 at 00:12
I agree one might be able to organize himself, however, we can't expect so from everybody. The OS might mind this people as well.

The unified notification method can also increase the overall feeling of control and security thus making it natural and easy to realize you just made something :D

tuxxy (Brainstorm moderator) wrote on the 13 May 09 at 00:22
Catfish could be used in this instance to great effect.

acesuares wrote on the 13 May 09 at 04:47
Re: #3 get organized: yeah, that's the problem. My new quote is saved from Openoffice in /home/me/Documents/220 Clients/New Clients/This Company/quotes/2009.

I *know* where it is! I am really organized.

Now I want to attach it in Thunderbird. It remembered where I last found a file to attach - and it's nowhere near where I stored the new file. I have to click about 8 times to get back to home, then down the tree to where the file is. The problem is not that I don't know where the file is, the problem is that Thunderbird doesn't now where the most recent say 10 files that I created or modified are.

If there was an easily accessible 'last created' or 'last modified' then that would be swell. Recent Documents doesn't work that way; maybe it works when you opened it from Places but not when you just saved it from open office...

Re #4 Catfish: yeah but then i'd have to remember the name of the document?

Re #2: default path for save. Wont' work for me, I save maybe 10 Open Office documents all in different paths. It's finding them back easily is the problem. Not where they are but how quick you can access 'em.

Re: Mail straight from open office. Right, but this is not just Openofiice/thunderbird thing. You might download an mp3 (err sorry ogg) from a site and then want to open it in rhythmbox...

Re: #1 inotify lots of harddisk access? I tought it checks the kernel for modifications and does not just sit and mull trough 1000s of inodes????

I run inotifywait now, had to increase the max number of watches (default 8192, i made it 65535). It looks relatively easy to write some thingy that picks up on the output of inotifywait and convert it to usable file:/// links for instance. Would want something more sofisticated that is integrated in nautilus though, so that you 'add attachement' and then can choose from 'Recently Created' on the left hand menu (where Home and Desktop etc are)....




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