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xfce:thunar:working-with-files-and-folders [2015/05/15 20:25] – [Opening Files] hjudtxfce:thunar:working-with-files-and-folders [2015/10/05 22:46] ochosi
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 ===== Opening Files ===== ===== Opening Files =====
  
-<note warning>This page is work in progress!</note>+When opening a file, either via the main menu, via the file's context menu, by double-clicking on it or by hitting the enter key, the file manager performs the default action for that file type. For example, opening a text file will display it in the default text editor, while opening an image file will display the image in the default image viewer.
  
-When you open a file, either via the menu, context menu, by double-clicking on it or by any other means, the file manager performs the default action for that file type. For example, opening a text file will display it in the default text editor, while opening an image file will display the image in the default image viewer. +The default file open mode is double-clicking but you can set //Thunar// preferences so that a single click will execute the default action. For more information, see the section called [[:xfce:thunar:preferences|File Manager Preferences]].
- +
-You can change the default application associated with the file type by simply clicking on the file with the right mouse button and choose "Open With". The application chooser dialog opens, which lets you choose another preferred application, search for alternative applications and even lets you enter a custom command to open the file with. If you want to set another application as default, do not forget to check the box "Use as default for this kind of file". If you do not check this box but continue to open the file with a new alternative application, then it will be remembered in the last used applications list which you can see in the "Open With" menu. +
- +
-You can set //Thunar// preferences so that you click once on a file to execute the default action. For information, see the section called [[preferences|Behavior Preferences]].+
  
 ==== Executing Non-Default Actions ==== ==== Executing Non-Default Actions ====
  
-To execute actions other than the default action for a file, select the file that you want to perform an action on. Choose the desired action from the //Open With// choices available in {gui>File menuor an {gui>Open With} submenu.+To execute actions other than the default action for a file, select the file in question, then choose the desired action from the //Open With// choices available from the {gui>Filemenu or the right-click context menu
  
 ==== Adding Actions ==== ==== Adding Actions ====
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   * In the main area, select a file of the type to which you want to add an action.   * In the main area, select a file of the type to which you want to add an action.
-  * Choose {gui>File>Open With Other Application...} from the main menu. +  * Choose {gui>File>Open With>Open With Other Application...} from the main menu. 
-  * Either choose an application in the {gui>Open With dialog} or select {gui>Use a custom command} and browse to the program with which you wish to open this type. +  * Either choose an application from the list or select {gui>Use a custom command} and browse to the program with which you wish to open this type. 
  
-The action you have chosen is now added to the list of actions for that particular file type. If you enabled the {gui>Use as default for this kind of file} option or there was no prior action associated with the type, the newly added action is the default.+The action you have chosen is now added to the list of Recommended Applications for that particular file type. If you enabled the {gui>Use as default for this kind of file} option or there was no prior action associated with the type, the newly added action becomes the default.
  
-You may also add actions using the Open With button under {gui>File>Properties...}.+You may also add actions using the //Open With// pick list under {gui>File>Properties...}.
  
 ==== Modifying Actions ==== ==== Modifying Actions ====
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   * In the main area, select a file of the type for which you want to modify the action.   * In the main area, select a file of the type for which you want to modify the action.
   * Choose {gui>File>Properties...} from the main menu.   * Choose {gui>File>Properties...} from the main menu.
-  * Select the new default action using the Open With button or add a new action by choosing {gui>Open With Other Application...} from the drop down menu+  * Select the new default action by choosing one of the recommended applications in the //Open With// pick list or add a new action by choosing {gui>Other Application...} and selecting an application in the {gui>Open With} dialog
  
-To remove a previously added action for a file type, bring up the {gui>Open With} dialog as described above, right-click the action you want to remove and choose {gui>Remove Launcher}.+===== Properties =====
  
-===== File Properties ===== +<figure "File and Folder Properties"> 
- +{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_file-properties-general.png?nolink&|File Properties}}{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_folder-properties-general.png?nolink&|Folder Properties}}
-<figure "File Properties"> +
-{{:xfce:thunar:file-properties.png?nolink&|}}+
 </figure> </figure>
  
-The file properties window shows more information about any file or folder in the file manager. With this window, you can also do the following: +The **Properties** dialog shows more information about any file or folder in the file manager. To open the **Properties** window, perform the following steps:
- +
-  Change the icon for special files, such as application launchers and URL links. +
-  Add or remove emblems for a file or folder. +
-  Change the UNIX file permissions for a file or folder. +
-  Choose which application is used to open a file and other files of the same type. +
  
-To open the file properties window, perform the following steps: +  * Select the file or folder you want to examine or change. You can select multiple items at once and display the properties that are common to them all.
- +
-  * Select the file or folder which properties you want to examine or change. You can select multiple items at once and display the properties that are in common to all items currently.+
   * Do one of the following:   * Do one of the following:
     - Choose {gui>File>Properties...} from the main menu.     - Choose {gui>File>Properties...} from the main menu.
-    - Right-click the selected item and choose {gui>Properties...} from the context menu.+    - Right-click the item and choose {gui>Properties...} from the context menu.
     - Press {key>Alt+Return}.     - Press {key>Alt+Return}.
  
 If there are no files or folders selected, right-clicking anywhere on the whitespace or performing any of the other actions listed above will present the context menu of the current folder that you are viewing. If there are no files or folders selected, right-clicking anywhere on the whitespace or performing any of the other actions listed above will present the context menu of the current folder that you are viewing.
  
-In the details view, accessing the context menu of the folder works similar, with a few exceptions. As in the other views, you can click somewhere on the whitespace if it is available, that is the view is not full of files. Alternatively, any column except the left-most one is treated similar to whitespace when right-clicking on it and the row you clicked on has not been selected. In any other case, the context menu of the clicked or selected file(s) will appear instead of the folder context menu.+There are three or four tabs in the Properties dialog that give you access to the following information or actions: 
 + 
 +=== General === 
 +  - For folders: 
 +    * See the total size of all the files in the current folder and all subfolders. 
 +    * View a Usage slider which displays used and free space on the current partition. 
 +  For files: 
 +    * The ability to change the default //Open With// action for this file and other files of the same type.  
 +    * File type and size. 
 +=== Emblems === 
 +  * Customize a particular file or folder'icon by adding an emblem. 
 +=== Permissions === 
 +  * Change the UNIX file permissions for a file or folder. 
 +=== Image === 
 +  * Only present for graphics files. View the image size in pixels (and other metadata, if available). 
  
 ===== Selecting Files ===== ===== Selecting Files =====
  
-There are various ways to select files in thunar.+There are several ways to select files in Thunar.
  
-To select a single file, you can simply click on it with the left mouse button. You can select multiple single files by holding down the control key and clicking on the files, or hold down the shift key to select a range of files. Also, with the mouse you can click somewhere in the whitespace and drag selection box over the desired files.+  * To select a single file, you can simply click on it with the left mouse button.  
 +  * You can select multiple files by holding down the {key>Ctrl} key and clicking on the files, or holding down the {key>Shift} key to select a range of files.  
 +  * You can also select multiple files and folders by using the mouse to drag a selection box over them. Note: If you are using //View as a Detailed List// in the Main Area, you must first position the mouse over a file/folder name (not in the whitespace) before dragging. 
 +  * You can also select files by providing a pattern with the keyboard shortcut {key>Ctrl+S} or from the main menu {gui>Edit>Select pattern...}. For example, to select all text files, hit {key>Ctrl+S} and enter "*.txt" in the dialog. 
 +  * If you want to find single file and know the beginning of the filename, simply start entering the filename in the view. A text box will appear in the bottom right corner and an incremental search will be performed. The first file that matches what you type will be selected. If there are multiple files names beginning with the same letters, continuing to type the name you're looking for will narrow your search down until the file you want is selected
  
-The details view is special in this regard because it does not support starting the selection from whitespaceonly from existing rows. That's due to the way the GtkTreeView widget works that is used for the implementation of this view. To compensate for this, it allows dragging files only by clicking on the "Name" column, that is the one showing the filenames, while starting a selection can be performed by clicking and holding the mouse button in any of the rest of the columns. +Other options are {gui>Select all Files} and {gui>Invert Selection}which can be found in the {gui>Edit} menu.
-To put it in a nutshell: If you want to drag or select single files with the mouse click on their names, and if you want to select multiple files with the mouse, start the selection by clicking on and dragging over any of the other columns.+
  
-You can also select files by providing a pattern with the keyboard shortcut Control+s or from the main menu {gui>Edit>Select pattern...}. For example, to select all text fileshit Control+s and enter "*.txt" in the dialog.+===== The File Menu ===== 
 +The {gui>Filemenu item is a context menumeaning the entries you see on it will differ depending on whether the currently selected item is a folder or a file.
  
-If you want to find a single file and know the start of the filename, simply start entering the filename in the viewA text box will appear in the bottom-right corner, and if the file exists the view will scroll to it, selecting the file.+<figure "File Context Menus"> 
 +{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_file-menu-on-folder.png?nolink&|File menu - folder selected}}{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_file-menu-on-image-file.png?nolink&|File menu - file selected}} 
 +</figure>
  
-Other options are "Select all(Control+a) and "Invert Selection", which can be found in the Edit menu.+Certain items on the File menu are not native Thunar functions but are provided by plugins. In the descriptions that follow, those items will be identified by __Plugin__. More detailed information on their usage can be found in the **Plugins** section of this documentation. 
 + 
 +**__The following menu items are common to both folders and files:__** 
 +?New Tab 
 +!Opens a new tab within the file manager window and makes the new tab the current focus. The working directory in the new tab will be the same as the previous tab/window. You can open the new tab at a different folder by right-clicking on a folder and selecting {gui>Open in a New Tab} from that menu. 
 + 
 +?New Window 
 +!Opens another instance of Thunar in a new window. 
 + 
 +?Create Folder 
 +!Creates a new folder within the current folder with a name of your choosing. 
 + 
 +?Create Document 
 +!Allows you to create a new document either as a blank file or from a template. If you choose the //Empty File// option and type in a file name with no extension, by default it will create an empty, plain text document. If you assign a file extension of a recognized MIME type, it will create a file of that type.  For example, typing ''MyDocument.odt'' will create a blank OpenDocument Text file. You can also create files from a pre-configured templates. To do that, you first create a file with all of your desired settings in the application of your choice and then save it in the ''~/Templates'' folder. That file name will then appear as a choice in the {gui>Create Document} list. Give it a new name and you now have a new file based on your custom settings. 
 + 
 +?Send To 
 +!__Plugin__. Displays a menu with several targets where the selected folders or files can be sent. 
 + 
 +?Create Archive 
 +!__Plugin__. After selecting multiple files and/or folders, clicking this item will allow you to create a compressed archive file that contains all of the files in the selection. 
 + 
 +?Close All Windows 
 +!Closes all instances of the file manager. 
 + 
 +?Close Tab 
 +!Closes the current tab. If there are no open tabs, closes Thunar. 
 + 
 +?Close Window 
 +!Closes the current instance of Thunar. 
 + 
 +**__The following menu items are specific to folders:__** 
 + 
 +?Open 
 +!Opens the selected folder and displays its contents in the Main Area. 
 + 
 +?Open in New Tab 
 +!Creates a new tab at the top of the Main Area, labels the tab with the name of the opened folder and displays the folder contents in the Main Area. 
 + 
 +?Open in New Window 
 +!Opens a new instance of Thunar in a separate window and displays the contents of the selected folder. 
 + 
 +?Open Terminal Here 
 +!Opens a terminal window with the selected folder set as the working directory. 
 + 
 +?Find in this Folder 
 +!__Plugin__. Launches the Catfish file finder application with the selected folder as the target. 
 + 
 +**__The following menu items are specific to files:__ 
 +** 
 +?Open With "Application" 
 +!See [[working-with-files-and-folders#opening_files|Opening Files]] in this section for descriptions of the various file opening options. 
 + 
 +?Set as Wallpaper 
 +!Only applicable to image files. Sets the selected image as the desktop background. 
 + 
 +===== The Edit Menu ===== 
 +The {gui>Edit} menu presents the same options for both folder and file selections. 
 + 
 +<figure "The Edit Menu"> 
 +{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_edit-menu.png?nolink&|Edit menu}} 
 +</figure> 
 + 
 +?Cut, Copy, Paste 
 +!These three options are probably the most often performed operations in Thunar. After making your file/folder selections, these actions can be accomplished from the {gui>Edit} menu, by the indicated keyboard shortcuts or by dragging and dropping. You can copy or move files and folders between Thunar sessions in different windows or between tabs within the same window. While the difference between copy/paste and cut/paste should be obvious when using the menu or keyboard shortcuts, it is not so when dragging and dropping. The drag/drop operation performs a __move__ when the source and target folders are on the same partition but it results in a __copy__ when the source and target are on different partitions.  
 + 
 +<note>To drop selections on a tab, first hover over the target tab itself until it becomes active, then move the mouse down to the Main Area to drop your selections into the current folder of that tab or a subfolder within it.</note> 
 + 
 +?Move to Trash 
 +!This is the action that is performed by default when you select files and folders and press {key>Delete}. Files deleted this way are still able to be viewed and acted on by opening the Trash folder, including the option of restoring them to their original location if it turns out you were too hasty in deleting them. Right-clicking on the Trash folder and selecting {gui>Empty Trash} permanently deletes all of the files stored there and frees up the disk space they were using. 
 + 
 +?Delete 
 +!Bypasses the Trash folder and permanently deletes the selected items once you agree by pressing {key>Delete} in the confirmation dialog. 
 + 
 +?Select all Files, Select by Pattern..., Invert Selection 
 +!See the [[working-with-files-and-folders#selecting_files|Selecting Files]] paragraph above. 
 + 
 +?Duplicate 
 +!Creates a duplicate copy of the selected files or folders and appends ''(copy 1)'' to the filename. Multiple selections are allowed. 
 + 
 +?Make Link 
 +!Creates symbolic link (symlinkto the selected file or folder. See [[:xfce:thunar:unix-filesystem|The UNIX File System]] for more information on symlinks. 
 + 
 +?Rename 
 +!Allows you to assign a new name to the file or folder. If multiple items are selected, invokes the **Bulk Renamer** __Plugin__. 
 + 
 +?Configure custom actions... 
 +!__Plugin__. Configure actions that will appear in the file manager's context menus for certain types of files. 
 + 
 +?Preferences 
 +!See the [[:xfce:thunar:preferences|File Management Preferences]] section. 
 + 
 +===== The View Menu ===== 
 +Most of the items on the View menu are either self-explanatory or have been discussed in the [[:xfce:thunar:the-file-manager-window|The File Manager Window]] section. There are just a couple that deserve further explanation below. 
 + 
 +<figure "View Menu"> 
 +{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_view-menu.png|View Menu}}</figure> 
 + 
 +=== Show Hidden Files === 
 +Hidden files typically contain settings and configuration data which don't normally need to be accessed. For this reason and as a safety precaution to prevent their accidentally being moved, changed or deleted, they do not show up by default in the file manager. Check this option to make them visible. They can be identified by the dot prefix in the filename (e.g., ''.nvidia-settings''). 
 + 
 +=== Zoom === 
 +Increase or decrease the size of the icons and text in the Main Area. This is a "stickysettingmeaning the new zoom level will be what you see the next time you start Thunar. If multiple windows are open, the other windows will not refresh with the new setting until they are closed and reopened. Select {gui>Normal Size} to restore the default zoom level. 
 + 
 +===== The Go Menu ===== 
 +The {gui>Go} menu provides options for navigating through the file system. Most of these options can be accessed more directly by clicking on the [[:xfce:thunar:the-file-manager-window#side_pane|Side Pane]] or the [[:xfce:thunar:the-file-manager-window#location_selector|Location Selector]], or by using keyboard shortcuts. There are, however, a couple of exceptions to this rule. You will notice in the example below that there are some folders showing in the {gui>Go} menu which aren't showing in the Side Pane. One of them is the special //Templates// folder (which isn't one of the default PLACES in the Side Pane). The other two, //Development// and //Reports//, are user-defined shortcuts which have been hidden using the Side Pane right-click menu. As you can see, the {gui>Go} menu overrides that setting and displays all shortcuts. 
 + 
 +<figure "The Go Menu"> 
 +{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_go-menu.png?nolink&|Go menu}} 
 +</figure> 
 + 
 +Another navigation option available from this menu is {gui>Open Location}. Choosing this allows you to manually enter the path or URL for the resource you wish to locate. The examples below show the different presentations for this option depending on whether you have the **Toolbar** or **Pathbar** location style selected. In either case, as you type, an incremental search is performed and matching entries are listed to choose from. 
 + 
 +<figure "Open Location - Toolbar vs. Pathbar Views"> 
 +{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_go-open-location-toolbar.png?nolink&|Open Location -> Toolbar}}{{:xfce:thunar:1.6:thunar_go-open-location-pathbar.png?nolink&|Open Location -> Pathbar}} 
 +</figure>