How the Mac OS X Finder could be improved

[savar]

The path bar is great for browsing, but not for moving files. The 3 column view is great at neither, but decent at both.

If you're having trouble moving files, try right-clicking on the files you want to move and use the "Copy <...>" command. This is a feature of windows that I generally don't like but is useful occasionally.

 

[Lacero]

Ok, I've discovered something. The 3 column view only takes you as far back as where you started browsing. So if you click on "Movies" from the sidebar, and then hit 3 column view you CAN'T scroll or use the left arrow key. It will only go back as far as movies. But if you start at your home folder and click movies, you can go back to your home folder, but not to the Users folder. It seems very strange, and obviously it would be better for them to simply allow you to browse all the way back.

Go to Customize Toolbar in the View Menu. Then drag in the Path icon. This will allow you to go back past the "Movies" folder if you happen to start off from there. I wish people would learn to use Finder fully before they start making suggestions on how to "improve" it.

NM, seems this has been covered already.

 

[Belly-laughs]

Open apps

I use the "open with" feature quite a lot when opening files, not always opening the file in it´s main associated app. What I´d like is a little bullet or Dock-like triangle to indicate which of the apps that are already running.

I know giving the dock a quick glance would give me a hint, but it involves moving the eyes… which I prefer not to do when having a menu open.

 

[The Black Rock]

The path thing at the top of the iTunes window is known as a "breadcrumb trail".

Aside from that, when do you think that the finder window will be able to do something like the "Filmstrip" view that Windows Explorer does?

 

[NaMo4184]

Side bar navigation

Why in the world can you not navigate the sidebar with the keyboard in finder. Is there some sort of keyboard short cut for this. I just don't understand why i must use a mouse to navigate the side bar. Please tell me i am being a n00b and it is possible.

 

[Cooknn]

The path thing at the top of the iTunes window is known as a "breadcrumb trail".

Back in the days of NeXT it was called The Shelf.

I say Bring Back The Shelf! I suppose you could always add "Path" to the toolbar in Finder to almost accomplish the same thing

 

[zbeckman]

Path Finder 3.2 seems to offer a lot of this...

Personally, I'm waiting to see what Tiger has to offer, but I recently found Path Finder and it looks like it has a lot of the features everyone is talking about. I didn't see anyone else mention it, so:
http://www.cocoatech.com/pf.php
Apologies if everyone already knows about it but... it can't be that well advertised if I've never seen it before...