How to Use the New Files App in iOS 11

[pgamble]

I understand that, but Apple have been planning this for ages and they should have enough control of the key developer ecosystem to ensure the basics work on release.

You can't event access Apple controlled photos, videos, audio files !

If things aren't integrated, they shouldn't even show.

We've got to stop making excuses for Apple here. It's their ecosystem. They have huge power but sadly little imagination or appreciation of what is required for Joe Public.

 

[Fynd]

Hmmm...this is odd, I saved a file in the Word App, but "On my iPhone/ iPad" does not show up in the Files app. Any pointers?

Not sure. Did the Word app really save it to iCloud/word?

 

[Brammy]

I understand that, but Apple have been planning this for ages and they should have enough control of the key developer ecosystem to ensure the basics work on release.

We've got to stop making excuses for Apple here

Apple has no control over its developers.

There is little Apple could have done. Dropbox, OneDrive, etc. are all record early on saying they would support the new Files app. This is on them, not Apple. They needed to have the apps ready for day one, and they didn't. This is that sucky period of an iOS release where developers haven't updated their apps and we are all upset.

There are things I wish Apple would do, like force apps that work on an iPad to be optimized for the large iPad.

 

[artfossil]

I have personal Dropbox. That just pops up the Dropbox viewer over files, so there is no apparent integration. It doesn't even let you drag and drop a file from that Dropbox window to the other folders (cloud and On My iPAD) under files. What is the point - you get people excited, waste time and offer nothing - as I said, actually a lot worse that useless.
I have corporate Box. This is via single sign on like most would have for business use. Every time I click the Box location, it says Authentication Required. When I do that sign in, it gives a full window Box display with an arrow to take me back to Files - again, it just launches with no integration and no drag and drop ability. As I say, each time I try box again, it says I'm not authenticated. Worse than useless.

I too have a personal Dropbox account and a corporate Box account. My corporate Box account has full integration, including drag and drop. No authentication required.

Dropbox doesn’t have drag and drop (at least not yet) but I cam “Move" Files from Dropbox to other locations so I don’t really care.

Furthermore, as everyone who was honest would agree, the ability to share pictures, videos and audio files has always been weak to the point of impossible. You need iTunes that only runs on certain devices and it's management is awful. Where is the Photos folder, the Videos folder, the Music folder, the Voice Recorder folder ? These are just jpg, png, mp4, m4a, mp3 files. Why wouldn't you want to see them all in one place, browse them, drag and drop them to other apps ? Of course you would - that is the whole point of a creativity device and I understood (perhaps wrongly) the whole point of finally enabling a files capability.

I’m honest, but having separate management for Photos, Vidoes or Music is the LAST thing I want on my iPad. I want to keep management for these files on my iPad within the app (just as I don’t manage photos outside of Photos or music outside of iTunes on my Mac).

We have different workflows. For the ways I work, I am really enjoying Files and it’s made a notable difference in my productivity. I was never one clamoring for “file management” on the iPad but I’ve found value in the Files app. I expect it will get more robust as services like Dropbox acquire drag and drop capability, etc. and look forward to further developments.

As for Word, as I say, when I must edit on my iPad I can do so and share my edits with my enterprise colleagues (an NSF-funded research group) in a Word doc. The rest of the time, I use the apps that make my workflow easiest and most pleasurable and then export in the format that makes sense for the intended audience and use. More and more, the “de facto standard” in my environment tend to be a link to a Box folder or a PDF file.

The bottom line for me is that I can do most anything I need to do on my iPad without my Mac and have found myself—for the last few YEARS—relying on it in my work environment almost exclusively and relegating my Mac to things like heavy photo and video editing.

The objective was to provide a flat interface onto all files stored on the device (across all apps) and stored in the major cloud collaboration services. Beyond that it would should enable search and drag / drop across all of these.

I don’t agree with your statement of the objective of Files. Files, as stated in the Mac Rumors article:

“ . . . replaces iCloud Drive, offers a lot more functionality than its predecessor, and provides perhaps the best argument yet for using an iPad as your go-to mobile computer.

In Files, you have access not only to the files stored on your device and in iCloud, but also to those stored in third-party services that support integration with the app.”

This is the first version of Files. Some services are well-integrated, others are not, but I expect that to change to the degree that the service want’s better integration.

 

[kristalsoldier]

Not sure. Did the Word app really save it to iCloud/word?

Hmm...it did not show up in iCloud for sure. I'll try again and revert. Cheers!

 

[pgamble]

Hi
I appreciate what you say about workflow etc. We are all different.
What I am really saying is that a good device should intuitively fit how you would naturally want to work. The Apple may work for some, but as you say you have developed your workflow to fit the device and what's more, there are some things you feel you don't need - like Office (for much of the time) and photos.
A very large part of the population will be using Office so not supporting that intuitively is just wrong (and sadly, Apple's inward looking view has already ignored these wrongs). Also, most people would want to share photos with others and they don't want to worry if those people are using an Apple app, an Apple device, an Android device or an Windows device - it should just work and there should be consistency around how that works regardless of source or destination. However cumbersome Windows desktop or Android phones / tablets may seem to some, they have always enabled that consistent approach.
Apple chose the sandbox approach and it has some merits. In the early days, in truth, it was to simplify their own development and to optimise performance. Over time, they started saying it was for security and it does offer some benefits there. There are many weaknesses of the model though. It should be up to Apple to make usability / consistency possible. As I say, yes, they don't fully control the developers but they do provide a tight ecosystem that those developers develop against and in most cases via their internal OS controls, they should be able to abstract the storage layer and present to an Apple proprietary app like files. There are exceptions as I mentioned before, but to suggest the app developers live in the wild west re how they present storage just isn't the case.

This is down to Apple's choices and they should have ensured Files was credible before release. It simply isn't. It's like bringing out a device without 3g or cut and paste and trying to convince people it's not required only to later introduce it.
Let's not make excuses for them. They should be trying a lot harder and in recent years, they seem to have lost the thread a little.
Paul.

 

[kristalsoldier]

Apple has no control over its developers.

There is little Apple could have done. Dropbox, OneDrive, etc. are all record early on saying they would support the new Files app. This is on them, not Apple. They needed to have the apps ready for day one, and they didn't. This is that sucky period of an iOS release where developers haven't updated their apps and we are all upset.

There are things I wish Apple would do, like force apps that work on an iPad to be optimized for the large iPad.

I understand what you are saying. But don't you think apps made by Apple - I am specifically referring to iBooks - should operate seamlessly with the Files App (like how PDF Expert does - for the most part)?

 

[Brammy]

I understand what you are saying. But don't you think apps made by Apple - I am specifically referring to iBooks - should operate seamlessly with the Files App (like how PDF Expert does - for the most part)?

I have always felt that Apple threw PDF reading into iBooks because it never created a version of Preview for iOS. This is glaring omission.

That said, you can at least drag and drop PDFs into iBooks. Its PDF editing sucks, even in iOS 11. I have two basic categories of PDFs: Static PDFs, like a reference manual or a DRM-free digital magazine; and a PDF that will see frequent edits, like my character sheet in Dungeons and Dragons. The latter I store in PDF Expert, which is an amazing tool. The static content I will dump in iBooks.

The iWork apps, though, seem to work pretty well. Almost too well. It’s a little jarring to no longer just look for Numbers files in the Numbers root folder. Years of muscle memory, wiped out in a heartbeat.

 

[artfossil]

I have always felt that Apple threw PDF reading into iBooks because it never created a version of Preview for iOS. This is glaring omission.

That said, you can at least drag and drop PDFs into iBooks. Its PDF editing sucks, even in iOS 11. I have two basic categories of PDFs: Static PDFs, like a reference manual or a DRM-free digital magazine; and a PDF that will see frequent edits, like my character sheet in Dungeons and Dragons. The latter I store in PDF Expert, which is an amazing tool. The static content I will dump in iBooks.

The iWork apps, though, seem to work pretty well. Almost too well. It’s a little jarring to no longer just look for Numbers files in the Numbers root folder. Years of muscle memory, wiped out in a heartbeat.

I know what you mean about the muscle memory.

Personall. I never open iBooks. I have much better alternatives.

 

[dk001]

...
Sorry, I’m not sure I understand what you were trying to do. Were you wanting to edit an IA Writer text file? Is it a text file or what format is the file? Wouldn’t you do that in IA Writer?

What I am looking for is a way to open this file (it is an iAWriter file) using iAWriter from within Files.
As you can see by my screenshot, the menu option is very limited for any file I select within Files. It is irrespective of the file type.
What I was missing, and you pointed it out in your reply to @sheriff_deadeye, was the use of the Share option.

 

[artfossil]

Hi
I appreciate what you say about workflow etc. We are all different.
What I am really saying is that a good device should intuitively fit how you would naturally want to work. The Apple may work for some, but as you say you have developed your workflow to fit the device and what's more, there are some things you feel you don't need - like Office (for much of the time) and photos.
A very large part of the population will be using Office so not supporting that intuitively is just wrong (and sadly, Apple's inward looking view has already ignored these wrongs). Also, most people would want to share photos with others and they don't want to worry if those people are using an Apple app, an Apple device, an Android device or an Windows device - it should just work and there should be consistency around how that works regardless of source or destination. However cumbersome Windows desktop or Android phones / tablets may seem to some, they have always enabled that consistent approach.
Apple chose the sandbox approach and it has some merits. In the early days, in truth, it was to simplify their own development and to optimise performance. Over time, they started saying it was for security and it does offer some benefits there. There are many weaknesses of the model though. It should be up to Apple to make usability / consistency possible. As I say, yes, they don't fully control the developers but they do provide a tight ecosystem that those developers develop against and in most cases via their internal OS controls, they should be able to abstract the storage layer and present to an Apple proprietary app like files. There are exceptions as I mentioned before, but to suggest the app developers live in the wild west re how they present storage just isn't the case.

This is down to Apple's choices and they should have ensured Files was credible before release. It simply isn't. It's like bringing out a device without 3g or cut and paste and trying to convince people it's not required only to later introduce it.
Let's not make excuses for them. They should be trying a lot harder and in recent years, they seem to have lost the thread a little.
Paul.

Oh images are a huge part of my workflow! But I manage teaching and personal photo through the Photos app and my professional documentation (sculptor) through Mylio. Both synce across all my devices and that’s invaluable to me.

Of course I share photos—all the time—and no, they are never app-centric. I already have file systems for my photo management and sharing so see no need to add that to Files.

 

[dk001]

I suspect (myself included) that we would end up with more of an iFile type app instead of what we received.
I will keep playing and seeing what others come up with using Files. It has not turned out to be the "one stop shop" point of file handling I had envisioned for iOS and am used to on all other OS's.

 

[kristalsoldier]

I know what you mean about the muscle memory.

Personall. I never open iBooks. I have much better alternatives.

Please tell. Am a relative newcomer with the IPP 10.5. My use of iBooks is limited to working with ePub files only. I need to highlight, page-mark/ bookmark, type short comments/ points within the file (though I would much prefer to annotate using the Pencil). What would you recommend?

For PDF I use the paid version of LiquidText and PDF Expert.

 

[MobiusStrip]

If an app saves files locally, it will enabled “On My iPhone/iPad” local file management as well. This option shows on the side bar but is hidden until you do that.

That's idiotic. So you can't move things to local storage until some other app does it and reveals the hidden option?

 

[Brammy]

Anyhow,

The Dropbox app has been updated for the new Files app.

 

[artfossil]

Please tell. Am a relative newcomer with the IPP 10.5. My use of iBooks is limited to working with ePub files only. I need to highlight, page-mark/ bookmark, type short comments/ points within the file (though I would much prefer to annotate using the Pencil). What would you recommend?

For PDF I use the paid version of LiquidText and PDF Expert.

PDF Expert is great. Alas, I don't use any ePub files.

 

[MobiusStrip]

Meanwhile, what are people using for file transfer now that Apple killed Air Sharing? I'm having a hard time finding one that

1. Offers passcode protection
2. Offers folders
3. Actually works

 

[kristalsoldier]

PDF Expert is great. Alas, I don't use any ePub files.

Ok. Thanks.

 

[FranzMarc]

Anyhow,

The Dropbox app has been updated for the new Files app.

This.

And while I agree with many in this thread that Apple coule have done a better job, potentially integrating other apple apps in a better way, like photos, it does seem to depend on developers, like Microsoft, to improve their apps.

If I can open a document via Files in Pages and edit + save it to iCloud, it should also be possible to do so in Word without the saving-another-copy-workaround. Would be great if MS made that possible.

Great tip btw about opening the file from the Word app though. That does at least seem like one way of having it update the file directly.

 

[rickatk]

Okay, so for local file storage, since files on iOS are locked into the apps which created them (if you delete the app, you lose the files)

I store my files in my own “documents” directory which also resides in iCloud Drive. The apps then just create an alias when the file is opened. While changes to the alias show up in the original, deleting the alias leaves the original. This is a very clever solution for on the fly syncing in iOS.

[doublepost=1506444264][/doublepost]

Same thing I thought. If that’s all there will be, I see no reason to use the files app. I mean really, how many people use iCloud exclusively for their files?

Seems the file managment apps (Dropbox, Readdle Documents and PDF etc) need to be stimulated a little before they display files.

Files seems a little redundant insofar as it only appears to house iCloud Drive, Dropbox Readle Documents etc adding a higher level folder in the file tree.

 

[Diane B]

I too have a personal Dropbox account and a corporate Box account. My corporate Box account has full integration, including drag and drop. No authentication required.

Dropbox doesn’t have drag and drop (at least not yet) but I cam “Move" Files from Dropbox to other locations so I don’t really care.



I’m honest, but having separate management for Photos, Vidoes or Music is the LAST thing I want on my iPad. I want to keep management for these files on my iPad within the app (just as I don’t manage photos outside of Photos or music outside of iTunes on my Mac).


We have different workflows. For the ways I work, I am really enjoying Files and it’s made a notable difference in my productivity. I was never one clamoring for “file management” on the iPad but I’ve found value in the Files app. I expect it will get more robust as services like Dropbox acquire drag and drop capability, etc. and look forward to further developments.

As for Word, as I say, when I must edit on my iPad I can do so and share my edits with my enterprise colleagues (an NSF-funded research group) in a Word doc. The rest of the time, I use the apps that make my workflow easiest and most pleasurable and then export in the format that makes sense for the intended audience and use. More and more, the “de facto standard” in my environment tend to be a link to a Box folder or a PDF file.

The bottom line for me is that I can do most anything I need to do on my iPad without my Mac and have found myself—for the last few YEARS—relying on it in my work environment almost exclusively and relegating my Mac to things like heavy photo and video editing.



I don’t agree with your statement of the objective of Files. Files, as stated in the Mac Rumors article:

“ . . . replaces iCloud Drive, offers a lot more functionality than its predecessor, and provides perhaps the best argument yet for using an iPad as your go-to mobile computer.

In Files, you have access not only to the files stored on your device and in iCloud, but also to those stored in third-party services that support integration with the app.”

This is the first version of Files. Some services are well-integrated, others are not, but I expect that to change to the degree that the service want’s better integration.

 

[maxglitz]

Hey sonny, we're old, not stupid. Many of us were working on computers before you were born!

AMEN! I've been the go-to guy at places I've worked for macs since the late 80s when they first came out. I've grown less and less patient with the "change for change's sake" people who tweak things only to make it different from last week's, not really improving it at all in many cases (if not THIS case). They forget that this was ALL supposed to be created for our convenience as a life tool, NOT something you have to give up half your life for to read and read and read about the latest change happening constantly. I bet someone would have been ticked if I'd phrased the above, "change for change's sake KIDS," which would have been equally insulting, but would put the "elders" comment in perspective by broad-brush painting a group of people.

 

[Tovenaar]

Hi
What I am really saying is that a good device should intuitively fit how you would naturally want to work. The Apple may work for some, but as you say you have developed your workflow to fit the device and what's more, there are some things you feel you don't need - like Office (for much of the time) and photos.

I agree with you that the Files app is useless.

In response to your point above, one thing that I felt Apple was really good at was getting us to change our behavior gradually, toward something better. They have a vision, and they slowly iterate, taking us along for the ride. However, they do that when there's a better alternative. For example when USB sticks replaced the floppy drive, or when cloud replaced the CD Rom. They also did this when HTML5 replaced Adobe Flash.

In this case, there's no file system, and there's no real alternative. Files isn't enough because it doesn't allow offline storage, and files are still grouped by the application that created them rather than a folder structure of my choosing.

I'm hoping that this is a transitional step toward something better. But right now we're stuck in a kind of purgatory.

 

[rickatk]

I agree with you that the Files app is useless.

In response to your point above, one thing that I felt Apple was really good at was getting us to change our behavior gradually, toward something better. They have a vision, and they slowly iterate, taking us along for the ride. However, they do that when there's a better alternative. For example when USB sticks replaced the floppy drive, or when cloud replaced the CD Rom. They also did this when HTML5 replaced Adobe Flash.

In this case, there's no file system, and there's no real alternative. Files isn't enough because it doesn't allow offline storage, and files are still grouped by the application that created them rather than a folder structure of my choosing.

I'm hoping that this is a transitional step toward something better. But right now we're stuck in a kind of purgatory.

For decades we used the hierarchical file system for organizing our files, sometimes creating deep levels of nested folders and then forgetting exactly where we put our files - guilty!

Steve Jobs was passionate about fixing his perceived problems associated with hierarchical file management. When iOS was introduced to the world he campaigned for “in app / 1 level ” file storage using examples such as managing emails and iTunes music files. I and many others were not ready to accept the file managment proposed by Steve Jobs and iOS, preferring the hierarchical file system of macOS and Dropbox. Time went on however and we have slowly witnessed the opening up of the iOS 11 file managment system and greater coordination with macOS using iCloud Drive. I still prefer the macOS file system over iOS but am not to sure how macOS would work on a tablet.

In the Apple OS’s now you can create a file in an app then choose to keep it located in the app or move it into your own file system. If you move the file then an alias is created in the app the file was originally created. When changes are made the files and alias are all updated. This is one on file syncing feature that works better than Dropbox and provides fast on the fly file updating.

With the advent of a well running iCloud and iCloud Drive I moved my complete file structure from Dropbox to iCloud Drive(backed up in iCloud and Time Capsule), starting at the Doucments folders. When I am done with a document I pull it out of the app and file away in my old fashioned hierarchical tree in iCloud to avoid app bloat.

Files appears to be an app that was created for better and unified access to all drives including virtual drives like Dropbox and Readdle Documents. File navigation, drag and drop and springloaded folders are now available in iOS through the Files app. Now in iOS even my macOS desktop is displayed.

All said we now have more choice than ever as to how simple or how complex we want to make our file management on our Apple devices.

One day I think we will see a file system unifiying both macOS and iOS. Might even go as far as just “OS” on all Apple devices.

 

[Brammy]

Files isn't enough because it doesn't allow offline storage, and files are still grouped by the application that created them rather than a folder structure of my choosing.

As long as the app is updated for the new Files app -- and some do seem to work without being updated for iOS 11 -- it no longer matters where you store the file. I am able to store Pages files, for instance, in any folder I want.