Tab feature enhancements

mario_a · Post by **mario_a** » 2004 Dec 25, 14:26

Hi,

Are there any plans for adding anything new to the Tabs feature ?

I have a few suggestions (this is based mostly on how tabs are implemented in tabbed browsers) :

1) Double - clicking a tab closes that tab.
2) Double clicking on the tab bar (but not on a tab), opens a new tab.
3) Allowing tabs to be repositioned by dragging them.
4) The tab context menu could be enhanced by adding more options to it. e.g. Close Tab, New Tab, Change Tab Caption, Copy folder name / path to clipboard.

Any feedback from the author, and comments from everyone else are welcome :)

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2004 Dec 25, 17:36

So far, & because of relative newness to x2, the concentration has been on basic function; but what you have suggested are good useability enhancments IMO.
We will likely hear from nikos by Monday, when he is back from his celebrations.

Post by **nikos** » 2004 Dec 26, 10:53

all these features exist already, albeit not all from the context menu
i think i'll add a "rename" option soon

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2004 Dec 26, 12:26

nikos,
Yes, we can close, open & reposition tabs ...
but not with the actions mario_a suggested.

mario_a · Post by **mario_a** » 2004 Dec 26, 18:19

Hi Nikos,

nikos wrote:all these features exist already, albeit not all from the context menu

Yes, I know these features already exist. Just to clarify, I was not talking about adding new features, but about enhancing existing features so that they are easier to use.

For example, what is easier and more intuitive ? Dragging the 10th tab to the 1st tab to repostion it, or right clicking the 10th tab 9 times, and selecting 'Move left' each time?

Tabs are a very popular feature in many programs nowadays (especially web browsers such as FireFox, Maxthon etc.), and they provide many of the options I mentioned in my last post. These features add great usability value to the software (IMO), and many users will probably come to expect these features in other programs that provide tabs.

Maybe you could wait for some more comments from the others, and if many of them feel that such a feature set would be useful, you might want to consider them for a future release.

Regards,
Mario

Post by **nikos** » 2004 Dec 27, 13:24

Dragging the 10th tab to the 1st tab to repostion it, or right clicking the 10th tab 9 times, and selecting 'Move left' each time

surely that is a drag; one day i'll add drag-drop functionality

if you work a lot with tabs the pro version has a feature that allows you to save them with different names (customize | Folder groups)

hpp3 · Post by **hpp3** » 2004 Dec 27, 17:10

Forgive me for repeating myself, but if only ONE tab feature were implemented, it would be "Open in new tab" when right-clicking on a folder (which of course would open that folder in a new tab in the active pane)
I know it is convenient enought to Ctrl-Ins when a folder is selected, but I digress...

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2004 Dec 27, 17:33

I will second that motion.

Actually, I had suggested that back in early October on a preview release.
nikos, please note that it's not just me. :twisted:

mario_a · Post by **mario_a** » 2004 Dec 27, 19:12

fgagnon wrote:I will second that motion.

And, I will third it

Ctrl + Ins is very clunky, the Delete key keeps coming in the way :P

Post by **nikos** » 2004 Dec 27, 19:40

if you are prepared to right-click, surely you can also open the file menu too for the tab command? not to mention that you can put the tab command on a toolbar too. If i was adding all commands in all places then it wouldn't be a gui, it would be the space shuttle

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2004 Dec 27, 20:21

As far as when hands are at keyboard (vs RH curled around mouse), I have no problem with Ctrl+Ins.

But ... when this cat is mousing, I find that r-click, then pick menu item is surer & less motion than scrolling mousepointer all the way to upper left of window, point to File, then click&pick.

& changing topic back to the keyboard, thre should be an easy way to move thrugh the tabs for the active pane. I suggest Ctrl+Right/LeftArrow.
AFIK, that key combo is unused in the filepane context; although commonly used to tab to next/previous word when editing text.

narayan · Post by **narayan** » 2004 Dec 28, 05:09

Time to gang up!

nikos, I also had suggested such commands. Especially, r-click menu can have additional options:

1. Move to extreme right
2. Move to extreme left

But when drag-n-drop is implemented to reposition tabs, the r-click commands can be used to open the tab's history (same as header). With this, all the controls would be close at hand.

Post by **nikos** » 2004 Dec 28, 10:56

x2 doesn't insert any commands at all in the shell context menu. It could do so (in a submenu) but there are too many competing commands, so we'd have to come up with a list

as for tab switching keys, try ctrl+alt+arrows, works already

narayan · Post by **narayan** » 2004 Dec 28, 13:20

The r-click I mentioned is not related to shell: it is the context menu of the tabs.

As I understand, the shell's context menus are applicable only in the pane area; not over tabs, pane headers, column headers, etc

hpp3 · Post by **hpp3** » 2004 Dec 28, 18:37

If i was adding all commands in all places then it wouldn't be a gui, it would be the space shuttle

Now that's funny

(and I have used apps like that, eek.)

I understand your position Nikos, really I do. Two panes is enough of a trump on Explorer that I don't even think about it anymore. Using another windows box is actually bewildering without x2. It is not about a mouse slide away to the File menu or Toolbar or keyboard shortcut, really no big bother; it is about control. There I am, needing to copy some jpg-to-bmp conversions from My Documents to Wallpapers, but wait... Do I have the shortcuts in my BlackBox shell backgrounds folder too? One right click and I would see in a new tab. But as it is, it goes navigate->select (i use 'single-click activation' so it's a ctrl-click)->Ctrl-Ins or File/New Tab or Tab from toolbar. I agree too many options in the right-click menu gets in the way just as much as drilling through a toolbar menu, but once again, I digress... Maybe it could be an extra thing enabled/disabled in Options or Registry? Just a thought.
-hpp3