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I've never been able to get a good grip on what people find bad about Finder. Once View > Show Path Bar and View > Show Status Bar have been selected and curren

I've never been able to get a good grip on what people find bad about Finder. Once View > Show Path Bar and View > Show Status Bar have been selected and current folder searching has been enabled in Preferences I don't find it any worse than Windows Explorer, GNOME Files, or any of the numerous derivations of GNOME Files (Nemo, Thunar, etc).

megaman821 4y ago
In my case I just wanted a button on the Finder toolbar that opens up the current folder in the default terminal.
- jmbwell 4y ago
  I have [right-click/control-click] > Services > New Terminal at Folder Is that standard now, or did I add it long ago and forget?
  - megaman821 4y ago
    That is standard now. It wasn't when a started using Path Finder. I still find it slower than just having the button in the toolbar.
    - guestbest 4y ago
      I keep terminal.app in the tool bar and just drag and drop the folder on to the dock where the terminal app is
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- kitsunesoba 4y ago
  There's at least one Finder extension that can add such a button. https://github.com/Ji4n1ng/OpenInTerminal https://github.com/Ji4n1ng/OpenInTerminal
- Ancapistani 4y ago
  I have something that serves a similar purpose - a shell script that calls out to AppleScript to get the path of the most recently used Finder window and returns it as a string: #!/usr/bin/env bash #################### # Description: Get the path of the most recently used Finder window # Author: Ancapistani # Version: 1.0.0 #################### osascript -e 'tell application "Finder"'\ -e "if (${1-1} <= (count Finder windows)) then"\ -e "get POSIX path of (target of window ${1-1} as alias)"\ -e 'else' \ -e 'get POSIX path of (desktop as alias)'\ -e 'end if' \ -e 'end tell'; I have this saved as `fpwd` in my shell.
  - cute_boi 4y ago
    the problem with such approach is it leaves terminal item in dock. I use warp terminal and it is really annoying.
- jakecopp 4y ago
  You can drag the folder into the Terminal!
bcherry 4y ago
wow i had no idea these things could be done. i've just suffered in silence for years. thanks for the tips!
cranesan 4y ago
One problem I have with the finder is there is no "loading files" animation when browsing through folders. So if open a folder and it looks empty, its not clear if it is really empty, or if the finder is still trying to get a folder listing. Hard to look through and organize/delete files on external and network drives.
- jedberg 4y ago
  There is a spinner on the bottom right corner to indicate that it's still scanning for files. It's super subtle and easy to miss though.
stirlo 4y ago
The most ridiculous missing feature is there’s no refresh button for the current folder. Sometimes to show new files created by an external process I have to relaunch the whole finder process just to have my files appear as it caches the stale view
- kitsunesoba 4y ago
  That's a gripe I share, but I run into it so infrequently that it's not much of a bother. Most likely when browsing network shares and such, which I tend to use something like Transmit or Forklift for instead.
- dwaite 4y ago
  Finder should show changes immediately except on certain external filesystems. It gets kernel events on directory and file changes (the same mechanism Spotlight and Time Machine use). This bites me on fake FAT filesystems over USB for hardware development kits, and I usually just turn those features off. The heuristics there are often terrible, and I'd rather create a build system that writes a new image, instead of doing manual drag-and-drops.
cute_boi 4y ago
One thing that really makes Finder terrible is I can't copy path easily like I can in windows and even going to certain folder requires steps like clicking on Go To Folder etc. Gnome File and Finder both have such issue. Gnome file manager at least provide ctrl + L.
- sneak 4y ago
  There is a keyboard shortcut for “go to folder” which my fingers know but my mind does not (on mobile at the moment). The resulting path input modal even supports tab completion.
- coder543 4y ago
  If you enable the path bar, you can right click on the path bar and "Copy as Pathname" on whatever is down there (which will be the current folder if nothing is selected, or whatever is selected). If the path bar is showing a folder, you can right click it and select "Open in terminal".
- alain_gilbert 4y ago
  osx has Ctrl+Shift+G to quickly paste a path to go to
- kitsunesoba 4y ago
  > Gnome file manager at least provide ctrl + L. The Finder has an equivalent with Command-Shift-G, and if that key shortcut is too cumbersome it (along with all other Mac menu items) can be re-bound in System Preferences under the Keyboard prefpane. Most of the things mentioned in this comment chain are easily discoverable in the Finder's menus… it really pays to peruse menus in Mac apps when searching for a function.
- tpmoney 4y ago
  FYI, holding option key with a directory or file selected and choosing "copy" will copy the path to the selected item. With nothing selected, it will copy the path to the location of the open finder window.
- dwaite 4y ago
jeswin 4y ago
The main job of the Finder is finding files. Unfortunately the interface for doing that is the worst I've seen in any OS. Let's compare it with Windows 3.1's File Manager (which was the first GUI file manager I used). 1. Defaults to the columnar format. It's crazy - to move from a parent to child you've to move the mouse the whole width of the column. Whereas in Windows 3.1 File Manager, you'd have to move less than 10 pixels. 2. Now you could switch to the List View. But in Windows 3.1 File Manager, I can see a tree of directories on the left, and the directory contents on the right. That IMO is way cleaner than a single pane. Navigating to a child directory in the right pane also synchronizes the tree on the left pane. I can't be sure about the last one though because Win 3.1 was nearly 3 decades back, but I that's how it works today.
- kitsunesoba 4y ago
  I remember using a version of Explorer that had collapsable hierarchical navigation on the left, as well as similar non-filesystem programs with a similar design and do not recall being fond of it. Especially on smaller screens it was easy for the left pane to become too small to fit the names of deeply nested directories, and then become too wide when collapsing them. To me at least that style is somewhat awkward and fiddly.
karaterobot 4y ago
Off the top of my head: * Moving files is unintuitive. It should be [cmd+x] then [cmd+v]. Instead it's [cmd+c] then [option+cmd+v], and this behavior is not afforded in the UI, you just have to look it up somewhere. * Search within finder does not search the current context by default, it searches your entire computer. "But you can change this setting!" You shouldn't have to change this setting, and most people don't know it's even there. * Renaming multiple files is a chore. You expect to rename a file, then press tab to highlight the next file, and begin typing. Instead, you... do some combination of enter, tab, then enter again, except it never quite works the way you expect, and sometimes the file moves because the sorting changes after you pressed enter the first time, and for some reason pressing tab actually moves you to the next folder. * Speaking of pressing [enter] on files, that should open them, not rename them. * For that matter, pressing [delete] should delete files. You just have to know that the key for that is [cmd+delete], and that deleting things is called moving them to the trash. * In general, the number of contextual commands you just have to discover by trial and error, or by looking them up on the internet, because they are hidden in the UI. Even the right-click menu doesn't list things like "open in slideshow", because the right click menu has a secret menu of its own which you have to press [cmd] to see. * There is no preview panel visible by default, that's another option you have to turn on, like showing the file path. This stuff should all be on by default. * You have to view file info in a separate window. * It's not clear to me why I can't close Finder by pressing [cmd+q]. Quitting finder is usually all I want to do when it's open.
- kitsunesoba 4y ago
  > Moving files is unintuitive. It should be [cmd+x] then [cmd+v]. Instead it's [cmd+c] then [option+cmd+v], and this behavior is not afforded in the UI, you just have to look it up somewhere. That's discoverable by holding down Option while the Edit menu is open. This pattern of "revealing" additional functions with modifiers in menus has existed on macOS for a very long time. > Speaking of pressing [enter] on files, that should open them, not rename them. > For that matter, pressing [delete] should delete files. You just have to know that the key for that is [cmd+delete], and that deleting things is called moving them to the trash. Adding a modifier to these functions helps prevent accidental irritating (opening 500 selected files) or potentially destructive (moving selected files to the trash) actions due to fat fingering, which is a particularly likely occurrence on laptops where edge keys like delete and return are easy to accidentally hit just moving around one's laptop. The accidental opening by hitting return one is something I've done several times over the years and it's never not infuriating. On Windows, deleting a file moves it to the Recycle Bin which is functionally equivalent to what macOS does. In fact off the top of my head I don't know of a modern desktop environment that just directly deletes files without recourse. > It's not clear to me why I can't close Finder by pressing [cmd+q]. Quitting finder is usually all I want to do when it's open. Because the Finder powers the desktop too and its windows are not separate processes. In fact no application on macOS spawns additional windows as separate processes, that's a Windows/Linux thing.
aj7 4y ago
I occasionally go back to Windows. I am in hell for a while. If I had to use Windows to drive a car, I'd wreck it before the mindset would reload.
Doctor_Fegg 4y ago
If the preference to use System 7-style spatial Finder worked consistently I’d be happy. Unfortunately new media (DMGs, USB drives, network connections etc) still open in browser windows by default. I wonder how many times I’ve pressed cmd-option-T over the years.

megaman821 4y ago

In my case I just wanted a button on the Finder toolbar that opens up the current folder in the default terminal.

jmbwell 4y ago
I have [right-click/control-click] > Services > New Terminal at Folder Is that standard now, or did I add it long ago and forget?
- megaman821 4y ago
  That is standard now. It wasn't when a started using Path Finder. I still find it slower than just having the button in the toolbar.
  - guestbest 4y ago
    I keep terminal.app in the tool bar and just drag and drop the folder on to the dock where the terminal app is
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
kitsunesoba 4y ago
There's at least one Finder extension that can add such a button. https://github.com/Ji4n1ng/OpenInTerminal https://github.com/Ji4n1ng/OpenInTerminal
Ancapistani 4y ago
I have something that serves a similar purpose - a shell script that calls out to AppleScript to get the path of the most recently used Finder window and returns it as a string: #!/usr/bin/env bash #################### # Description: Get the path of the most recently used Finder window # Author: Ancapistani # Version: 1.0.0 #################### osascript -e 'tell application "Finder"'\ -e "if (${1-1} <= (count Finder windows)) then"\ -e "get POSIX path of (target of window ${1-1} as alias)"\ -e 'else' \ -e 'get POSIX path of (desktop as alias)'\ -e 'end if' \ -e 'end tell'; I have this saved as `fpwd` in my shell.
- cute_boi 4y ago
  the problem with such approach is it leaves terminal item in dock. I use warp terminal and it is really annoying.
jakecopp 4y ago
You can drag the folder into the Terminal!

bcherry 4y ago

wow i had no idea these things could be done. i've just suffered in silence for years. thanks for the tips!

cranesan 4y ago

One problem I have with the finder is there is no "loading files" animation when browsing through folders. So if open a folder and it looks empty, its not clear if it is really empty, or if the finder is still trying to get a folder listing. Hard to look through and organize/delete files on external and network drives.

jedberg 4y ago
There is a spinner on the bottom right corner to indicate that it's still scanning for files. It's super subtle and easy to miss though.

stirlo 4y ago

The most ridiculous missing feature is there’s no refresh button for the current folder. Sometimes to show new files created by an external process I have to relaunch the whole finder process just to have my files appear as it caches the stale view

kitsunesoba 4y ago
That's a gripe I share, but I run into it so infrequently that it's not much of a bother. Most likely when browsing network shares and such, which I tend to use something like Transmit or Forklift for instead.
dwaite 4y ago
Finder should show changes immediately except on certain external filesystems. It gets kernel events on directory and file changes (the same mechanism Spotlight and Time Machine use). This bites me on fake FAT filesystems over USB for hardware development kits, and I usually just turn those features off. The heuristics there are often terrible, and I'd rather create a build system that writes a new image, instead of doing manual drag-and-drops.

cute_boi 4y ago

One thing that really makes Finder terrible is I can't copy path easily like I can in windows and even going to certain folder requires steps like clicking on Go To Folder etc. Gnome File and Finder both have such issue. Gnome file manager at least provide ctrl + L.

sneak 4y ago
There is a keyboard shortcut for “go to folder” which my fingers know but my mind does not (on mobile at the moment). The resulting path input modal even supports tab completion.
coder543 4y ago
If you enable the path bar, you can right click on the path bar and "Copy as Pathname" on whatever is down there (which will be the current folder if nothing is selected, or whatever is selected). If the path bar is showing a folder, you can right click it and select "Open in terminal".
alain_gilbert 4y ago
osx has Ctrl+Shift+G to quickly paste a path to go to
kitsunesoba 4y ago
> Gnome file manager at least provide ctrl + L. The Finder has an equivalent with Command-Shift-G, and if that key shortcut is too cumbersome it (along with all other Mac menu items) can be re-bound in System Preferences under the Keyboard prefpane. Most of the things mentioned in this comment chain are easily discoverable in the Finder's menus… it really pays to peruse menus in Mac apps when searching for a function.
tpmoney 4y ago
FYI, holding option key with a directory or file selected and choosing "copy" will copy the path to the selected item. With nothing selected, it will copy the path to the location of the open finder window.
dwaite 4y ago

jeswin 4y ago

The main job of the Finder is finding files. Unfortunately the interface for doing that is the worst I've seen in any OS. Let's compare it with Windows 3.1's File Manager (which was the first GUI file manager I used). 1. Defaults to the columnar format. It's crazy - to move from a parent to child you've to move the mouse the whole width of the column. Whereas in Windows 3.1 File Manager, you'd have to move less than 10 pixels. 2. Now you could switch to the List View. But in Windows 3.1 File Manager, I can see a tree of directories on the left, and the directory contents on the right. That IMO is way cleaner than a single pane. Navigating to a child directory in the right pane also synchronizes the tree on the left pane. I can't be sure about the last one though because Win 3.1 was nearly 3 decades back, but I that's how it works today.

kitsunesoba 4y ago
I remember using a version of Explorer that had collapsable hierarchical navigation on the left, as well as similar non-filesystem programs with a similar design and do not recall being fond of it. Especially on smaller screens it was easy for the left pane to become too small to fit the names of deeply nested directories, and then become too wide when collapsing them. To me at least that style is somewhat awkward and fiddly.

karaterobot 4y ago

Off the top of my head: * Moving files is unintuitive. It should be [cmd+x] then [cmd+v]. Instead it's [cmd+c] then [option+cmd+v], and this behavior is not afforded in the UI, you just have to look it up somewhere. * Search within finder does not search the current context by default, it searches your entire computer. "But you can change this setting!" You shouldn't have to change this setting, and most people don't know it's even there. * Renaming multiple files is a chore. You expect to rename a file, then press tab to highlight the next file, and begin typing. Instead, you... do some combination of enter, tab, then enter again, except it never quite works the way you expect, and sometimes the file moves because the sorting changes after you pressed enter the first time, and for some reason pressing tab actually moves you to the next folder. * Speaking of pressing [enter] on files, that should open them, not rename them. * For that matter, pressing [delete] should delete files. You just have to know that the key for that is [cmd+delete], and that deleting things is called moving them to the trash. * In general, the number of contextual commands you just have to discover by trial and error, or by looking them up on the internet, because they are hidden in the UI. Even the right-click menu doesn't list things like "open in slideshow", because the right click menu has a secret menu of its own which you have to press [cmd] to see. * There is no preview panel visible by default, that's another option you have to turn on, like showing the file path. This stuff should all be on by default. * You have to view file info in a separate window. * It's not clear to me why I can't close Finder by pressing [cmd+q]. Quitting finder is usually all I want to do when it's open.

kitsunesoba 4y ago
> Moving files is unintuitive. It should be [cmd+x] then [cmd+v]. Instead it's [cmd+c] then [option+cmd+v], and this behavior is not afforded in the UI, you just have to look it up somewhere. That's discoverable by holding down Option while the Edit menu is open. This pattern of "revealing" additional functions with modifiers in menus has existed on macOS for a very long time. > Speaking of pressing [enter] on files, that should open them, not rename them. > For that matter, pressing [delete] should delete files. You just have to know that the key for that is [cmd+delete], and that deleting things is called moving them to the trash. Adding a modifier to these functions helps prevent accidental irritating (opening 500 selected files) or potentially destructive (moving selected files to the trash) actions due to fat fingering, which is a particularly likely occurrence on laptops where edge keys like delete and return are easy to accidentally hit just moving around one's laptop. The accidental opening by hitting return one is something I've done several times over the years and it's never not infuriating. On Windows, deleting a file moves it to the Recycle Bin which is functionally equivalent to what macOS does. In fact off the top of my head I don't know of a modern desktop environment that just directly deletes files without recourse. > It's not clear to me why I can't close Finder by pressing [cmd+q]. Quitting finder is usually all I want to do when it's open. Because the Finder powers the desktop too and its windows are not separate processes. In fact no application on macOS spawns additional windows as separate processes, that's a Windows/Linux thing.

aj7 4y ago

I occasionally go back to Windows. I am in hell for a while. If I had to use Windows to drive a car, I'd wreck it before the mindset would reload.

Doctor_Fegg 4y ago

If the preference to use System 7-style spatial Finder worked consistently I’d be happy. Unfortunately new media (DMGs, USB drives, network connections etc) still open in browser windows by default. I wonder how many times I’ve pressed cmd-option-T over the years.