5 ms·

That's interesting, in what ways do directories break the mental model?

Izkata 3y ago
Folder, not directory. Try nesting these inside each other: https://www.amazon.com/Pendaflex-Folders-Classic-Positions-65213/dp/B0722L14L3/ https://www.amazon.com/Pendaflex-Folders-Classic-Positions-6...
- pests 3y ago
  I mean, maybe everyone here is so used to the word, but try nesting these inside each other: https://www.amazon.com/Classic-Address-Phone-Directory-Refills/dp/B074F2NKKX https://www.amazon.com/Classic-Address-Phone-Directory-Refil...
  - YurgenJurgensen 3y ago
    Since directories are just references that tell you where a resource is located and don't actually contain the resource, that's not very difficult.
    - pests 3y ago
      We don't usually put directories inside other directories though.
makeitdouble 3y ago
For "normal" people they represent a unique and finite set of files under a specific hierarchy. The technical implementation allows us to put the same files in as many folder as we want, folders recursing on themselves, "smart folders" that don't have any stable set of files, remotely synched folders etc.
- offices 3y ago
  The hierarchy model means that they're not suitable for some uses that the technology could support. If I have a picture of my family member and my dog, I don't want to put them exclusively in a 'family member' folder or 'dog' folder. I ideally want a hard link in both, but that's not trivial. This sounds silly - people generally name their folders by event rather than like tags - but that's a consequence of the interface rather than an inherent quality of storage. In reaction to this & us rapidly having more personal media and files, we're now seeing a shift towards interfaces that treat the entire filesystem as a flat, searchable index - including indexing that recognises the family members and pets.
  - jstanley 3y ago
    > I ideally want a hard link in both, but that's not trivial Yes it is. First put the file in one folder, and then make the hardlink in the other.
    - offices 3y ago
      Trivial step 1: open Powershell with elevated permissions.
      - jstanley 3y ago
        I just looked it up, and while you apparently do need evelated permissions to create a symlink on Windows (???), I think you don't need elevated permissions to make a hard link. So really your step 1 is "open PowerShell". So the only reason it's not "trivial" is because you don't happen to always have a terminal window open. Personally I do almost all of my file management from the shell.
        offices 3y ago
        Terminal windows are not well integrated into things like file pickers and download windows. Even if power users use them, they're not used by most people and aren't part of the common, low-friction UX.

Folder, not directory. Try nesting these inside each other: https://www.amazon.com/Pendaflex-Folders-Classic-Positions-65213/dp/B0722L14L3/ https://www.amazon.com/Pendaflex-Folders-Classic-Positions-6...

pests 3y ago
I mean, maybe everyone here is so used to the word, but try nesting these inside each other: https://www.amazon.com/Classic-Address-Phone-Directory-Refills/dp/B074F2NKKX https://www.amazon.com/Classic-Address-Phone-Directory-Refil...
- YurgenJurgensen 3y ago
  Since directories are just references that tell you where a resource is located and don't actually contain the resource, that's not very difficult.
  - pests 3y ago
    We don't usually put directories inside other directories though.

makeitdouble 3y ago

For "normal" people they represent a unique and finite set of files under a specific hierarchy. The technical implementation allows us to put the same files in as many folder as we want, folders recursing on themselves, "smart folders" that don't have any stable set of files, remotely synched folders etc.

offices 3y ago
The hierarchy model means that they're not suitable for some uses that the technology could support. If I have a picture of my family member and my dog, I don't want to put them exclusively in a 'family member' folder or 'dog' folder. I ideally want a hard link in both, but that's not trivial. This sounds silly - people generally name their folders by event rather than like tags - but that's a consequence of the interface rather than an inherent quality of storage. In reaction to this & us rapidly having more personal media and files, we're now seeing a shift towards interfaces that treat the entire filesystem as a flat, searchable index - including indexing that recognises the family members and pets.
- jstanley 3y ago
  > I ideally want a hard link in both, but that's not trivial Yes it is. First put the file in one folder, and then make the hardlink in the other.
  - offices 3y ago
    Trivial step 1: open Powershell with elevated permissions.
    - jstanley 3y ago
      I just looked it up, and while you apparently do need evelated permissions to create a symlink on Windows (???), I think you don't need elevated permissions to make a hard link. So really your step 1 is "open PowerShell". So the only reason it's not "trivial" is because you don't happen to always have a terminal window open. Personally I do almost all of my file management from the shell.
      - offices 3y ago
        Terminal windows are not well integrated into things like file pickers and download windows. Even if power users use them, they're not used by most people and aren't part of the common, low-friction UX.