Introduction
Folder View Settings (FVS) is the commonly used label for a feature that allows you to associate certain folders with certain view settings. It should really be called "Save and Automatically Restore Folder-Specific View Settings" but that wouldn't look good in a menu.
You know this feature from Windows Explorer: You can save the view settings (view type, sort order, column layout...) of any particular folder and have them automatically restored whenever you come back to this folder. It's a great time saver when e.g. column widths, sort order, or thumbnails view are remembered and automagically adjusted for you.
Of course, the settings are retained between sessions. They are stored in a data file named fvs.dat which is located in your application data path.
Basic Usage
The usage could not be easier: You like the settings of the current folder and want to preserve them? Use the command Save Folder View in menu View | Folder View Settings.
Or even simpler: Use the toolbar button for Folder View Settings (shaped like letter F). And if you ever want to get back to default settings, simply press the button again. The toolbar button also shows you the state of affairs. If there is a Folder View assigned to the current folder, the button is in pressed state.
How it works
What is saved. The following view settings are saved by default with each folder view:
| (1) |
View mode (details, thumbnails...) |
| (2) |
Sort order (column, direction) |
| (3) |
Column layout (positions, widths, visibility) |
| (4) |
List style (line numbers, auto-size, grid...) (see menu Tools | Customize List) |
Optionally a Visual Filter can be saved that will be applied to the folder.
What is restored. You will see later that you can further configure which of these settings are actually restored on a per-folder basis.
When it is restored. If FVS is enabled and you go to a folder for which you have previously saved the view settings, then those settings are restored.
Note that XYplorer's multi-tabs also store view settings, of course. When going to a folder via tab switch, the tab's memory is valued higher than any associated Folder View. This way it is ensured that you always find a tab in the state you left it. The same is true on application startup: The last state will be exactly restored regardless of any active Folder View.
Advanced Usage: Editing a Folder View
You can customize the active Folder View using the Edit Folder View dialog (menu View | Folder View Settings | Edit...). Here you can basically modify two things: which folder(s) are associated with the given Folder View, and which of the saved settings are restored.
How Folders Are Identified
Folder to apply the settings to. Folders are identified by their full name, or by a wild-carded pattern. By using a pattern e.g. like *\Images* you can define a common Folder View all folders named "Images". Note that it's also possible to state a list of patterns separated by | (pipe). An example for a list of patterns would be *\Images*|*\Pics*.
If more than one folder view matches the current folder, then the Best Match Algorithm will decide (see below).
Include subfolders. Check to apply the folder view settings also to all subfolders of the matching folder.
Match case. If checked a pattern *\Images* would not match a folder D:\images.
Tip: You don't need to add a trailing backslash "" to your patterns. XYplorer knows that this is about folders and cares for it. So a pattern "C:" will match folder C:\.
Folder View Settings with Visual Filters
Visual Filter to apply to the folder. Here you can define a Visual Filter that will be applied to the folder.
Tip: When you select the Save Folder View command from the main menu any active Visual Filter is automatically stored along with the other Folder View Settings.
Which Settings are Restored
Applied Settings. Here you can define per-folder (respectively per-folder-view in case of a wild-carded pattern which applies to many folders), which of the following settings are restored:
| (1) |
View mode (details, thumbnails...) |
| (2) |
Sort order (column, direction) |
| (3) |
Column layout (positions, widths, visibility) |
| (4) |
List style (line numbers, auto-size, grid...) (see menu Tools | Customize List) |
For the settings that are not restored, the Default Folder View is used (see below).
Auto-Save Changes. If checked then any manual changes to the current folder's view (e.g. you alter a column width) are automatically stored to the active folder view and will be remembered the next time you come back to the folder.
Make Default. Make the current selections the default for new Folder Views. Note that the "Auto-save changes" setting is also part of this default. The factory default is: All options ON, but "Auto-save changes" OFF.
Best Match Algorithm
If more than one folder view matches the current folder then the best match is determined like this:
| (1) |
Match ranking from best to worst in 4 groups: Full Match > Pattern Match > Full Match Including Subs > Pattern Match Including Subs. |
| (2) |
If more than one pattern matches within one group, then the longest pattern (character count) wins. |
This way you don't have to care about manually sorting the Folder Views (which could be a lot of work if there are hundreds of them!).
Apply this Folder View Also To
The command Apply this Folder View Also To... will open the same dialog as Edit.... The only, but important, difference comes up when you press OK. When the dialog was invoked by Apply this Folder View Also To... any currently active folder view will not be overwritten when you have defined a different name/pattern.
The Default Folder View
By using the command Define this Folder View as Default you can define a Default Folder View (DFV) for all folders with no associated specific folder view.
Note that even if you do not define a DFV, an internal default folder view is always applied if no specific folder view is active! The advantage of saving an explicit DFV is that you can configure it using Edit Folder View dialog, i.e. you can determine which settings are applied and whether Auto-Save Changes is enabled. The internal default folder view always restores all settings and auto-saves all changes.
|
Quote
