File Manager

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Features

• Icon View: Visual file and folder display
• Drag & Drop: Move files between folders
• Context Menus: Right-click for quick actions
• Breadcrumb Navigation: Click path segments to navigate
• Search: Real-time file filtering
• Sorting: By name, size, or date
• Trash Support: Restore deleted items
• Keyboard Shortcuts: Fast file operations

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Opening Files and Folders

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Double-Click to Open

• Folders: Opens in current window
• Files: Opens in XEmacs text editor

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Single-Click to Select

• Selection highlights with blue background
• Shows in status bar: “1 item”
• Enables context menu actions

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Navigation

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Breadcrumb Bar

/ > home > victxrlarixs > Documents > project_web

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Navigation Buttons

• ← Back: Return to previous location
• → Forward: Go forward in history
• ↑ Up: Go to parent directory
• 🏠 Home: Jump to home directory

• Backspace: Go up one level
• Browser-style history navigation

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Address Bar

1. Click on the breadcrumb bar
2. Type the path: /home/victxrlarixs/Desktop/
3. Press Enter to navigate
4. Press Escape to cancel

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File Operations

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Creating Files and Folders

1. Go to File → New File
2. Enter filename
3. Press OK
4. Empty file appears in current directory

1. Go to File → New Folder
2. Enter folder name
3. Press OK

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Copying Files

1. Right-click file
2. Select “Copy”
3. Navigate to destination
4. Right-click empty space
5. Select “Paste”

1. Select file
2. Press Ctrl+C to copy
3. Navigate to destination
4. Press Ctrl+V to paste

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Moving Files

1. Click and hold file
2. Drag to destination folder
3. Release to drop
4. File moves to new location

1. Right-click file → “Cut” (or Ctrl+X)
2. Navigate to destination
3. Right-click empty space → “Paste” (or Ctrl+V)

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Renaming Files

1. Right-click file
2. Select “Rename”
3. Enter new name
4. Press OK

1. Select file
2. Press F2
3. Enter new name
4. Press OK

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Deleting Files

1. Select file
2. Press Delete key, or
3. Right-click → “Delete”
4. Confirm to move to trash

1. Delete files normally
2. Confirm permanent deletion
3. Files are permanently removed

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Restoring from Trash

1. Navigate to ~/.trash/
2. Right-click deleted file
3. Select “Restore”
4. File returns to original location

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Empty Trash

1. Go to File → Empty Trash
2. Confirm permanent deletion
3. All trash items are removed

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Sorting and Filtering

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Sort Options

• Sort by Name: Alphabetical order
• Sort by Size: Smallest to largest
• Sort by Date: Oldest to newest

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Real-Time Search

1. Type filename or partial name
2. File list filters instantly
3. Status bar shows: “5 items (filtered)”
4. Clear search to see all files

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Show Hidden Files

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Context Menus

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File Context Menu

• Open: Open file (folders navigate, files open in XEmacs)
• Copy: Copy to clipboard
• Cut: Cut to clipboard for moving
• Rename: Change file name
• Properties: View file details
• Delete: Move to trash

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Folder Context Menu

• Drop targets for drag & drop operations
• “Open” navigates into folder

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Empty Space Context Menu

• Paste: Paste clipboard contents
• New File: Create new file
• New Folder: Create new folder

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Properties Dialog

• Name: Filename
• Type: File or folder
• Path: Full path
• Size: Human-readable (e.g., “2.5 KB”)
• Items: Count of files in folder
• Modified: Last modification date
• Owner: File owner (victx)
• Permissions: Unix-style (e.g., rw-r--r--)

Name: index.html
Type: file
Path: /home/victxrlarixs/Documents/project_web/index.html
Size: 1.2 KB
Modified: Sat Feb 11 2023 14:35:00
Owner: victx
Permissions: rw-r--r--

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Keyboard Shortcuts

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Menubar

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File Menu

• New File: Create text file
• New Folder: Create directory
• Empty Trash: Permanently delete trash (only visible when viewing trash)

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Edit Menu

• Copy: Copy selection
• Cut: Cut selection
• Paste: Paste clipboard
• Rename: Rename selection

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View Menu

• Sort by Name: Alphabetical
• Sort by Size: File size
• Sort by Date: Modification time
• Show Hidden Files: Toggle hidden files
• Refresh: Reload current directory

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Go Menu

• Back: Previous location
• Forward: Next location (if available)
• Up: Parent directory
• Home: Home directory

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Places Menu

• Settings: ~/settings/
• Manual Pages: ~/man-pages/
• Desktop: ~/Desktop/

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Drag and Drop

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Moving Files

1. Drag: Click and hold file icon
2. Drag over folder: Folder highlights
3. Drop: Release mouse button
4. File moves to destination

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Visual Feedback

• Dragging: File icon follows cursor
• Valid drop target: Folder shows blue border
• Invalid target: No highlight

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Drop on Background

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File Icons

• Folder: Yellow folder icon
• Empty File: White document icon
• File with Content: Green file icon

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Status Bar

• Item count: “15 items”
• Filtered results: “8 items (filtered)”
• Updates in real-time

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Special Folders

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Home Directory

• Desktop/ - Desktop files
• Documents/ - User documents
• Downloads/ - Downloaded files
• .trash/ - Deleted items (hidden)

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Desktop

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Trash

• Navigate manually to view
• Right-click files to restore
• Empty trash to delete permanently

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Integration with XEmacs

• Double-clicking text files opens them in XEmacs
• File path is passed automatically
• Saving in XEmacs updates File Manager
• File Manager refreshes on changes

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Tips and Tricks

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Source Code

• /src/scripts/features/filemanager.ts: Core file operations (968 lines)
• Drag and drop with visual feedback
• Context menus with 20+ actions
• Integration with VFS (Virtual Filesystem)
• Real-time search and sorting
• Trash management with restore capability