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RowView

RowView is a simple, proof-of-concept file browser that uses a unique meld of column view and list view. The “columns” of the file hierarchy are displayed horizontally as groups of rows. The deepest column appears at the top, and the root level at the bottom.

Some of the code (kqueue wrapper, filename sorting, etc.) has been borrowed from one of my other projects, Sequential.

Requires Mac OS X 10.6 or later.

• Compiled binary (Alpha version 2, 70KB)
• Source (BSD licensed)

Advantages

• Over column view
  • Shows file details (and lots of room for long filenames, too)
  • No horizontal scrolling (and all scrolling is controlled with a single scroll bar)
  • Potentially faster keyboard navigation
• Over list view
  • No indentation (can require horizontal scrolling with a deep enough hierarchy)
  • Doesn't interrupt directory listings with the contents of subdirectories
  • The current folder is always obvious

Demo app design decisions

• No icons (icons suck)
• Name column on the right side (closest to the scroll bar)
• “Open With” column

Omissions thus far

• Missing features
  • Little arrow buttons for each item, as an alternative to double-clicking (should be right next to the scroll bar)
  • Customizable table columns for other file attributes
  • Sort by file attributes besides name
  • File copying (move works though)
  • Activity window for file moves/copies
  • Lots of other things, like folder creation, move to trash, favorites/bookmarks/sidebar, etc.
• Known Bugs
  • Double-clicking on a name in the Name column initiates a rename, instead of opening the file (double-click anywhere else instead, for now)