File manager suggestion for Ratpoison version

[GJones]

Clex is a very simple file manager. It extends the command line by showing everything in your working directory, and letting you easily select and perform actions on multiple files. It processes some commands internally, and defers the rest to the shell.

Personally I find it much simpler and more intuitive to use than mc, since it just builds on the shell, instead of catastrophically replacing it with something totally different. IMHO it would be great for the upcoming Ratpoison version of Salix.

For reference, here is a Slackbuild for an old version: http://slackbuilds.org/repository/12.2/system/clex/ If you guys want me to post an updated Slackbuild I'll see about that too.

[fredg]

It looks interesting, I will make it available via slapt-src/sourcery for tests.

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[fredg]

Done.
Btw, I think I will like it.
Thanks for the share.

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[caitlyn]

Another possibility is Pathfinder, which is part of the Fox Toolkit package which can already be built in Sourcery. Fox also includes Shutterbug, a very nice little screenshot applet, and Adie, a very nice and lightweight text editor. All three are excellent choices for lightweight builds.

[mimosa]

I just briefly tried both Clex and PathFinder. I confess that in several months of almost exclusive use of the Ratpoison beta, I haven't got round to getting the hang of ncurses-based file management: I just used the command line, or visited xfce to do it with Thunar. That's years of GUI file management for you, perhaps, and PathFinder looks like it would do the job well (despite its somewhat Spartan looks). But I find myself warming much more to Clex.

I particularly like the way it sits on top of the command line, acting as an extension of it. It's just great that you can click F4 to edit a config file in vim - but you can edit the command to do so first, or type another. As such, I feel it has potential as a learning tool too. That's not the prime consideration, but there is ultimately a link between the quality of the learning curve and eventual ease of use. That may not have been the intention behind the Ratpoison edition, but it seems likely to be a fringe benefit of it in many respects.

[GJones]

It looks interesting, I will make it available via slapt-src/sourcery for tests.

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You guys rock.

Another possibility is Pathfinder, which is part of the Fox Toolkit package which can already be built in Sourcery. Fox also includes Shutterbug, a very nice little screenshot applet, and Adie, a very nice and lightweight text editor. All three are excellent choices for lightweight builds.

Hmm. Which version of FOX? Version 1.6 does not seem to come with anything other than the libraries.

Edit: Yeah it looks like only the latest version. Too bad, Pathfinder would probably be nice on Debian.

Edit again: Just tried out PathFinder. Interesting and very fast, but also a bit buggy - telling it to open a PDF in Evince, for instance, will result in four sessions of Evince complaining that they can't find the relevant file.

[GJones]

Hmm, one bug: the backspace key doesn't work when it's invoked from a Konsole. Not sure why, or if the bug is in Clex or Konsole.

BTW did I mention Clex has tab completion? For both commands and filenames?

[caitlyn]

Hmm. Which version of FOX? Version 1.6 does not seem to come with anything other than the libraries.

Edit: Yeah it looks like only the latest version. Too bad, Pathfinder would probably be nice on Debian.

Edit again: Just tried out PathFinder. Interesting and very fast, but also a bit buggy - telling it to open a PDF in Evince, for instance, will result in four sessions of Evince complaining that they can't find the relevant file.

I'll admit to being a but mystified by your responses. First, PathFinder and the other apps have been part of the FOX toolkit source code for years. Debian probably just leaves them out of their package. Shutterbug and Adie were part of a default install of VectorLinux 5.x, for example.

Second, I just opened PathFinder, right clicked on a PDF, had it open the file with evince, and I got exactly the one instance I expected. This was on a 64-bit SalixOS install (Xfce edition) but using the PekWM window manager and fbpanel rather than Xfce

[SoleSoul]

Whether or not it is appropriate for the Ratpoison edition, whoever never heard of it, there is Ranger, a three-pane mac's finder like console file manager.

[mimosa]

Ranger is available through slapt-src/Sourcery. I've just had a quick glance, but it also seems very appealing!