Bug 511966

Summary:	Not selecting folders when going back or up slows down common keyboard-driven workflows
Product:	[Applications] dolphin	Reporter:	Nate Graham <nate>
Component:	general	Assignee:	Dolphin Bug Assignee <dolphin-bugs-null>
Status:	RESOLVED FIXED
Severity:	normal	CC:	daninshed, dolphin-bugs-null, postix
Priority:	NOR	Keywords:	regression, usability
Version First Reported In:	git-master
Target Milestone:	---
Platform:	Other
OS:	Linux
See Also:	https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=494125
Latest Commit:	https://invent.kde.org/system/dolphin/-/commit/7419cd326902c64b69802ab3f01656076d3c7a97	Version Fixed/Implemented In:	25.12.0
Sentry Crash Report:

Description Nate Graham 2025-11-11 17:44:04 UTC

I have a fairly organization-heavy workflow for my business's record-keeping system. Of course I use Dolphin and other KDE software for this! I find myself quite commonly entering a folder, doing stuff in it, and then needing to either rename, duplicate, or delete the folder. I always use the keyboard for these file manipulation actions (because it's fast!).

I've tried to get used to the behavior change introduced by https://invent.kde.org/system/dolphin/-/commit/122fee5625f0285ec4ebda79162c72390989eb2a for a year, but I just can't.

That change de-selects the folder when going back or up, and makes these workflows slow and frustrating, because using the keyboard shortcut for any of the above actions does not target the folder, but rather enters selection mode. This is really annoying, as then I have to exit selection mode to recover from my error, select the folder somehow, and then press the keyboard shortcut again. This actually introduces the possibility of new errors.

Yes, I know I can press Shift+Enter to select the folder so I can target it with file manipulation actions using the keyboard, but:
1. It's an extra step that slows me down
2. It isn't a general solution for everyone annoyed by this because it's un-discoverable. I only know it because Felix (one of the Dolphin maintainers) mentioned it to me.

I totally get the safety desire behind this change, but after a year of people complaining, I think it's time to consider the experiment a failure.

Because Bug 492404 was closed, this bug report tracks the folder-related workflows that are still slower and more annoying now; Bug 494125 tracks the same thing for files.

Comment 1 Bug Janitor Service 2025-11-11 20:26:27 UTC

A possibly relevant merge request was started @ https://invent.kde.org/system/dolphin/-/merge_requests/1098

Comment 2 Nate Graham 2025-11-12 15:34:37 UTC

Git commit 7419cd326902c64b69802ab3f01656076d3c7a97 by Nate Graham.
Committed on 12/11/2025 at 14:54.
Pushed by ngraham into branch 'master'.

Revert "Avoid implicitly selecting items"

This reverts commit 122fee5625f0285ec4ebda79162c72390989eb2a.

This behavior change was well-intentioned, but has significant usability
and speed drawbacks that have not been addressed:
- Keyboard-driven folder manipulation became slower
- Unexpected behavioral differences when opening files with the pointer
  compared to when opening them with the keyboard introduced
  inconsistency and cognitive load
- Unexpected opening of selection mode during fast operation introduced
  the potential for confusion and additional errors
- Dolphin's behavior became inconsistent with that of other file
  managers users may be accustomed to

The bug tracker, discuss.kde.org, and Reddit are full of complaints
about this change. It's been a year now; I think it's clear that many
Dolphin users have not gotten used to and accepted it. I have to count
myself as one of them, I'm afraid. I've tried to get used to it for a
year, but I just have not been able to.

I don't believe the benefits of this change outweigh the drawbacks, so
let's revert it.

24d859cf19e90fa22ed687b36a68231625c1bd80 was explicitly mentioned as a
thing that should also be reverted in this case, but it's already been
done.
Related: bug 494125, bug 424723, bug 492404
FIXED-IN: 25.12.0

M  +1    -2    src/dolphinviewcontainer.cpp
M  +4    -17   src/kitemviews/kitemlistcontroller.cpp
M  +1    -1    src/tests/dolphinmainwindowtest.cpp
M  +0    -8    src/tests/kitemlistcontrollertest.cpp

https://invent.kde.org/system/dolphin/-/commit/7419cd326902c64b69802ab3f01656076d3c7a97