Version: (using KDE 4.0.83) Installed from: SuSE RPMs OS: Linux KDE 3 had an option to break the viewing window in the file dialog into two separate panes, where the left showed directories, and the right only files. This an option has since disappeared in KDE 4, and should be brought back.
*** Bug 173418 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
This isn't a useful view in an open/save dialog, where the primary purpose is to navigate to a specific window, folder, or file. Split view is useful for managing and comparing files in multiple directories, or moving/copying files between them--neither use case of which applies to the open/save dialogs.
If you don't want to add the feature, that's fine, but your reason doesn't add up. >where the primary purpose is to navigate to a specific window, folder, or file It's easier to navigate when the directories are cleanly separated from the files. Hence why the feature existed in the first place and why I asked for it to return. >Split view is useful for managing and comparing files in multiple directories I have no idea how it's useful for that. You have a single list of files, what exactly are you comparing it with? >or moving/copying files between them Since split view is incapable of "moving/copying" between "them", them being on the left side only directories and the right side being only files, where one cannot appear in the other, I have no idea what you're talking about. To me it sounds like you're thinking of something other than KDE 3's split viewing window that was provided during open/save.
Split view allows the two panes to display different directories. If you want folders separate in your open/save panels, they can be sorted that way: click the settings icon in the top-right corner of the window, then go to Sorting, then check "Folders First".
>If you want folders separate in your open/save panels, they can be sorted that way: click the settings icon in the top-right corner of the window, then go to Sorting, then check "Folders First". That doesn't separate them, that just sorts them. If you have many directories somewhere together with the file you want to open, you have to scroll past all of them till you find the files. If they are in two separate panels, if you want to open a file, that right side pane is only showing the files, and there's less to go through. In cases where there's many directories and few files, it's much easier to find what you want when the directories are already filtered out.
Thanks for clarifying. I can see the appeal now. That said, I don't think we're going to bring back that feature in the way you describe it, sorry. There's great value in following the common general pattern that's used throughout all desktop operating systems simply so that users benefit from familiarity and muscle memory. But thanks for replying on this 10-year old bug!
I agree with you the default should be what people see elsewhere so KDE doesn't seem alien. However I think KDE would be better with having this feature as an option (which is not the default) as it is did back in KDE 3. Windows used to have it, and one of the reasons I stopped using Windows is that they dropped it. I kind of miss the days when we used to joke about how KDE never met an option it didn't like. >But thanks for replying on this 10-year old bug! Well, I'm still here, and I still care! I'm actually amazed someone is still looking at these after not hearing anything in years. I for the most part stopped filing bug reports with KDE because they rarely seem to be looked at let alone fixed. I'm finding some KDE 5 applications segfault at times, the file copy dialog seems to be leaking RAM until it finishes copying, or Dolphin usability is way poorer than it should be, but I didn't bother taking the time to report things anymore, because it didn't look like the current KDE developers care about stability and usability like they used to.
(In reply to Nach from comment #7) > I agree with you the default should be what people see elsewhere so KDE > doesn't seem alien. However I think KDE would be better with having this > feature as an option (which is not the default) as it is did back in KDE 3. > Windows used to have it, and one of the reasons I stopped using Windows is > that they dropped it. > > I kind of miss the days when we used to joke about how KDE never met an > option it didn't like. > > >But thanks for replying on this 10-year old bug! > > Well, I'm still here, and I still care! > I'm actually amazed someone is still looking at these after not hearing > anything in years. I for the most part stopped filing bug reports with KDE > because they rarely seem to be looked at let alone fixed. > > I'm finding some KDE 5 applications segfault at times, the file copy dialog > seems to be leaking RAM until it finishes copying, or Dolphin usability is > way poorer than it should be, but I didn't bother taking the time to report > things anymore, because it didn't look like the current KDE developers care > about stability and usability like they used to. On the contrary, it's one of our major goals right now: https://phabricator.kde.org/T6831 I encourage you to keep on filing bugs--or better yet, submit some patches. We have very good documentation on this: - https://community.kde.org/Get_Involved/development - https://community.kde.org/Infrastructure/Phabricator Over time, bug triaging had gotten short shrift, as you've noticed. But we're making a push to improve on that front, which is probably why I'm triaging bugs that are older than my children.