User:Skierpage/Places as a next-gen file manager - Revision history

Skierpage: /* See also */ update, add B2G and User:P.A./Panel-based Download Manager

2011-07-27T00:11:28Z

See also: update, add B2G and User:P.A./Panel-based Download Manager

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:11, 27 July 2011
Line 82:		Line 82:
	* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"		* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"

	== ~~See also~~ ==		== Actual projects ==
	* {{bug\|402231}} ("places organizer should allow browsing and searching of downloads") suggests a Downloads view		This page is just me talking. Actual Mozilla nitiatives towards this goal include:
	* [[Firefox/Feature Brainstorming:Archiving and Offline browsing]]		* 2007's {{bug\|402231}} ("places organizer should allow browsing and searching of downloads") suggests a Downloads view. (Never prioritized by Places team)
			* 2008's [[Firefox/Feature Brainstorming:Archiving and Offline browsing]] , seems stalled.
			* 2010's [[User:P.A./Panel-based Download Manager\|Panel-based Download Manager]], heading towards implementation in {{bug\|564934}}. Alas the really good stuff — {{bug\|591289}} "Save chosen download file name and other metadata in Places history" and {{bug\|564900}} "Add folder to Library sidebar specifically for downloads" — is "On hold".
			* 2011's [[B2G\|Boot to Gecko]] project. Although it's Android-based and targeting phone apps, they say the goal is
			*:To make open web technologies a better basis for future applications on mobile and desktop alike, we need to keep pushing the envelope of the web to include --- and in places exceed --- the capabilities of the competing stacks in question.

Skierpage: /* Field design */

2009-05-23T22:40:39Z

Field design

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:40, 23 May 2009
Line 44:		Line 44:

	== Field design ==		== Field design ==
	As others have commented, for downloads and pages you save you need to remember three ~~things~~:		As others have commented, for downloads and pages you save you need to remember three URLs and some other info:
	* the page where you downloaded		* the page you were viewing where you downloaded
	* the URL you downloaded		* the URL you downloaded or "Save link as"
	* the local file:// URL to which you saved).		** the size and last-modified date of the URL you downloaded
			* the local file:// URL to which you saved)
	Tools > Downloads remembers and exposes all of these in its context menu as Go to Download page, Copy Download Link. But Places does not.		Tools > Downloads remembers and exposes all of these in its context menu as Go to Download page, Copy Download Link. But Places does not.

	When you ~~save~~ a Web page, do "the page where you downloaded" and "the URL you downloaded" become the same thing? The former could be generalized to "the referring page", which might be nice for Places to show a breadcrumb of how you wound up at some page, but it's less meaningful.		When you File > Save a Web page, do "the page where you downloaded" and "the URL you downloaded" become the same thing? The former could be generalized to "the referring page", which might be nice for Places to show a breadcrumb of how you wound up at some page, but it's more abstract and less meaningful for a download.

	This info is shared between two web URLs and a local file. I think it should show up in all three in Places:		This info is shared between two web URLs and a local file. I think it should show up in all three in Places:

Skierpage: /* Maybe upload */

2009-05-23T22:34:50Z

Maybe upload

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:34, 23 May 2009
Line 70:		Line 70:

	=== Maybe upload ===		=== Maybe upload ===
	Maybe store something similar for upload.		Maybe store something similar for upload. Remember the URL when you upload a local file.

	== Related work ==		== Related work ==

Skierpage: flesh out Field design

2009-05-23T22:33:37Z

flesh out Field design

@@ Line 43: / Line 43: @@
 Yup, I want Firefox to manage my hard drive 8-) !
-== ==
+== Field design ==
 == Needed tech ==

Skierpage: /* Needed tech */

2009-05-23T21:59:48Z

Needed tech

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:59, 23 May 2009
Line 46:		Line 46:

	== Needed tech ==		== Needed tech ==
	Even when Places can tell if a file on the web is newer than the one you have, this often won't help when a new version comes out, because whizzo_v2_3-04.tar.gz is a different file than what you have. The browser has to figure out that it's ~~an later~~ version of what you have.		Even when Places can tell if a file on the web is ''newer'' than the one you have, this often won't help when a ''new version'' comes out, because whizzo_v2_3-04.tar.gz is a different file than what you have. The browser has to figure out that it's the ''next'' version of what you have.
	* Is there a microformat to represent "This is version X.YY of this URL?"		* Is there a microformat to represent "This is version X.YY of this URL?"
	* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"		* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"

Skierpage: /* Needed tech */

2009-05-23T21:59:06Z

Needed tech

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:59, 23 May 2009
Line 46:		Line 46:

	== Needed tech ==		== Needed tech ==
			Even when Places can tell if a file on the web is newer than the one you have, this often won't help when a new version comes out, because whizzo_v2_3-04.tar.gz is a different file than what you have. The browser has to figure out that it's an later version of what you have.
	* Is there a microformat to represent "This is version X.YY of this URL?"		* Is there a microformat to represent "This is version X.YY of this URL?"
	* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"		* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"

Skierpage: /* Use cases */ subheadings and extension

2009-05-13T02:28:19Z

Use cases: subheadings and extension

← Older revision		Revision as of 02:28, 13 May 2009
Line 4:		Line 4:

	== Use cases ==		== Use cases ==
	Amy often needs to work when she has no internet connectivity ~~... ''COMPLETE ME''~~
			=== Saved files, working offline ===
			Amy often needs to work when she has no internet connectivity
	So she has saved many of her key reference files locally		So she has saved many of her key reference files locally
	* Places should know which files in bookmarked and history have been saved locally		* Places should know which files in bookmarked and history have been saved locally
	* Places should intelligently offer to launch the saved file if you have no connectivity or are in File > Work Offline mode.		* Places should intelligently offer to launch the saved file if you have no connectivity or are in File > Work Offline mode.
	* When back online, Places should have a built in auto-generated tag for "local saved files that have been updated on the Web".		* When back online, Places should have a built in auto-generated tag for "local saved files that have been updated on the Web".
	* Places ~~should be able to~~ tell the difference between "I have archived a particular version of this file" and "I ~~have~~		* Places can't tell the difference between the intent "I have archived a particular version of this file" and "I want to keep the most recent version of this file locally"
			** So let the user choose between these by providing an easy way to launch the saved file://path URL and the URL saved, so the user can compare them.
			** A web-page "diff" utility could be an extension opportunity.
	Related: ScrapBook and ScrapBook+ add-ons, see [[Firefox/Feature Brainstorming:Archiving and Offline browsing]]		Related: ScrapBook and ScrapBook+ add-ons, see [[Firefox/Feature Brainstorming:Archiving and Offline browsing]]

			=== Download management ===
	Jill has downloaded various huge games and installers from the web. She then runs low on disk space.		Jill has downloaded various huge games and installers from the web. She then runs low on disk space.
	She should be able to go to Places and:		She should be able to go to Places and:
Line 20:		Line 25:
	* Based on this investigation, delete some downloaded files and replace other local file with a URL pointing to the web, confident that she can get the info back.		* Based on this investigation, delete some downloaded files and replace other local file with a URL pointing to the web, confident that she can get the info back.

			=== Viewing downloaded files in the file system ===
	Frank revisits a project he worked on last year. In its directories, many of the documents are things he downloaded from the web. He should be able to ''visit that directory in Places'' and quickly get back up to speed, to see information like		Frank revisits a project he worked on last year. In its directories, many of the documents are things he downloaded from the web. He should be able to ''visit that directory in Places'' and quickly get back up to speed, to see information like
	* how the pages were tagged		* how the pages were tagged

Skierpage: add /* Use cases */

2009-04-15T04:29:12Z

add Use cases

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:29, 15 April 2009
Line 3:		Line 3:
	* New, improved versions of much of the stuff on your hard drive is on the web		* New, improved versions of much of the stuff on your hard drive is on the web

			== Use cases ==
			Amy often needs to work when she has no internet connectivity ... ''COMPLETE ME''
			So she has saved many of her key reference files locally
			* Places should know which files in bookmarked and history have been saved locally
			* Places should intelligently offer to launch the saved file if you have no connectivity or are in File > Work Offline mode.
			* When back online, Places should have a built in auto-generated tag for "local saved files that have been updated on the Web".
			* Places should be able to tell the difference between "I have archived a particular version of this file" and "I have
			Related: ScrapBook and ScrapBook+ add-ons, see [[Firefox/Feature Brainstorming:Archiving and Offline browsing]]

			Jill has downloaded various huge games and installers from the web. She then runs low on disk space.
			She should be able to go to Places and:
			* view downloaded files by size
			* tell if an installer has been run or zip has been extracted
			* check to see if a newer version of the game or installer is available
			* See when she last accessed a downloaded file
			* Based on this investigation, delete some downloaded files and replace other local file with a URL pointing to the web, confident that she can get the info back.

			Frank revisits a project he worked on last year. In its directories, many of the documents are things he downloaded from the web. He should be able to ''visit that directory in Places'' and quickly get back up to speed, to see information like
			* how the pages were tagged
			* which files were downloaded from the web
			* which of those downloaded files are still available on the web
			* whether any of them have been replaced on the web by newer versions
			* whether the page from which he downloaded them has changed

	== More than a Downloads view ==		== More than a Downloads view ==

Skierpage: Start writing...

2009-04-15T03:49:04Z

Start writing...

New page

== Theses ==
* Almost everything on your hard drive came from the web.
* New, improved versions of much of the stuff on your hard drive is on the web

== More than a Downloads view ==
There is already a bug to provide a Downloads view in Places ({{bug|402231}} "places organizer should allow browsing and searching of downloads")
But that doesn't go far enough.

a) You can save any URL locally, which initiates a download, so as well as a Downloads view the other Places views need to be download-aware.

b) These days almost ''every'' file on your computer came from the web. Your hard drive is just a local cache/archive of stuff you got off the web. So I want Places to have a filesystem view that can tell me what URL files came from and check for updates.

Yup, I want Firefox to manage my hard drive 8-) !

== ==

== Needed tech ==
* Is there a microformat to represent "This is version X.YY of this URL?"
* Is there a microformat to represent "This is the latest version of this download?"

== See also ==
* {{bug|402231}} ("places organizer should allow browsing and searching of downloads") suggests a Downloads view
* [[Firefox/Feature Brainstorming:Archiving and Offline browsing]]