[Promotion-technology] Introducing FileDir and seeking beta testers (fwd)

[David Andrews]

>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Sat, 9 Dec 2006 17:43:04 -0500 (EST)
>From: Jamal Mazrui <empower at smart.net>




>This open source project has a goal of being a more productive file and
>directory manager than Windows Explorer, especially for screen reader
>users.  It is developed with the C# language, .NET classes, Layout by Code
>library, and TextPal editor.  Since this is the first public beta, I'm
>including all current documentation below.
>
>Questions, feedback, and programming contributions welcome.
>Jamal
>
>http://www.empowermentzone.com/dirsetup.exe
>
>FileDir
>Beta 0.6
>December 9, 2006
>Copyright 2006 by Jamal Mazrui
>
>Please note that most but not all features described below have been
>implemented so far.  Commands ready for beta testing are listed in the Hot
>Key summary below -- also available on the Help menu or by pressing
>Alt+Shift+H.  This is a beta so some rough edges are expected, and
>additional error checking will be added based on problems reported.
>Suggestions about new features and modifications to existing commands or
>keyboard bindings are also invited.
>
>Contents
>
>Installation
>Introduction
>Edit Commands
>Go to Commands
>Navigate Commands
>Query Commands
>Select Commands
>Transfer Commands
>Miscellaneous Commands
>Hot Key Summary
>Development Notes
>
>
>----------
>
>Installation
>The installation program for FileDir is called dirsetup.exe.  When
>executed, it prompts for a program folder, the default being
>C:\Program Files\FileDir
>The installer also creates a program group for FileDir on the Windows
>start menu, containing choices to launch FileDir, read Documentation, and
>uninstall.
>
>The installer creates a desktop shortcut with a hot key, enabling FileDir
>to be conveniently launched by pressing Alt+Control+F.  If this hot key
>happens to conflict with an existing one, navigate to the FileDir item on
>the desktop, press Alt+Enter for properties, and then change the hot key
>to something else (or leave it blank).
>
>After installing FileDir, the setup program presents a list of two
>checkboxes that are on by default.  The first checkbox offers an an
>optional set of JAWS scripts to fine tune the FileDir speech interface in
>a few ways that could not be accomplished otherwise.  Mainly, these
>scripts suppress the often unnecessary verbalization of keystroke names,
>such as "Shift S," leaving just the command name if appropriate, such as
>"Size."  If the scripts were installed and you would later prefer default
>JAWS behavior instead, however, you can do this by pressing Insert+0 when
>FileDir is active, and down arrowing to the following line:
>
>;SwitchToConfiguration("default")
>
>Delete the initial semicolon character (;), which uncomments the code, and
>then press Control+S to save and recompile the scripts.  Press Alt+F4 to
>exit JAWS script manager.
>
>If you prefer not to install the JAWS scripts in the first place, e.g.,
>because you are a Window-Eyes or HAL user, press Spacebar to uncheck that
>option of the setup program.  The second checkbox in the list, available
>via DownArrow, offers FileDir documentation in the default web browser
>(usually Internet Explorer).
>
>FileDir may be safely installed over previous versions.  The About option
>from the Help menu, or Alt+F1 key, indicates the current version number
>and release date.  The History option, Shift+F1, summarizes product
>changes.
>----------
>
>Introduction
>
>FileDir is a file and directory manager developed in the C# language,
>which requires the .NET Framework 2.0 to run (a free download from
>Microsoft.com).  It is designed to be a powerful, efficient, and
>convenient alternative to Windows Explorer or My Computer for managing
>files and folders on a Windows-based computer.  Almost every command can
>be done through a mnemonic keystroke, as well as a menu or mouse
>operation.  These commands begin with those available in Windows Explorer.
>FileDir then adds several beneficial features above this base command set.
>Finally, a set of optional JAWS scripts provide further fine tuning of the
>speech interface.
>
>Since the number of possible FileDir commands is large, involving nearly
>every letter and several punctuation keys, some organizing concepts,
>explained below, help the learning curve.
>
>The standard environment of FileDir is a view of items in a particular
>folder of the computer's file system.  The title of the window says
>"FileDir" followed by the path and name of the folder being viewed.  Below
>the title bar is a list of items contained in the folder, one item per
>line, folder items first, then file items after.  The current position,
>item count, sort order, and filter specification (if any) are displayed on
>the status line (reviewable with Alt+Z or a screen reader-specific command
>such as Insert+PageDown in JAWS).
>
>At any time, a single item has keyboard focus, which may be called the
>current item -- the location of the PC cursor in Jaws terminology.  At any
>time, zero or more items may be tagged, that is, highlighted in a way that
>marks them for further action by commands that can act on multiple items
>at once.  Note that the focused or current item may not be tagged:  focus
>and tagged state are independent.  To remind you that a command may affect
>multiple, tagged files, the word "tagged" is included as part of its name.
>Conversely, command names without this word apply regardless of tagged
>state, e.g., to the focused item only or independent of focus and tagged
>state.
>
>Each item in the folder being displayed is either a file or folder.
>FileDir implements the list of items as a standard Windows ListBox
>control.  This means, for example, that the up and down arrow keys
>navigate through the list, and the Home and End keys move focus to the top
>and bottom of the list, respectively.
>
>Navigation by initial letter is another ListBox behavior.  Pressing the
>letter "b," for example, will move focus to the next file or folder item
>whose name starts with that letter.  Pressing multiple letters quickly
>will move to the next item, if any, that starts with that sequence of
>letters (or other, legitimate characters in a file name).
>
>Since initial letter navigation works the same whether lower or upper case
>letters are used, the upper case or shifted versions are used by FileDir
>to add features through hot keys.  For example, Files may be copied to
>another folder without using the more involved "copy and paste" method of
>Windows Explorer (though similar functionality is also supported by
>FileDir).  Press Shift+C to copy the current file.  Since the command
>needs more information to complete the operation, it will prompt for the
>destination folder.  The dialog remembers the previous input for this
>command, if any, which can be accepted by simply pressing Enter.  To
>provide another value instead, type it, replacing other text, and press
>Enter to activate the default, OK button.  You can also pick a folder from
>a standard tree control by activating the Browse button.
>
>If more than one file is tagged, the Copy command will apply to multiple
>files.  If you want to verify what files are tagged before copying, use
>the Shift+L hot key to list tagged items.
>
>A backslash symbol after an item indicates that it is a folder rather than
>a file.
>
>A > symbol following an item indicates that it is tagged (putting this
>symbol after rather than before preserves initial letter navigation in the
>ListBox.
>
>The > symbol is also the key (Shift+Period) to tag an item and
>automatically move to the next one in the list.  The < symbol untags and
>also moves ahead, thereby allowing you to efficiently go through a
>directory list and selectively tag items.  The tagging approach has
>benefits over selection in Windows Explorer, e.g., tags are not lost by an
>accidental key press that moves focus.
>
>The program uses a Multiple Document Interface (MDI) so any number of
>directory views may be opened, cycled among with Control+Tab, and closed
>with Control+F4.  Some commands differ in whether they open a new window
>ore re-use the existing one.  Commands with "Go to" in the name re-use the
>existing window, whereas "Open" commands start a new one.
>
>Extra speech is provided through the APIs of JAWS or Window-Eyes.  These
>are intended to be comprehensible chunks of targeted information.  For
>example, pressing Shift+Y gives the "yield" or count and combined size of
>tagged folder and file items in the current directory view.  Speech of
>this nature can be efficient for screen reader users as opposed to, say, a
>message box that generates additional screen reader speech describing the
>dialog, and then has to be dismissed with another key, triggering more
>screen reader speech.
>
>Typically, a key combination using Alt or Control rather than Shift
>performs another variation of the command.  For example, Shift+L lists all
>tagged items, Control+L lists all items regardless of tagged state, and
>Alt+L lists all files, but not folders.
>
>FileDir commands often include verbal confirmation during execution, e.g.,
>announcing the name of each file after a copy and the message "Done!"
>afterward.
>
>FileDir initially opens the Personal/My Documents folder when launched
>with no command line parameters.  If a folder is passed as a parameter,
>however, that folder is opened instead.
>
>The default sort order is reverse date, meaning that most recently
>modified items appear first.  All folder items, however, appear before any
>file items.  FileDir appears the current sort order and filter
>specification when creating a new directory view.
>
>Since there are numerous FileDir commands beyond those in Windows
>Explorer, learning the software may seem daunting at first.  Getting
>started is not hard, however, since FileDir works similarly to Windows
>Explorer.  You can then learn additional commands according to your time
>and needs.    Remember that you can review this documentation at any time
>by pressing F1.  You can also get a summary list of commands by pressing
>Alt+H for Hot Keys.
>
>FileDir commands can be subdivided into several categories, related to the
>following conceptual labels:  edit, find, go to, navigate, query, select,
>transfer, and miscellaneous.  You can edit file attributes, find items by
>textual match, go to different folders, navigate among items in a folder,
>select files for further action, transfer them to various places, and do
>other, miscellaneous tasks.  The sections below explain these categories.
>
>----------
>
>Edit Commands
>
>Edit commands change the content, name, or other attribute of an item.
>Press Control+W to load the current file into Microsoft Word, or Control+T
>to load into TextPal instead.
>
>The Rename command, Shift+R, lets you edit the name of the current item.
>
>Find Commands
>
>Find commands search for an item by a string of characters in its name or
>body.  Press Alt+Shift+F to find a file anywhere on the current drive
>based on a wild card pattern, e.g., minutes*.doc for a file that has
>minuttes at the beginning of its name, and .doc at the end.  FileDir will
>present a list of all files and folders on the current drive that match
>the wild card pattern.  Use arrow key or initial letter navigation to
>focus on the item of interest.  Pressing Enter will then go to the folder
>containing that item and place focus on it.
>
>Press Control+J to jump to an item within the current folder, based on a
>sequence of characters (no wildcards) appearing somewhere within its name.
>Control+K, on the other hand, searches for a keyword inside the body of a
>file.
>  For the next match, press Alt+J for jump again or Alt+K for keywords
>again.
>
>Press Control+F to filter files in the current folder to a restricted view
>of those matching a wild card pattern.  Press Shift+F to select matching
>files for further action, but retain a view of them all.  Press
>Control+Shift+F to remove any filter and make all items available.
>
>----------
>
>Go to Commands
>
>Go to commands change the FileDir view to another folder.  Press Control+G
>for a dialog in which you can accept a previous path, enter a new one, or
>choose from a tree view control.  Press Control+Shift+O to choose from a
>list of folders with special names designated by Windows, e.g., My
>Documents or Start Up.
>
>Press backslash (\) to go to the root level of the current drive.  Press
>comma (,) to "come up" a level in the folder tree, going to the parent of
>the previous folder.  This works like the Backspace command but puts focus
>on the parent folder rather than the beginning item.  Press the Period (.)
>or F5 key to refresh the current folder.  This may occasionally be needed
>if a program other than FileDir changed the contents of the current
>folder, e.g., by creating a new file in it.
>
>When the current item is a folder, pressing Enter opens and goes to it.
>
>----------
>
>Navigate Commands
>
>Navigate commands change the focus within a folder, based on a fixed
>increment or boundary.  Press Home to navigate to the beginning or first
>item, or End for the end or last one.  If the current folder contains
>subfolders, then the beginning item will be a folder since they always
>appear before files.  Press Alt+B to go to the beginning file, skipping
>over folder items before it.
>
>A group of shifted letter keys navigate similarly within the set of tagged
>items:  Shift+B for Beginning tagged, Shift+E for End tagged, Shift+N for
>Next tagged, and Shift+P for Previous tagged (if any).  These commands let
>you review or inspect the subset of tagged items.  Shift+L also may be
>useful to list all tagged items.
>
>Press Shift+I for Initial Change, which jumps to the next item that starts
>with a different letter.  Similarly, press Shift+X for Extension Change,
>which jumps to the next file with a different extension.
>
>----------
>
>Query Commands
>
>Query commands announce aspects of the current environment (via speech or
>braille output).  Press Alt+Apostrophe for the textual content of the
>clipboard.  Press Question Mark (?) for the What command, which verbalizes
>the textual content of the current file.
>
>Press Shift+S for the size of the current file or folder item.  Press
>Shift+D for its date and time stamp.  Press Shift+T for Type, which
>provides miscellaneous information, including the file type and ReadOnly,
>Hidden, or System attributes set (if any), as well as the program
>associated with the current file extension.
>
>Press Control+L to list all items in the current folder, or Shift+L for
>those tagged.    Press Alt+L to list files but not folders.
>
>Press Y for the yield, or sum, of the number and size of items in the
>current folder, or Shift+Y for those tagged.  Press Alt+Y for the space
>occupied and available on the current drive.
>
>Press % (Shift+5) for the Percent Through command, which indicates the
>relative position of the current item in the list, e.g., "6 of 20 items,
>30% through."  If you are sequentially examining the files in a folder or
>ZIP archive, this gives you a sense of how much is done and what remains.
>
>----------
>
>Select Commands
>
>Select commands increase or decrease the subset of items that are marked
>for further action by commands that can operate on multiple items at once.
>In other applications, selecting is also known as tagging or flagging for
>subsequent action.
>
>Press Control+A to select all files and folders, or Alt+GreaterThan to
>select all files but not folders.  Press Control+I to invert the current
>tagged states, unselecting items that were tagged and vice versa.  Press
>Alt+LessThan to unselect all items except for the current one.  Press
>Spacebar to toggle the tagged state of the current item.  Press semicolon
>(;) to select the current item regardless of its previous status, or
>ForwardSlash (/) to unselect it.
>
>To navigate and make individual tagged state decisions, use the
>GreaterThan key to select and go to the next item or the LessThan key to
>unselect and go to the next item.
>
>Press Shift+F to add tagged states based on a wild card pattern, e.g.,
>entering *.txt to make all text files tagged.  You can repeat this command
>to add other tagged states based on a wild card pattern (the previous
>tagged states will not be cleared).
>
>----------
>
>Transfer Commands
>
>Transfer commands take action on a whole item, copying or moving it to
>another folder, the clipboard, printer, or recycle bin.  Press Shift+C to
>copy, Shift+M to move, or the Delete key to delete.  Press Shift+Z to zip
>a file into a compressed archive, or Shift+U to unzip it.  You can test
>whether a file can be unzipped successfully by pressing Control+U.
>
>Press Shift+O to output tagged files in plain text format.  The original,
>source files will not be affected.  The target, converted files will have
>the same names but a .txt extension.  Conversions to text are available
>for the following formats:  .doc, .htm, .pdf, .ppt, .rtf, and .xls.  Some
>conversions require Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or Excel to be installed
>on the computer.
>
>The same conversion mechanism may be used to place text on the Windows
>clipboard instead of creating new files.  Press Shift+A to append the
>textual body of currently tagged files to the clipboard.  They will be
>separated by a sequence of characters indicating a divider between
>sections of a composite document:  a line of 10 dashes followed by a form
>feed (hard page break).  A termination sequence says "End of Document."
>This command is useful for combining multiple, related files, e.g.,
>downloaded web pages, into a single document.  You can use the Clear
>Clipboard command, Alt+Shift+', to clear the clipboard before appending to
>it.
>
>Press Alt+P to hear the full path of the current item, or Alt+Shift+P to
>copy it to the clipboard, e.g., "c:\my documents\my music\music.mp3."
>This may be useful so that the string is available by pressing Control+V
>to paste it into the open file dialog of another application.
>
>Press Control+D to duplicate the current file, creating another copy in
>the same folder with a name you specify.  Such a file is sometimes useful
>when you want to preserve the original unaltered and make changes to a
>copy in the same folder.
>
>----------
>
>Miscellaneous Commands
>
>Miscellaneous commands do not fit neatly into previous categories.
>
>The main interface of FileDir is the ListBox containing items that are
>either folders or files, with folders listed first.  The default order is
>by most recent date and time, so that a file most recently modified will
>appear before others and be convenient to locate.  Subsequent sort order
>can be controlled by pressing Alt+A for alphabetic/name order, Alt+S for
>size order, Alt+D for date order, or Alt+T for type/extension order.  Add
>the Shift key to reverse the order, e.g., Alt+Shift+S puts the largest
>file first.  To get its precise size, press Shift+S.
>
>Press Control+Shift+N to create a new folder.
>----------
>
>Hot Key Summary
>
>Alt+Control+F Launch FileDir from Windows desktop (default shortcut key)
>Enter, Run, Invoke current item -- open folder or launch file
>Space, Toggle Tagged, Invert tagged state of current item
>Shift+A, Append Tagged, Append textual content of current or tagged items
>to the clipboard
>Control+A, Tag All, Tag all items
>Control+Shift+A, Untag All, Untag all items
>Alt+A, Alpha Order, Sort items in alphabetic/name order
>Alt+Shift+A, Reverse Alpha Order, Sort items in reverse alphabetic/name
>order
>Shift+B, Beginning Tagged, Go to beginning tagged item
>Shift+C, Copy Tagged, Copy current or tagged items to another folder
>Control+C, Copy Path, Copy path of current or tagged items to clipboard
>Shift+D, Date, Say date and time of current item
>Alt+D, Date Order, Sort items in date order
>Alt+Shift+D, Reverse Date Order, Sort items in reverse date order
>Shift+E, End Tagged, Go to end tagged item
>Control+F, Set Filter, Set filter with wildcards to view a subset of items
>Control+Shift+F, Clear Filter, View all items
>Control+G, GoTo Folder, Go to another folder in same window
>Control+I, Invert Tagged, Invert tagged and untagged state of items
>Alt+Shift+H, Hot Key Summary, Display list of FileDir keys, command names,
>and descriptions
>Control+J, Jump, Jump to item based on a string within its name
>Alt+J, Jump Again, Repeat Jump command with same string
>Control+K, Keywords, Jump to item based on a string within its content
>Alt+K, Keywords Again, Repeat Keywords command with same string
>Control+L, List, Say items in current folder
>Shift+L, List Tagged, Say tagged items in current folder
>Shift+M, Move Tagged, Move current or tagged items to another folder
>Shift+O, Output Tagged, Output textual content of current or tagged items
>to files with .txt extensions
>Shift+N, Next Tagged, Go to next tagged item
>Control+O, Open Folder, Open folder in a new window
>Control+Shift+O, Open Special Folder, Pick a special folder (e.g.,
>StartUp) and open it in a new window
>Alt+O, Open Drive, Pick a drive and open it in a new window
>Shift+P, Previous Tagged, Go to previous tagged item
>Alt+P, Path, Say full path of current item
>Alt+Shift+P, Path to Clipboard, Copy full path of current item to
>clipboard
>Control+N, New Copy, Open copy of current folder in a new window
>Control+Shift+N, New Folder, Create new folder on disk
>Shift+S, Size, Say size of current item
>Alt+S, Size Order, Sort items in size order
>Alt+Shift+S, Reverse Size Order, Sort items in reverse size order
>Shift+T, Type, Say type/extension of current item
>Control+T, Send to TextPal, Send current file to TextPal
>Alt+T, Type Order, Sort items in type/extension order
>Alt+Shift+T, Reverse Type Order, Sort items in reverse type/extension
>order
>Control+W, Send to Word, Send current file to Microsoft Word
>Control+Y, Yield, Say count and size of items in current folder
>Shift+Y, Yield Tagged, Say count and size of tagged items in current
>folder
>Alt+Y, Yield on Drive, Say space occupied and bytes free on current drive
>Alt+Z, Status, Say status line, containing current position, item count,
>sort order, and filter specification (if any)
>Delete, Delete Tagged, Delete current or tagged items
>F1, Documentation, Open documentation in web browser
>Shift+F1, Change History, Display history of FileDir fixes and
>improvements
>Alt+F1, About, Display FileDir version number and release date
>F5 or Period, Refresh Folder, Read current folder again from disk in same
>window
>Backspace, Parent Folder, Go to parent of current folder
>Comma, Come up Level, Go to parent folder in same window and jump to
>folder item that was previously open
>Period or F5, Refresh Folder, Read current folder again from disk in same
>window
>Backslash, Root Folder, Go to root folder of current drive in same window
>(e.g., to C:\ folder)
>Semicolon, Tag, Tag current item
>Slash, Untag, Untag current item
>Greater Than, Tag and Next, Tag current item and Go to next one
>Less Than, Untag and Next, Untag current item and Go to next one
>Alt+Period, Tag All Files, Tag file items and untag folder ones
>Alt+Comma, Untag All But Current, Untag all but current item
>Alt+Apostrophe, Say Clipboard, Say clipboard text
>Alt+Shift+Apostrophe, Clear Clipboard, Clear clipboard text
>Question, What, Say content of current file
>
>
>----------
>
>Development Notes
>For the technically curious, I developed FileDir with the C# 2.0
>programming language from
>http://microsoft.com
>
>The GetText utility is from
>http://www.kryltech.com
>with a license in the file GetText.txt, located in the FileDir program
>folder.
>
>This folder contains the complete source code for FileDir in the file
>named FileDir.cs, as well as in the Layout by Code library lbc.cs.
>
>The code is covered by the GNU General Public License in the file gpl.txt,
>also explained at
>http://gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html
>
>I welcome feedback, which will help FileDir improve over time.  The latest
>version of the package is available at
>http://www.EmpowermentZone.com/dirsetup.exe
>
>Jamal Mazrui
>jamal at EmpowermentZone.com
>
>----------
>End of Document