Re: [Usability] new feature: dragging file folder folder opens it ?

[David Christian Berg <david sipsolutions net>]

On Fri, 2005-08-05 at 12:12 +0100, Bastien Nocera wrote:
> On Fri, 2005-08-05 at 13:06 +0200, Thilo Pfennig wrote:
> > This behaviour is also know on Macs: If you hold a file longer over an
> > existing folder after some seconds this folder opens and you can then
> > browse further (deeper). Maybe this would be nice with GNOME 2.12 and
> > the new tree mode? Or is it planed already?
> 
> It's called spring folders and is patented by Apple. Read the archives
> on lists.gnome.org, it has some insight as to why we can't add this
> feature to nautilus.


http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6061061.WKU.&OS=PN/6061061&RS=PN/6061061


Is there another patent?
I should have read it before, but haven't, being abject. However, this
refers to _temporary_ windows.
So if you actually don't have temporary windows that are closed on
release of the mouse button, but open the folder you hover over in the
window you're in (so closing it right away -- at least in browser mode
this makes sense anyways) and don't jump back to the location you
started (browser mode) or don't close the windows at all (in spacial
mode) on release, I'm pretty much certain that we're not running into
any trouble with this patent.
Maybe I'm totally wrong about this, I haven't been reading the patent
text but only the abstract... it's really hard to read the actual patent
for none-native speakers. Actually I believe it's hard vor native
speakers as well ;)

Take care!

David