Re: Desktop as Nautilus

[Pat Suwalski <pat suwalski net>]

Your ideas are interesting:

TRANS wrote:
> My idea is this. I would really like it if my Desktop actually were
> the File Browser. In other words instead of having a seperate Desktop/
> directory in my home directory, the desktop could actually reflect my
> home directory (or any other defaut directory I tell it too for that
> matter), but more that this, to be able to navigate thru the file
> heirarchy like one normally does with Nautilus, but without the need
> for a seperate window. An optional split pane mode would also be
> useful in this design (like MC). And if you want to go a step further,
> some cool transition effects between directory changes ;-)

Having desktop-as-home is actually a Nautilus option already, though the 
people who wrote it do not support it. I use it, because like you, I 
think it's a very natural approach to where things "are".

See the gconf key:

	/apps/nautilus/preferences/desktop_is_home_dir (bool)

As to actually making it a browsable interface, I'm not sure I can 
visualize how that would work. Most people are not fans of "live 
desktops", like what Microsoft tried back in 1996.

I think it is generally believed that it makes sense to do a fundamental 
task like browsing folders in a window that does not get covered by 
other windows.

> To me this would be a much more natural way of working with my system.
> Just by hitting the Desktop icon on my toolbar, up pops file

Is this so much different than hitting the Nautilus "browse" launcher icon?

--Pat