Chapter 1. Getting Started with the GNOME Desktop / 1.5. Managing Folders and Files with Nautilus
	1.4. Using the Main Menu		1.6. Accessing Network Resources

Managing Folders and Files with Nautilus

Use the Nautilus File Manager to create and view folders and documents, run scripts, and create CDs of your data. In addition, the File Manager provides support for Web and file viewing.

You can open the file manager in the following ways:

Click Computer+Nautilus File Browser.
Double-click your Home directory icon on the desktop.
Click Computer+More Applications+Browse+Home Folder or Nautilus File Browser

Figure 1.6. File Manager

The elements of the Nautilus window include the following:

Menu: Lets you perform most tasks.
Toolbar: Lets you quickly navigate among files and folders, and provides access to files and folders.
Location Bar: Lets you locate files, folders, and URI sites.
Side Pane: Lets you navigate or display information about the selected file or folder. Use the drop-down list to customize what is shown in the pane. The list includes ways to view information about files, perform actions on files, add emblems to files, view a history of recently visited sites, and display your files in the tree system.
View Pane: Displays folders and files. Use the options on the View menu to increase or decrease the size of content in the view pane and to display items as a list or as icons.
Status Bar: Displays the number of items in a folder and gives the available free space. When a file is selected, the status bar displays the filename and size.

File Manager Navigation Shortcuts

Some simple shortcuts for navigating in the file manager include the following:

Table 1.4. File Manager Navigation Shortcuts

Shortcut	Description
<— or Alt+↑	Opens the parent folder.
↑ or ↓	Selects an item.
Alt+↓, or Enter	Opens an item.
Shift+Alt+↓	Opens an item and closes the current folder.
Shift+Alt+↑	Opens the parent folder and closes the current folder.
Shift+Ctrl+W	Closes all parent folders.
Ctrl+L	Opens a location by specifying a path or URL.
Alt+Home	Opens your home directory.

For more information, click Help+Contents in the file manager.

Archiving Folders

If you have files you have not used in a while but want to keep on your computer, you can compress the files into a tape archive (TAR) format.

In the Nautilus view pane, right-click the folder you want to archive, then click Create Archive.
Accept the default archive filename or provide a new name. Use tar.gz for the most common archive form.
Specify a location for the archive file, then click Create.

To extract an archived file, right-click the file and select Extract Here.

Creating a CD/DVD

If your system has a CD or DVD read/write drive, you can use the Nautilus file manager to burn CDs and DVDs.

Click Computer+More Applications+Audio & Video+GNOME CD/DVD Creator, or insert a blank disk and click Make Data CD/DVD or Make Audio CD/DVD.
Copy the files you want to put on the CD or DVD into the Nautilus CD/DVD Creator window.
Click Write to Disk.
Modify information in the Write to Disk dialog box or accept the defaults, then click Write.
The files are burned to the disk. This could take a few minutes, depending on the amount of data being burned and the speed of your burner.

You can also use the Helix* Banshee™ music player to burn audio and MP3 CDs.

Using Bookmarks

Use the Nautilus Bookmarks feature to mark your favorite folders.

Select the folder or item you want to create a bookmark for.
Click Bookmarks+Add Bookmark. The bookmark is added to the list, with the folder name as the bookmark name. When you bookmark a file, it is the folder that is actually bookmarked.
To select an item from your bookmarks list, click Bookmarks, then click the desired bookmark in the list.

You can also organize your bookmarks list by clicking Bookmarks+Edit Bookmarks and making your selections in the dialog box.

To change the order of your bookmarks, click a bookmark and drag it to the desired location.

File Manager Preferences

You can change the file manager preferences by clicking Edit+Preferences. The configurable preferences are organized on five tabs:

Views

To configure the appearance of the file manager, click Edit+Preferences+Views.

Figure 1.7. File Manager Views Dialog Box

Select from the following options:

Table 1.5. File Manager Views Options

Section	Option	Description
Default View	View new folders using	Determines whether new folders are displayed as icons or as a list.
	Arrange items	Sets the order items are listed in. Items can be listed by name, size, type, modification date, or emblems.
	Sort folder before files	Places this folder at the top of the list, if this check box is selected (the default).
	Show hidden and backup files	Shows hidden files and backup files in your directories. If this check box is not selected (the default), hidden and backup files do not appear.
Icon View Defaults	Default zoom level	Sets the size of items that appear in the file manager.
	Use compact layout	Displays items closer together.
	Text beside icons	Displays icon captions next to the icons, rather than under them.
List View Defaults	Default zoom level	Determines the size of items that appear in the list view.
Tree View Defaults	Show only folders	When selected, displays on folders in the tree in the side pane.

Behavior

To configure the behavior of the file manager, click Edit+Preferences+Behavior.

Figure 1.8. File Manager Behavior Dialog Box

Select from the following options:

Table 1.6. File Manager Behavior Options

Option	Description
Single-click to activate items	Performs the default action for an item when you click the item. If this option is selected and you point to an item, the title of the item is underlined.
Double-click to activate items	Performs the default action for an item when you double-click the item.
Always open in browser windows	Opens the file manager in browser mode whenever you open it.
Run executable text files when they are clicked	Runs an executable file when you click the file. An executable file is a text file than can execute (that is, a shell script).
View executable text files when they are clicked	Displays the contents of an executable file when you click the file.
Ask each time	Displays a dialog when you click an executable file. The dialog asks whether you want to execute the file or display the file.
Ask before emptying the Trash or deleting files	Displays a confirmation message before the Trash is emptied or before files are deleted.
Include a Delete command that bypasses Trash	Adds a Delete menu item to the Edit menu and the pop-up menu that is displayed when you right-click a file, folder, or desktop object. When you select an item and click Delete, the item is immediately deleted from your file system.

Display

To configure the way icon captions and dates appear in the file manager, click Edit+Preferences+Display.

Figure 1.9. File Manager Display Dialog Box

Select from the following options:

Table 1.7. File Manager Display Options

Option	Description
Icon Captions	Sets the order of information to appear beneath icon names. You can set three information types, in the order they appear.
Date	Configures the date format.

List Columns

To configure the columns that appear in the file manager, as well as the order in which they appear, click Edit+Preferences+List Columns.

Figure 1.10. File Manager List Columns Dialog Box

Select the columns that you want to appear. To change the order, click Move Up or Move Down.

Preview

To configure how file previews appear in the file manager and whether or not folders show the number of items they contain, click Edit+Preferences+Preview:

Figure 1.11. File Manager Preview Dialog Box

Select from the following options:

Table 1.8. File Manager Preview Options

Option	Description
Show text in icons	Specifies when to preview the content of text files in the icons that represent the files.
Show thumbnails	Specifies when to show thumbnails of image files in the icons that represent the files.
Only for files smaller than	Specifies the maximum file size for files represented by thumbnails.
Preview sound files	Specifies when to preview sound files.
Count number of items	Specifies when to show the number of files contained in folders. In the Icon view, you might need to increase your zoom level to see the number.