GNOME Bugzilla – Bug 115805
Handling of desktop-files with Type=Link
Last modified: 2015-06-23 11:41:54 UTC
This Bug is in some ways related to Bug 74552, but touches a more general Problem. In short the idea for this enhancment request is to handle (at least UI-wise) desktop-files of type `Link' more like normal links in Nautilus. Specifically I can see the following (as I think unnecessary) differences between the current handling of links and desktop-files of type Link: o desktop-file links use a special desktop-file icon (i.e. the not really informative foot icon with the default icon theme) instead of an icon describing the file that is beeing linked to[1] o it's not possible to select the application to use for opening the *linked* file in the same way it is possible to do so for normal links (i.e. the item in the "Open With" sub-menu are meant for the desktop-file itself) o the `Properties' dialog describes the type of the link as `Application Launcher' (as opposed to `Link to FILETYPE' for normal links) and also there's no special `Image' tab for links to images, etc. Anyway, thanks for all your hard work on Nautilus! Regards, Lars [1] links using desktop files could either use the link-emblem used by normal links or maybe even a special emblem depending on the type of protocoll the link uses (e.g. arrow pointing to small globe for http/ftp links, etc.)
is that still an issue with the current versions of nautilus?
> is that still an issue with the current versions of nautilus? Yes, mostly. The onliest issues that has been tackled is > o desktop-file links use a special desktop-file icon (i.e. the not really > informative foot icon with the default icon theme) instead of an icon > describing the file that is beeing linked to[1] We now use a more descriptive link icon. I'm not sure whether it is a good idea to make desktop file links act like symlinks, but we have no cross-scheme symlink replacement, so it might be a good idea.
Changing component as part of ongoing bug reorganisation work.
in nautilus 3.0, the properties dialog now only shows the target file's file type and size, with no indication that it's different from the .desktop file (not even a "link to", and it doesn't show the .desktop file's file name which can be different based on locales). also, file properties like permissions in the .desktop file's dialog only reflect the permissions of the target file, while the name and icon shown are those of the link itself. the "open with" part is still open. what about having a separate "Properties" and "Properties of the referenced file" entry in the context menu, with the former showing the properties of the link itself (including icon and label), and the latter opening the target's properties without any connection to the original file. same could go for "open" -- default action and "open target", "open target with", and "edit link" / "edit link with" for text editors?
Can you give some examples of where you are using desktop files of this type?
i'm using such files primarily on the desktop or in the gnome panel (which doesn't use nautilus' properties dialog, though), pointing to files and directories spread over the user's data area. not using symlinks there because desktop files give the possibility to set icons, to choose localized names (eg "Daten" for ~/data), and because symlinks to directories would open as ~/Desktop/Daten/ instead of ~/data/, creating confusion on where the files actually reside. also, such links can be used in a similar way to nautilus' bookmarks (eg having with links to various sftp:// addresses).
(In reply to comment #6) > [...]not using symlinks there because > desktop files give the possibility to set icons, to choose localized names (eg > "Daten" for ~/data), [...] I can rename a symlink, and it will still point to the same target, if that is what you mean. > [...] and because symlinks to directories would open as > ~/Desktop/Daten/ instead of ~/data/, creating confusion on where the files > actually reside. [...] This is not what happens on nautilus 3.6 for me. Symlinks open as ~/data/. I must type ~/Desktop/Daten/ into the location entry if that's really the path what I want to see. > also, such links can be used in a similar way to nautilus' bookmarks (eg having > with links to various sftp:// addresses). What is the scenario for using such links for this purpose rather than using bookmarks?
Closing this bug report as no further information has been provided. Please feel free to reopen this bug report if you can provide the information that was asked for in a previous comment. Thanks!