dtfile(user cmd)

NAME
dtfile — the CDE File Manager

SYNOPSIS

dtfile [options...]

DESCRIPTION

    Note:

    Although dtfile may be invoked from the command line, developers who wish to interface to File Manager function should use CDE Actions (see "CDE Actions" in "RELATED INFORMATION").

The CDE File Manager is the Desktop's primary interface to the file system. It provides a GUI for file manipulation and application execution.

The main File Manager interface consists of a top-level window which shows the contents of a single folder or a set of nested folders (folder tree). A single File Manager process may provide many top-level windows each of which may show the contents of a different folder.

The File Manager has many manipulation features. It will allow a user to:

- Traverse folders via a double-click, menu options, or a click-and-type mechanism.

- Change folder display modes (i.e. large icons, small icons, alphabetical order, date order, single folder, folder tree, etc.) and filtering options.

- Create, move, copy, link, and delete objects via menu options and/or drag-and-drop.

- Rename objects via menu options or a click-and-type mechanism.

- Modify object file system attributes via menu options.

- Invoke actions (applications such as Edit or Print) on objects via a double-click, menu options, or drag-and-drop.

- Locate objects by name or by contents.

- Place frequently used objects on a desktop/workspace.

The File Manager also supports additional features for two special types of top level windows: application views and the trash container.

Application views are designed to organize application objects such as actions.

Application view windows have the same general appearance and function as folder windows with the following exceptions:

- The user is not allowed to traverse above the main application view.

- When a user drags an object from an application view to another application view or to a folder, the object is copied to the new location (as opposed to being moved as is the case in a folder.)

The trash container is designed to be a holding area for objects that users wish to delete. Like application views, the trash container window has the same general appearance as a folder window; however, trash container function differs as follows: Users may move, restore, or delete a trash object and may change the display mode for the trash container. Users MAY NOT:

- Traverse out of the trash container.

- Copy, rename, or execute any other manipulation on a trash object.

  Key Supported Tasks

  Desktop

A Desktop is a place where users can store commonly used objects for easy access. Within the CDE, each workspace is considered a Desktop. A user may place any object on the background of a workspace and the object will remain there. The user can also select actions for that object via a popup menu which is activated by selecting mouse button 3.

  Folder Window

A folder window is a top-level window which shows the contents of a single folder or a set of nested folders (folder tree). Folder windows may be launched from the Front Panel, actions, or a command line interface. The objects in a folder are displayed in a user-selected icon/text combination. The icon visual shows the icon type. Users can use menu options to reread folder views, open new folder views, and to select/unselect all objects in a folder. In tree mode, buttons next to icons representing subfolders allow users to expand or collapse folder branches and to control whether all objects in a folder or only the folder structure is shown in the window.

  Application View Window

A application view window is a top-level window which shows the contents of a single application folder. An application folder is a restricted folder which is designed to organize application objects such as actions. Application views are launched from the Front Panel or a predefined action.

  Trash Container Window

When an object is no longer needed, a user can move the object to the trash container. The trash container is a restricted folder which is used to store files temporarily until the user asks to permanently remove them. A user can view the contents of the trash container in a top level window which is launched from a menu option in a folder or application view, the Front Panel, or a predefined action. Users can also restore objects from the trash container provided that actions have not been taken to permanently remove them.

  Object Movement and Modification

Menu options are provided which allow users to create objects, rename objects, copy objects, modify object properties, and move objects to a desktop or to the trash container. (NOTE: In addition to the menu options, users can rename objects with the following steps: 1. Click mouse button 1 on the text portion of an object icon, 2. An edit box will appear; type the new file name, 3. Select Enter.)

  File System Awareness

The File Manager is file system aware. It can be enabled to launch dialogs that allow editing of file system specific parameters (See FILES - dtfile.config).

  Object Search

A menu option/dialog box combination is provided to allow users to search for objects by name or by content. During a name search, the File Manager looks for an object whose name matches specified search criteria. During a content search, the File Manager looks for an object which contains specified character strings. Content searches are case insensitive. When an object is located, the File Manager can either open a window to display the folder where the object is located or place the object on the desktop.

  Folder Traversal

Simple folder traversal can be accomplished by double-clicking on a folder icon. This action displays the contents of the selected folder. If the user moves the mouse before releasing the mouse button on the second click of a double click ("double-click-drag" action), a new window will pop up to show the contents of the selected folder. The new window will be placed at the position where the user released the mouse button.

In addition, the File Manager provides the following folder traversal mechanisms:

    This dialog lists folders that are frequently used. A user may traverse to a new folder by double-clicking on a folder in this list.

Click-and-Type Mechanism
    When a user clicks on the "Text Path", it is remapped to a text edit widget. Again the user may traverse to a new folder by typing a new folder title and then selecting Enter.

Iconic Path Selection
    If a user double-clicks on a folder icon in the iconic path, the File Manager will update the current window to show the contents of the selected folder.

Find Dialog
    This dialog searches the file system for a folder or folders whose name(s) match user-supplied criteria. The user may open new windows for folders located by the Find dialog.

Home and Up Menu Options
    These options allow the user to traverse to $HOME and parent folders respectively.

Tree Display Mode
    In this mode, the folder hierarchy is displayed as a tree that can be traversed by selecting the buttons located next to the folder icons (See Tree Mode below)

Tree Mode
    In tree mode, the current folder and its subfolders are shown initially. Traversing into subfolders can be accomplished by single-clicking on the button next to the folder icon. Clicking the left mouse button over the folder button cycles through three states: partially expanded, fully expanded, and collapsed. Clicking the middle mouse button cycles through these three states in reverse order. When the user first clicks on the folder button, the contents of the subfolder are read and added to the tree (partially expanded state). If the user clicks on the button a second time, the non-folder contents of the folder are added to the tree (fully expanded state). If the user clicks on the button a third time, the folder contents are removed from the tree (collapsed state). If a folder does not have subfolders, the partially expanded state is skipped. If a folder does not contain non-folder objects, the fully expanded state is skipped. If a folder is empty, the folder button is desensitized.

  Setting Display Preferences

The File Manager provides many options for displaying objects. For example, objects can be displayed in iconic or non-iconic formats. The user may also choose to position files in either a grid or random pattern. (NOTE: The File Manager provides a Clean Up menu option which can be used to align randomly placed objects to a grid pattern.) If the user has write permission in a folder and the user chooses to randomly place files, the positioning information is saved when the user leaves the folder. Therefore, each time the user reenters the folder the files will be positioned as they were when the user left the folder.

  Object Filtering

Folders can contain many different types of objects. The File Manager's filtering mechanism allows the user to selectively display objects depending on their type. The File Manager also provides a Show Hidden Files menu toggle option which allows the user to turn the filtering mechanism on and off.

  Object Type/Action Association

When an object is selected, the File Manager builds an Actions menu for that object based on the type of the object. For example, data files are provided with a menu containing the following actions: Open, Print. Folders are provided with a menu containing: OpenNewView, OpenInPlace. Actions can be run on an object by selecting an object and then selecting an action from the Actions menu. Also, double-clicking on an object will activate the default action for the object.

  Quick Help

The File Manager provides quick help via F1 throughout the dtfile application. This includes quick help on object icons. To access quick help, position the cursor/pointer over the item for which you wish to get help, then press F1.

  Popup Menus

The File Manager provides popup menus for objects within a File Manager view or on the Desktop. To access the popup menu for a particular object, position the cursor over the object and press and hold mouse button 3. A popup menu will appear. The menu will contain a list of the actions which can be performed on that particular object. If multiple objects are selected, the popup menu will show all of those actions which can be done on all of the selected objects at once.

  Direct Manipulation

Objects can be dragged between different File Manager views, to Desktops, and to cooperating clients. Direct manipulation may be used to copy, move, or link objects as well as to supply objects as input to applications. See the REGISTERING OBJECTS AS DROP SITES section. The File Manager also supports drops of buffers on its views and objects such as CDE Mailer attachments.

  Terminal Access

A menu option is provided which gives users access to terminal windows.

  Exit Services

Menu options are provided which allow users to close File Manager views and which allow users to save setting information before exiting a File Manager session.

  Object Name Completion

The File Manager supports object name completion in the following text widgets: the "Text path", the "Destination Folder" field of the "Go To" dialog, the "Search Folder" field of the "Find" dialog. Press control+spacebar and the name will complete to the extent that it can.

  Multibyte Character Set Support

The File Manager is fully internationalized. It supports both single-byte and multi-byte locales.

  Error Condition Notification

The File Manager uses dialog boxes to report various error conditions.

OPTIONS

The following options are available from the command line:

  -noview

Dtfile runs in "server mode". In other words, a window is not displayed until a cooperating client makes a request to display a folder.

  -session session_file

Dtfile runs with the session file specified in the session_file parameter. Session files are generated as a dtfile session shuts down.

  -dir folder

OR

  -folder folder

Dtfile displays a window for each folder specified in the folder parameter (Note: No spaces are allowed in folder). If this option is not used, the user's current folder (the folder from which dtfile was started) is displayed.

  -title title_name

This option allows the user to specify a title (title_name) for the File Manager windows. All windows and dialogs generated by this session will use this title. If this option is not used, the name of the folder shown in a window will be used as the window title.

  -help_volume help_volume_name

This option allows the user to specify a help volume (help_volume_name) to use with the File Manager windows. This option is useful if the user is using the File Manager to display a specific folder and wants to have specific help for that folder. Note: All File Manager views that are created from this folder will also use this help volume.

  -restricted

Dtfile will not display folders above the restricted folder. If the -dir option is used, the folder specified by that option is the restricted folder. If the -dir option is not used, the user's current folder is the restricted folder.

  -grid on/off

Dtfile displays files in a pattern specified by the on/off parameter. As the name implies, on/off will either have a value of on or a value of off.

on  Files are always displayed in a grid pattern. The File Manager automatically rearranges the files if a file is moved. This is the default pattern.

off Files are always displayed where they are placed by the user. The File Manager does not rearrange the files.

  -tree on/off

This option controls whether dtfile displays files in single folder mode (off) or in folder tree mode (on).

  -tree_files never/always/choose

This option controls whether or not files may be displayed in the folder tree mode.

never
    Files are never displayed. The user may toggle between two states: partially expanded and collapsed.

always
    Files are always displayed. The user may toggle between two states: fully expanded and collapsed.

choose
    Files may or may not be displayed. The user may toggle between three states: partially expanded, fully expanded, or collapsed.

  -order order_type

Dtfile displays files in the order specified by the order_type parameter. Order_type must have one of the following values:

alphabetical
    Files are displayed in alphabetical order. This is the default order.

file_type
    Files are displayed in groups based on their filetypes.

date
    Files are displayed in an order based on the date when they were last modified.

size
    Files are displayed in an order based on their size.

  -view view_type

Dtfile displays files in the format specified by the view_type parameter. View_type must have one of the following values:

no_icon
    Files are displayed by name.

large_icon
    Files are displayed by name and large icon. The icon shows the type of the file. This is the default format.

small_icon
    Files are displayed by name and small icon. The icon shows the type of the file.

attributes
    Files are displayed by attributes. A small icon is used to represent the file type. (This format is similar to the listing obtained by issuing ls -l from an aixterm command line.)

  -direction direction

Dtfile displays files in the direction specified by the direction parameter. Direction must have one of the following values:

ascending
    Files are displayed in an ascending direction. This is the default direction.

descending
    Files are displayed in a descending direction.

    Both the -noview and the -session options are normally used by the session manger to start dtfile. The -title, -help_volume, and -restricted options can also be set via resources (See the RESOURCES section.) The -grid, -tree, -treefiles, -order, -view, and -direction options can also be set by 1) selecting the Set Preferences option from the View pulldown menu or by 2) resources (See the RESOURCES section.)

  -small_icon_width size

The default small icon width is 24 pixels. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this option to specify small icon width. Size must be in pixel.

  -small_icon_height size

The default small icon height is 24 pixels. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this option to specify small icon height. Size must be in pixel.

  -large_icon_width size

The default large icon width is 38 pixels. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this option to specify large icon width. Size must be in pixel.

  -large_icon_height size

The default large icon height is 38 pixels. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this option to specify large icon height. Size must be in pixel.

EXAMPLES

  dtfile -view no_icon -order date -direction

The File Manager will display files in text format, ordered by date, most current to oldest date.

  dtfile -dir /u/guest -restricted

The File Manager will begin execution by displaying a window showing the /u/guest folder. The user will not be allowed to navigate above this folder.

  dtfile -session session.jan.12

The File Manager will run with the session file called session.jan.12.

RESOURCES
NameClassTypeDefault
dirWidthDirWidthXmRDimension555
dirHeightDirHeightXmRDimension305
appWidthAppWidthXmRDimension365
appHeightAppHeightXmRDimension365
rereadTimeRereadTimeXmRInt10 (s)
checkBrokenLinkCheckBrokenLinkXmRInt180 (s)
maxDirectoryProcessesMaxDirectoryProcessesXmRInt10
maxRereadProcessesMaxRereadProcessesXmRInt5
maxRereadProcsPerTickMaxRereadProcsPerTickXmRInt1
moveThresholdMoveThresholdXmRInt4 (pix)
titleTitleXmRStringNULL
rootTitleRootTitleXmRString"ROOT"
help_volumeHelp_volumeXmRStringNULL
fileManagerIconFileManagerIconXmRStringhome.i.bm
restrictModeRestrictModeXmRBooleanfalse
showFilesystemShowFilesystemXmRBooleantrue
gridGridstringon
treeViewTreeViewstringoff
treeFilesTreeFilesstringnever
orderOrderstringalpha
viewViewstringlarge_icon
directionDirectionstringascend
desktopIconDesktopIconstringlarge
objectPlacementObjectPlacementstringtop rt
openFolderOpenFolderstringcurrent
smallIconWidthSmallIconWidthXmRInt16
smallIconHeightSmallIconHeightXmRInt16
largeIconWidthLargeIconWidthXmRInt32
largeIconHeightLargeIconHeightXmRInt32

  Dtfile *dirWidth

Specifies the width of a File Manager folder window.

  Dtfile *dirHeight

Specifies the height of a File Manager folder window.

  Dtfile *appWidth

Specifies the width of a File Manager application view window

  Dtfile *appHeight

Specifies the height of a File Manager application view window.

  Dtfile *rereadTime

Determines how often the File Manager rereads the open folders and monitors the Desktop objects. This resource must be specified in seconds. If it is set to 0, the reread will not occur and the user must manually reread the folders. This will conserve processor cycles but may cause views to become stale as well.

  Dtfile *checkBrokenLink

Determines how often the File Manager checks open folders for broken links. This resource must be specified in seconds. If it is set to 0, the check for broken links will not occur.

  Dtfile *maxDirectoryProcesses

Specifies the maximum number of background processes which may be devoted to folder activities (ie. reading the folder, updating the folder, writing positional information for the folder, checking for broken links or checking for other folder updates).

  Dtfile *maxRereadProcesses

Specifies the maximum number of background processes which may be devoted to folder reread activities (ie. checking for broken links or checking for other folder updates).

  Dtfile *maxRereadProcsPerTick

Specifies the number of reread processes that may be started per reread timer tick. In other words, the currently displayed folders will be checked for changes in a round- robin fashion, x folders per timer tick where x is equal to maxRereadProcsPerTick.

  Dtfile *moveThreshold

Specifies the number of pixels that the cursor must move while a button is held down before the drag controller recognizes the button down action as a drag.

  Dtfile *title

Specifies the title for all File Manager windows. If this resource is set to NULL, then the title of each File Manger window will be the name of the folder displayed in the window.

  Dtfile *rootTitle

Specifies the title of the root folder. This title will appear in the title bar of any File Manager window which is showing the root folder. It will also be the name shown with the icon representing the root folder on the Desktop.

  Dtfile *help_volume

Specifies the help volume.

  Dtfile *fileManagerIcon

Specifies the icon to display when a File Manager window is minimized.

  Dtfile *restrictMode

Determines whether or not the user is operating in restricted mode. If this resource is set to true, the user is operating in restricted mode. The user is restricted to the user's $HOME folder and below. All folder change requests are interpreted relative to the user's $HOME folder. All folders above the user's $HOME folder are hidden from the user. If this resource is set to false, the user's folder requests are not limited in any way.

  Dtfile *showFilesystem

Determines whether or not the path name for the current folder is visible. If this resource is set to TRUE, the path name is visible. If it is set to FALSE, the path name is not visible. This resource can be used to hide the file system from the user.

  Dtfile *grid

Determines the pattern used to display files. This resource must have one of two values:

on  Files are always displayed in a grid pattern. The File Manager automatically rearranges the files if a file is moved. This is the default pattern.

off Files are always displayed where they are placed by the user. The File Manager does not rearrange the files.

  Dtfile treeView

Determines whether files are displayed in single folder mode (on) or folder tree mode (off).

  Dtfile *treeFiles

This
    folder tree mode.

never
    Files are never displayed. The user may toggle between two states: partially expanded and collapsed.

always
    Files are always displayed. The user may toggle between two states: fully expanded and collapsed.

choose
    Files may or may not be displayed. The user may toggle between three states: partially expanded, fully expanded, or collapsed.

  Dtfile *order

Determines the order used to display files. This resource must have one of four values:

alphabetical
    Files are displayed in alphabetical order. This is the default order.

file_type
    Files are displayed in groups based on their filetypes.

date
    Files are displayed in an order based on the date when they were last modified.

size
    Files are displayed in an order based on their size.

  Dtfile *view

Determines the format used to display files. This resource must have one of four values:

no_icon
    Files are displayed by name.

large_icon
    Files are displayed by name and large icon. The icon shows the type of the file. This is the default format.

small_icon
    Files are displayed by name and small icon. The icon shows the type of the file.

attributes
    Files are displayed by attributes. A small icon is used to represent the file type. (This format is similar to the listing obtained by issuing ls -l from an aixterm command line.)

  Dtfile *direction

Determines the direction used to display files. This resource must have one of two values:

ascending
    Files are displayed in an ascending direction. This is the default direction.

descending
    Files are displayed in a descending direction.

  Dtfile *desktopIcon

Determines the type of icon used to represent files/folders on the Desktop. This resource must have one of two values:

large
    Large icons are used to represent files/folders on the Desktop.

small
    Small icons are used top represent files/folders on the Desktop.

  Dtfile *objectPlacement

Specifies the placement scheme used to place objects on the Desktop. This resource has the following syntax: primary_layout secondary_layout. The primary_layout determines whether an object placed on the Desktop is put into a row or a column. The secondary_layout determines where to place new rows or columns. The layouts must have one of four values:

top Objects are placed top to bottom. (vertical value)

bottom
    Objects are placed bottom to top. (vertical value)

left
    Objects are placed left to right. (horizontal value)

right
    Objects are placed right to left. (horizontal value) The user should use one value from each category--vertical and horizontal. For example if the primary_layout is top, then the secondary_layout should be either left or right. In this case, the secondary_layout should NOT be top or bottom. Likewise, if the primary_layout is left, then the secondary_layout should be either top or bottom. In this case, the secondary_layout should NOT be left or right.

  Dtfile *openFolder

Determines how a folder is opened when a user double clicks on a folder icon. This resource must have one of two values:

current
    Open the folder in the current window. (This is the same as using the OpenInPlace action.)

new Open the folder in a new window or, if a window showing this folder currently exists, move the existing window to this workspace and place it in the forefront. (Note: Only one view of a folder can be opened at once under these conditions. If the user defines an 'open folder' file type, the folder icon will change state to indicate when a given folder is currently open somewhere in the user's environment. In order to define an 'open folder' file type, the user should 1) define a file type with the same name as the normal folder file type except that the name is preceded with OPEN_, 2) create an 'open folder' icon, and 3) use the name of the 'open folder' icon as the icon name in the 'open folder' file type definition.

  Dtfile *smallIconWidth

The default small icon size is 16 pixel. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this resource to specify small icon width.

  Dtfile *smallIconHeight

The default small icon height is 16 pixel. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this resource to specify small icon height.

  Dtfile *largeIconWidth

The default large icon width is 32 pixel. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this resource to specify large icon width.

  Dtfile *largeIconHeight

The default large icon height is 16 pixel. Any customized icons that have larger size will be clipped. To avoid clipping, use this resource to specify large icon height.

ASYNCHRONOUS EVENTS

  Tool Talk Messages

The following Tool Talk Desktop and Media requests are supported by the File Manager:

Edit (Document and Media Exchange Message Set)
    The specified file is opened for editing in a separate window.

Display (Document and Media Exchange Message Set)
    The specified file is opened for viewing only in a separate window.

Quit (Desktop Message Set)
    This request will terminate the File Manager and its children.

RELATED INFORMATION

  CDE Actions

The following Desktop actions can be used to access File Manager folder and application view windows as well as the File Manager trash container window. These actions are defined in /usr/dt/appconfig/types/$LANG/dtfile.dt.

Dtfile
    Opens a folder window for a specified folder.

Dtappmgr
    Opens an application view window.

Dttrash
    Opens a window to display the contents of the Trash Container.

OpenNewView
    Opens a new window to show the contents of the selected folder.

OpenInPlace
    Displays the contents of the selected folder in the current window.

FILESYSTEM_MOVE
    Moves a set of dragged objects to the selected drop site.

FILESYSTEM_COPY
    Copies a set of dragged objects to the selected drop site.

FILESYSTEM_LINK
    Creates symbolic links to a set of dragged objects from the selected drop site.

  Registering Objects As Drop Sites

Every CDE data type has three associated drop attributes: MOVE_TO_ACTION, COPY_TO_ACTION, and LINK_TO_ACTION. The File Manager registers every object whose data type has a value for at least one of these attributes as a drop site.

When an object is dragged to a drop site, the File Manager is triggered by the drag-and-drop API. The drag-and-drop API provides the File Manager with a gesture code (Move, Copy, or Link) which is dictated by a combination of the modifier keys used and the manner in which the drop site was registered. Based on the gesture code and the data type of the drop site, the File Manager retrieves a drop attribute (ie. MOVE_TO_ACTION) from the Datatypes database. The File Manager then calls the CDE API, DtActionInvoke according to the following rules:

1. If objects A and B are dropped on object C, then the parameters to DtActionInvoke are as follows:

DtActionInvoke (drop action name, C, A, B)
    2. There is one exception, if object C is an action, then the parameters will not include object C. ie

DtActionInvoke (drop action name, A, B)

FILES

File Manager uses the following files.

  dtfile

Executable file. This file is located in /usr/dt/bin.

  dtfile_copy

Utility to support folder copy. This executable file is located in /usr/dt/bin.

  dtfile_error

This script can be used by applications to display an error dialog when it would be difficult or impossible to do in the context of the executing program. For example, it can be used when exec fails in a child process or if an error is detected before an applications main window can be realized. This executable file is located in /usr/dt/bin.

  Dtfile

App-defaults file. This file is located in /usr/dt/app-defaults/$LANG. See the RESOURCES section for a list of those resources which can be set using the app-defaults file.

  dtfile.config

Configuration file. This file is located in /usr/dt/config/$LANG. It may be used to add a file system specific button to the File Properties dialog. This button launches an additional dialog allowing the user to modify file system specific parameters. For example, the user can add a stanza defining a dialog for setting the Access Control List for a file from the Andrew File System. If the user also adds a stanza defining a dialog for setting the Access Control List for the Distributed File System, then the File Manager will determine which dialog is associated with the selected file and will display that dialog. See the text in the dtfile.config file for instructions on how to create stanzas.

  dtfile.dt

CDE type/action definition file. This file is located in /usr/dt/appconfig/types/$LANG.

  Dtinf.*, Dtlink.*, DtdirR.*, Fphome*, Fpapps*, Fptrsh*

Icon files. These files are located in /usr/dt/appconfig/icons/$LANG.

  dtfile.cat

Message catalog. This file is located in /usr/dt/lib/nls/msg/$LANG.

  Filemgr.sdl, FM*.tif, FM*.pm

Help files. These files are located in /usr/dt/appconfig/help/$LANG/Filemgr and /usr/dt/appconfig/help/$LANG/Filemgr/graphics.

  dtfile.1

Man page.

SEE ALSO

- Data Interchange Mechanisms (drag-and-drop library)

- Window Manager

- Object Services (action/filetype database)

- ICCCM Messaging

- ToolTalk