Implement a sort of type-ahead filtering for the Desktop

[Giova84]

In the Tracker's settings I have selected "Enable type-ahead filtering"; this option works as expected in any open folder. However, regardless of the fact that this option is checked or not, on the Desktop, typing a letter to quickly find the corresponding icon, this doesn't work as happen on the Desktop of other operating systems.

Let's see the example showed in the attached video: for test, I created some files which start with the "T" letter; if I click the "T" letter on my keyboard, firstly will be selected the icon of the Trash, then the icon which starts with the "L" letter; then, no other action will occur: none of other files which starts with "T" will be selected. Then, to start again this "search", I have to select any icon on the Desktop: otherwise, this "search" will not work again.

Well, I know that the type-ahead filtering feature of the Tracker works with a different concept (it will only shows the corresponding results in the window), but would be nice, at least to fix/implement something on functional also on the Desktop.

hrev50141.

[axeld]

VLC only shows a black video. Anyway, what do you mean by "then the icon which starts with the "L" letter""? What do you do to initiate the "then"?

The desktop always behaves as all other windows do when type-ahead filtering is disabled (or the window is in icon mode IIRC). This is definitely functional. What else do you expect? Should the icons hide in icon mode, too?

[Giova84]

Hi Axel, I recorded this clip on Haiku and I able to play and see this video on Haiku using MediaPlayer and on Windows 7 using VLC 2.2.1

With "the icon which starts with the "L" letter" I mean the text of the icons. If i do the same on the Desktop of Windows (Icon mode here and also as on Haiku), if I press the "T" letter on the keyboard, then will be highlighted an icon which its text start with the "T" letter, then I press again the "T" letter on the keyboard and will be highlighted another icon which its text start with "T": this will be cyclic (on the Desktop of Windows I have seven icons where the text start with "T"). If I do the same on the Desktop of Haiku (on the Desktop of Haiku I have four icons where the text start with "T") will be highlighted just the "Trash" and then an icon where the text start with the "L" letter, then this selection doesn't work anymore.

I talked about "Implement a sort of type-ahead filtering" since the described behaviour doesn't properly work at all.

[axeld]

Alright, then you are just using it wrong :-)

You assume that it would work just like it does on Windows. I had a hard time to understand how it works in Windows when I first learned about it. In Haiku, every character you enter counts. If you enter 'T' twice, only files that contain 'tt' will be selected. You can reset that by pressing ESCAPE.

However, whatever you enter will only take you to the first matching entry. You can then use the TAB key to walk the entries in alphabetical order (or press SHIFT+TAB to walk it backwards). Furthermore, in icon mode, you can also use the cursor keys to switch to the next icons nearby.

Personally, I would prefer if using TAB/SHIFT+TAB would only walk within files that match to the characters you entered, but even as it is now, it's already more powerful than what Windows delivers. Just different to use.

[Giova84]

Ok, thank you Axel!