If you had to use one word to describe the direction that GNOME developers are taking their file manager ‘Nautilus’ in, what would it be?
‘Simplistic’? ‘Minimal’? ‘Bodged’?
As the list of features removed from the file manager continues to grow – all in the name of ‘touch optimisation’ – so does user unease at what they may be left with when GNOME designers have put down their scalpels.
Amongst the features you will find missing in the version of Nautilus (now renamed ‘Files’) are ones you may have used on a daily basis, including:
- Compact View removed
- ‘Type Ahead Find’ removed
- ‘New file’ templates removed
- Application Menu removed
- ‘Go’ menu removed
- F3 split screen removed
- ‘tree’ view removed
- Bookmark menu items removed
- Backspace shortcut to return to parent folder removed
Interface elements that have been tweaked or rejigged include:
- Rejigged toolbar
- Monochromatic ‘symbolic’ sidebar icons
- Default icons size set to 32px
- New date-list view
- Folders no longer sorted by default
- Floating status bar
What do you think?
Is Nautilus being steered in the right direction, one with simplicity and a focus on core features as its destination?
Or are GNOME developers driving the trusty file manager off the edge of a cliff with uncessary changes and feature removals?
Share your opinion on our poll below.
*Nautilus has been renamed ‘Files’, but for the sake of clarity I will refer to it as ‘Nautilus’