Multi-sized icon interface on Leopard?
Apple Insider had revealed that Apple has file a patent application title “Graphical user interface for computers having variable size icons”. It is an enhancement to Mac OSX Finder user interface that will allow for different-sized icons within the same window.
This is actually something I’m looking for in a graphical user interface. The concept might not be something new, I think I’ve seen it before on other OS. Looking at the filed pictures it looks somewhat like the old classic Mac OS, System 8 maybe?
Anyway according to Apple Insider, icons of folders could be in different size representing their importance. Once a user has chosen the relative size of each of the icons that are to be sized, Apple’s icon sizing application will calculate the relative size of each icon to be displayed on display device.
It would be interesting if there were a preference where we can set rules on how an icon could be dynamically sized. The more items in a folder the bigger the icon size is? Or the more you use or open a file the bigger the icon size is?
Just like with the current trend of having a ‘tag cloud’ you might be able to create ‘icon clouds’. Is this an important update? Not really, but I do think it is something cool to have. What do you think? Eye candy or essential?
5 Comments
Personally, I don’t see how this is useful. The way I organize things is that I dump current/incoming files and downloads into a temporary folder that gets pretty big, then sort everything out into smaller folders. With this, I can see a situation where the big non-essential folders over-shadow my smaller more important ones, making them hard to find at a glance. If this is in Leopard, I hope Apple makes it customizable.
Megatih, way not just use the Spotlight’s smart folders to sort your files??
The variable sized icons are a feature in Linux (Gnome and KDE both have it, not sure about others). But yeah it’d be great if you could build rules for them and based on the folder content size.
Ian, thanks for the tip. I must admit, I’ve not fully explored the use of smartfolders. I know it’s in the Finder, Mail, iLife apps but I haven’t gotten around to really learn how to use them. I’ll look into it when I have the time.
megaith,
If you’d used Spotlight, then Smart Folder is just the same. Goto the finder menu and select ‘New Smart Folder’, then select your criteria (type, date created etc. etc.) and your search string. If your file is sorted by word documents then type ‘doc’. Select OK and the new smart folder will be created, within it is all the results for documents. If you create a new document and dump it somewhere else, it will also list in your smart folder.
This from a person who’s still running Panther
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