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List:       kde-usability
Subject:    Re: "Folder" or "Directory"?
From:       Stian =?iso-8859-1?Q?S=F8iland?= <stian () soiland ! no>
Date:       2003-10-20 1:26:37
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On 2003-10-18 11:37:33, Casey Allen Shobe wrote:

> Directories are called directories everywhere else in UNIX/Linux, and since 
> KDE runs AFAIK only on UNIX/Linux, it should follow this standard.

I totally disagree. Any "good oldtime UNIX user" who walks around
thinking about directories should have no problem understanding what a
"Folder" is. Many people new to computing, or simply new to UNIX would
easier understand "Folder" - not only because this is the term used in
other situations and operating systems, but because it gives the user a
feeling of "This is a place to put stuff".

A "directory" gives the impression of "this is a place I can register
something to look it up later" - like an address book.  If you
registered a friend in a book and then threw away the book, you don't
expect to lose your friend, do you?  Well, that's the case with
"directories".

The term folder is a far more appropriate term for some other reason as
well, and that is the beautiful IO-slave concept of KDE. I can use
ftp://blabla to see FTP folders, webdav://zope.domain.com to visit
folders on my Zope server (and no, they are not directories on the
backend), etc. etc. 

Folders should be consistent not caring where they are placed, there is
no reason to 'teach' users about the term 'directory' when 'folder'
works perfect.

I suggest saying 'All folders are called folders, there are no
directories' (hehe, there is no spoon) or something in the
(nonexistent?) UI guidelines.

-- 
Stian Søiland               Work toward win-win situation. Win-lose
Trondheim, Norway           is where you win and the other lose.
http://www.soiland.no/      Lose-lose and lose-win are left as an
                            exercise to the reader.  [Limoncelli/Hogan]
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