List View

May need some changes in list view for 2.4

Web-Based File System Interface

This is the web interface to AFS at the Universtiy of Michigan.

Selecting a folder enables some actions:

Selecting a file enables other actions:

Windows XP Explorer

A combo box from Windows Explorer showing a hierarchy on left and flat view of one folder on right

MacOSX File Browser

A hierarchical view from MacOSX file browser

A paneled view from MacOSX file browser

Blackboard

It seems that Blackboard looks more like the way Sakai used to be, with 'add' buttons at the top in the actions bar, rather than by the folders, and no tree view. I notice that they've called WebDav 'Web Folder' - interesting in view of the debates that there have been lately about renaming it to make it intentionally more obscure, rather than less.

Flicker

Slightly different - but a view from Flickr showing all files (here, images) along the bottom of the screen, with the 'folders' (here, sets) at the top

Google Groups

screenshots from Google Groups, which are looking at this in a radically pared-down approach

Windows Vista File Browser

Checkboxes have been introduced in the Windows Vista version of the Explorer; they are on by default for Tablet PCs, however, you can turn them on by enabling the Checkbox option in any version of Vista. One of the main advantages being solving the inability on a Tablet PC to easily use shift-click or ctrl-click (especially on slate models with no keyboard) for selecting muliple items on which to perform actions. There is the generic check all/uncheck all box in the column header, and then as you mouse over an item a checkbox appears in the blank area in front of it, but dissappears again unless you check it. Don't think we need to get that fancy in Sakai, the checkboxes could always be there, however, the overall approach would work well in a web environment too. (Note that this is the default Detail view, there are also icon views, list views, etc.; and, you can display the typical "File Edit ..." menu or not, show the navigation pane on the left or not, show the detail pane at the bottom or not, etc.) After checking items you can then select from the menu at the top (or right-click for the context menu) what action you want to take, copy, delete, duplicate, move, properties, etc. on the checked items.