The Ultimate File Management UI

Ok, there has been quite a bit of hype recently around search folders and labels. I've decided that someone needs to implement the ultimate version of these ideas, combining search folders, labels and standard folder tree structures.

Overview

Basically it works like this. You have two types of folders, search folders and label folders. These folders can be put into a hierarchical tree structure, with one limitation, a label folder can not be placed under a search folder.

Term Definition

1) Search Folder - This folder is created with a search query. The contents of the folder are dynamic. The folder shows everything within its context (the context is defined below) that meets the criteria stated in the query.

2) Label - A label is a piece of metadata that the user has applied to something to describe what it is (ie. a report about the influence of media on elections may be labeled, "media", "elections"). These are basically just keywords.

2) Label Folder - The label folder displays everything within its context that has a certain label applied to it.

The Tree Structure

The tree structure is exactly like the current folder structure we see on most file systems. A file is placed in a folder and a folder can have folders in it, creating a hierarchical structure.

With Label Folders and Search Folders the tree defines the context of the folder. Every child folder is in the context of the parent only, so a Label Folder, "Hotels", that is placed under the label "France" would only show files that have the label "France/Hotels". It is important to note that the files in the Label Folder "Hotels" are not simply all files that have the label "France" and the label "Hotels", but are the files that have the heirarchical label "France/Hotels". This structure maintains important contextual information. This way a file that talks about a Paris Hotel and a French Restaurant will not show up in the Label Folder "Hotels" under the Label Folder "France".

If a Search Folder were placed under a Search Folder or a Label Folder then the query that was used to create the Search Folder would be run against the contents of the parent folder and would return no results that were not also in the parent folder. In fact this is true of all parent-child folders. The parent always contains all the items that are contained in the children. The files in the child folders are a subset of the files contained in the parent folder.

A Label Folder, however, can not be placed under a Search Folder. Doing so would violate the guidelines for adding files to the folders described below.

Adding Files

Adding a file to a label folder can be done in two ways. Either the user adds a label to the file, causing it to show up automatically in the Label Folder, or the user drops the file into the folder, automatically adding the label to the file and subsequently causing it to automatically show up in the label folder.

Files can not be added to Search Folders. In order for a file to show up in a specific Search Folder the file must meet the criteria dictated by the query that makes up the Search Folder. As the query may filter files based on criteria such as the date when the file was created, there is no way to adjust a file's properties to ensure that it always shows up in a specific Search Folder.

This explains why a Label Folder can not be added to a Search Folder. Since a Search Folder can not have a file added to it and a child Label Folder can only contain files contained in the parent Search Folder, there would be no way to add a file to the child Label Folder without violating the rules of the parent Search Folder.

Benefits

This system allows for powerful Search Folders and Label Folders to be used in a heirarchical tree structure.

The Search Folders allow for users to organize files based on the information that is inherent to a file, such as the file name, create date, size or type.

The Label Folders allow users to sort files based on information that is not inherent to the file and may not be discernable by a computer. A file that discusses the Boston Red Sox may not contain the phrase "Boston Red Sox", eliminating the possibility of it showing up in a Search Folder. In this situation, though, the user is able to tell the computer what a file is about, ensuring that the proper organizational information is available.

The tree structure allows a higher degree of organization then is available in most label-based file management systems today. The tree structure has served the file management community well over the years and should not be abandoned.