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PC users tell me that one thing the Mac has is great shareware. Default Folder from
St. Clair Software ranks with the best of the best. Default Folder is a single control
panel that once installed will enhance navigation through the Mac OS's open file
dialog box.
Description
Default Folder works with the regular open dialog box, however adds three additional
menu options to help navigate through your file system. Default Folder is compatible
on virtually all known Macintosh computers with System 7.0 and up -- including Apple's
latest and greatest Mac OS 8.1.
Function
To explain how Default Folder works, I've taken a number of screen shots to display
its features. As an example of its functionality, say you want to open a file from
within Photoshop. Say for example you keep all graphic files inside one directory,
but that directory is embedded within several other folders. In order to reach that
directory, you would need to navigate through a maze of folders. With Default Folder,
presets can be used to automatically bring up the directory you need to be in.
In the example below, all news files for January and February on Insanely Great Mac
are inside folders named 1 and 2. Those folders are embedded deep in my file structure.
From the hard drive, I would normally have to navigate through over six sets of folders
to get to these directories. Default Folder lets me instantly jump to these directories
no matter what directory I'm in. Normally when I update my web pages, I go between
these and other directories numerous times. Without a doubt just this features saves
a great deal of time and clicking.
After having Default Folder running for a couple days I quickly saw useful it was.
Not only can you configure Default Folder to jump right to your most used folders,
the software will remember your recently used directories. Users can set Default
Folder to remember the last five, ten, fifteen, etc. folders. This can help for example
if you have original original Photoshop files in one directory and JPEG files for
Web work in other. There may be a lot of back and forth work between these directories,
but because Default Folder remembers recent directories, you can jump between them
with out navigating your file system.
In addition to setting global short cuts, Default Folder can be set for specific
applications. Say for example you want to save all MS Word files stored in a specific
directory. Perhaps you have people who are not very knowledgeable of computers using
Macs and have a habit of saving files all over the place. Default Folder lets you
set a specific folder to come up automatically for a specific application.
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Default Folder lets you skip through levels of directories and
go right where you want
Default Folder remembers where you've been and lets you go back with ease |
Click for full screen
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Default folder can be configured with the Control Panel or on the fly within the
Options Menu. Inside the second menu you'll find commands to add a directory to the
list of presets or open a folder on the Desktop. Below those options are more features
to get info on files and move files to the trash. Yet another option lets users create
new folders even if the normal dialog box does not.
Besides switching between folders, users can also switch between mounted volumes
with the Volume Menu. There's even an option that will let you see the remaining
disk space on the drive. The drive space can be useful if you're saving a large file
to a drive that may be low on space.
While all these features are remarkable, Default Folder prides itself on the fact
that it has a small system overhead. It will not put a burden on your system, and
while features are plentiful, they are not excessive.
Bottom Line
Default Folder is a great addition to any Mac. If you're a Mac users who likes
a lean mean Mac with as little bells and whistles as possible, Default Folder qualifies
as a worth while addition. There's a lot of bang for your shareware buck here and
I expect to find a lot of these features in future Mac OS releases. I say why wait
until then?
System Requirements:
Default Folder works on Performas, Macintoshes, PowerBooks, and PowerMacs running
System 7.0 through 8.1. It is accelerated for PowerPC.
Pros:
Small, stable extension to the Mac OS. Filled with features that once you use them
you'll wonder why they weren't there in the first place. Shareware allows users to
try it out and see what it's like before buying. This program needs to be taken around
the block a couple times to fully realize was it can do.
Cons:
Absolutely none. It's rare that when I can't find a down side to a product, but Default
Folder is really that good. Low cost, feature rich, small, and to top it all off
its stabile. The only bad thing I can think of is what I am going do when I have
to use a Mac with out Default Folder.
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