And CocoaTech definitely deserves praise for their trail period and license policy. I agree that PathFinder is very impressive. If you find yourself often frustrated by the Finder's limited feature set, give Path Finder a trial run - you may find the added features are well worth the $34.95 investment. But these are minor points in contrast to the incredible number of added features that I've come to rely on in Path Finder. I'm also having an issue with using some Transmit - Automator workflows I've set up as contextual menu entries, but I think I'll be able to fix that problem. (I've used this hint to make it easy to quit the Finder again when that happens.) And I've run into a couple installers for obscure apps that simply wouldn't launch in Path Finder, but worked fine in the Finder. Some apps, for instance, insist on launching the Finder after completing an operation, just to show you the file they've just created. As you can see, there are tons of features that go well beyond anything the Finder has to offer.There are still some things that don't quite work as expected when using Path Finder as your Finder. These are just a few of the features I really like about Path Finder there are many others listed on Cocoatech's Path Finder 4 page and on the Path Finder change log page. Easy navigation into application bundles you can even opt to view bundles as normal folders, if you wish.I particularly like the "compress and email" and "copy path" options. Fully customizable contextual menus, pre-built with some very useful options.A built-in Terminal drawer for quick trips to the Unix side of OS X.A bookmarks bar for super-fast access to often-used files and folders.The OS X Finder used to do this (drag an item over a folder in the toolbar, and it springs open to show a navigable menu of the folder's contents), but they took that feature away when they gave us the sidebar. ![]() While this sounds like more work (and you can still do things the other way), I find it much easier to navigate without worrying about holding the mouse button down. Instead of having to drag-navigate-drop, just drop the items on the drop stack, then navigate to where you want them to go, then drag them off the drop stack. Think of this as a temporary storage spot for items in transit. A folder history drawer makes it simple to return to a recently-visited folder.The panel is resizable, letting you easily see into many documents without opening them. A Preview panel for viewing text files, images, Word documents, PDFs, HTML, Shockwave, Flash movies, and more.Get Info windows with tons of data, all of which can be set directly from the window.A powerful Spotlight-independent search tool (you can also use Spotlight directly from Path Finder).Tabs can be rearranged by dragging, and you can choose between vertical and horizontal tabs. I have a work tab set, a gaming tab set, etc. Open new windows as tabs, and save a collection of tabs as a tab set. Here are just a few of the Path Finder features I find most useful: But I've found the curve isn't all that steep, and the benefits of the switch have outweighed the efforts required. As with Butler, there's a bit of a learning curve due to the sheer breadth of features available. So why have I made the switch? I think I use Path Finder for the same reasons I use Butler: it's a powerful tool that packs a ton of useful features into one application. Sometime after I got back from the Geek Cruise in November, I decided to go "cold turkey" and replaced the Finder with Path Finder (which is easy to do via a setting in Path Finder's preferences). In August, CocoaTech released Path Finder 4.5, and after some testing, I started using that version on a daily basis. While I didn't use it regularly, I kept an eye on its continuing development, as I felt it had great potential. At some point, the SNAX name vanished and was replaced by Path Finder. So over time, I migrated away from SNAX and back to the good old (with the emphasis on old) Finder. ![]() However, SNAX wasn't perfect, and there were a number of things the Finder did better and/or faster. I liked it well enough then to select it as one of the very first Pick of the Week winners. Way back in March of 2002, I found SNAX, an advanced file manager that worked well as a replacement for the Finder. ![]() While it's a capable file manager, I've often felt myself wishing for something better with more features. Apart from a sidebar and a column view (hooray!), things are pretty much status quo with the Finder. While the rest of the system reflects some truly revolutionary advancements in application design and user interface, I've always felt that the OS X Finder is pretty much the same as the OS 9 Finder. One of the things I often complain about in OS X is the Finder.
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