Nautilus Windows

Nautilus windows enable you to display and manage your files and folders. Figure 7–1 shows a Nautilus window that displays the contents of a folder.

Figure 7–1 Contents of a Folder in a Nautilus Window

Table 7–1 describes the components of Nautilus windows.

Table 7–1 Nautilus Window Components

Component	Description
Menubar	Contains menus that you use to perform tasks in Nautilus.
Toolbar	Contains buttons that you use to perform tasks in Nautilus.
Location bar	Contains the following elements:  Location field or Go To field: Enables you to specify a file, folder, or URL that you want to display. Zoom buttons: Enable you to change the size of items in the view pane. View as drop-down list: Enables you to choose how to display items in your view pane.
Side pane	Performs the following functions:  Enables you to navigate through your files. Displays information about the current file or folder.
Tabs	Click on a tab to open a tabbed pane. The side pane contains the following tabbed panes:  History Notes Tree
View pane	Displays the contents of the following:  Particular types of files Folders FTP sites
Resize handle	Grab this handle, then drag to resize the side pane and the view pane.
Statusbar	Displays status information.

You can also open a popup menu from Nautilus windows. To open this popup menu right-click in a Nautilus window. The items in this menu depend on where you right-click. For example, when you right-click on a file or folder, you can choose items related to the file or folder. When you right-click on the background of a view pane, you can choose items related to the display of items in the view pane.

View Pane

The view pane can display the contents of the following:

• Particular types of files

• Folders

• FTP sites

Nautilus contains viewer components that enable you to display particular types of file in the view pane. For example, you can use an image viewer to display Portable Network Graphics (PNG) files in the view pane. The following figure shows a PNG file displayed in the view pane.

Displaying a file in the view pane provides the following benefits:

• Uses less system resources than when you launch an application.

• Takes less time than when you launch an application.

However, you cannot edit a file in the view pane.

Nautilus also includes views that enable you to display the contents of your folders in different ways. For example, you can display the contents of a folder in the following types of view:

• Icon view: Displays the items in the folder as icons.

• List view: Displays the items in the folder as a list.

Use the View menu to choose how to display a folder. For more information on views, see Using Views to Display Your Files and Folders.

Side Pane

The side pane can contain the following elements:

• An icon that represents the current file or current folder. The side pane also contains information about the current file or current folder.

• Tabbed panes that enable you to navigate through your files.

• If a file is displayed in the view pane, buttons appear in the side pane. The buttons enable you to perform actions on a file, other than the default action.

Tabbed Panes

The side pane can contain the following tabbed panes:

• History

  Contains a history list of files, folders, and FTP sites that you have recently visited.

• Notes

  Enables you to add notes to your folders.

• Tree

  Displays a hierarchical representation of your file system. You can use the Tree tabbed pane to navigate through your files.

Table 7–2 describes how to work with tabbed panes.

Table 7–2 Tabbed Pane Tasks

Task	Action
Open a tabbed pane.	Click on the tab.
Close a tabbed pane.	Click on the tab.
Remove a tab from the side pane.	Right-click in the side pane, then choose the tab that you want to remove from the menu.
Add a tab to the side pane.	Right-click in the side pane, then choose the tab that you want to add from the menu.

Icons and Emblems

In icon view, Nautilus displays your files and folders as icons. You can add emblems to your file icons and folder icons. An emblem is a small icon that you can add to an item to visually mark the item. For example, to mark a file as important, you can add an Important emblem to the file icon to create the following visual effect:

For more information on how to add an emblem to an icon, see To Add an Emblem to a File or Folder.

The following table describes the structure of the file icon:

Component	Description
	Emblem. This emblem is the Important emblem.
	Icon that represents the file. This icon contains a preview of the contents of the file.
	Icon caption. You can modify what items of information are displayed in the icon caption.

Nautilus includes default emblems for the following types of item:

• Symbolic links

• Items for which you have the following permissions:

  • Read permission only

  • No read permission and no write permission

The default emblems change depending on your theme. The following table shows the default emblems for the Default theme.

Default Emblem	Description
	Symbolic link
	Read permission only
	No read permission and no write permission