[jwr]

I really, really need a better Finder. I've been using Path Finder for many years, but it was always a so-so replacement and the company wasn't very interested in moving it forward (even fixing bugs took many years). I eventually gave up and stopped paying for it.

I now use the Finder (column view) and it sucks.

At a first glance, I like this app. The problem I have is that I tend to think about the long term: will this app be around in 5 years? There is a plethora of AI-coded apps (this in itself doesn't bother me) where the author loses interest after just a couple of weeks.

And (here come the HN downvotes, because this is really unpopular on HN) the one-time pricing model doesn't lend itself to long-term sustainability, unfortunately. I know people hate to hear that, but ask anyone who tried to run a small or solo-founder business whether it's possible to make ends meet with one-time purchases.

[cosmic_cheese]

Would you mind elaborating on how the Finder isn’t your cup of tea?

I’m curious, because at this point I’ve used everything from the spatial Classic Mac OS Finder to to every OS X Finder to every Windows Explorer version since to Windows 95 to Dolphin to the menagerie of Nautilus forks, and I don’t quite understand the discontent with the Finder for the most part. If anything I find the W11 Explorer overall more frustrating these days.

[jwr]

Mostly because I have to do way too much clicking to see things in the column view. Columns are usually too narrow. Then you have to scroll horizontally to get to see your files. Search is slow. Open windows are kinda-remembered, but not always, it seems. And I'd like some folders to be sorted by date modified (downloads, anyone?) and most others by name. Then there is no quick "fuzzy find in a subtree" fzf-like functionality. I mean, compared to the Windows garbage this is better, but it has seen little love over the last 20 years or so and it shows.

[andrekandre]

i have a theory: all file browsers suck, they just suck in different ways for different people

my other theory is that its entirely possible to make a good file browser, but nowadays theres not much investment in them beyond fixing major issues for most users...

  > I don’t quite understand the discontent with the Finder for the most part

its got a lot better over the years (old pathfinder user here) but for me anyways its the constant explosion of new windows and lack of split-view (and also integrated terminal but i know apple will never do that)

also, i love column view in finder and that makes every other fileviewer (even the one in kde with the terminal) suck for me...

[rspoerri]

i have been searching and using all kinds of finder replacements and i actually tried and bought about 4 of them (qspace pro, forklift, marta, spacedrive, path finder, commander one, double commander and more)

the one i am sticking with since quite a while and fits my requirements is bloom . It had some issues early on, but i had no problems with it since a long time.

[ApolloRising]

Try Bloom, I liked it dual pane manager