Software for flexibly listing/organizing Windows files?
January 31, 2025 3:32 PM   Subscribe

I'm seeking an app that I think does/should exist, but I can't locate. I have projects. Projects have associated files: docs, images, pdfs, text. For a given project I'd like a list of file types. Click on a type, get a list of the associated files. Click on a file and it opens in its application.

My searches only turn up project management tools or file manager tools. I know I could use Libraries, but they are too cranky for me. I know about tree viewers for files, but I want my lists to be virtual--the same file could be connected to multiple projects. So the app I'm describing doesn't organize the files, just points to them. I've played with file links in Obsidian, and that could work, but I'm hoping for even simpler.

I'm inspired by the Canvas learning management system, if you know it. Once I pick a Course, I have a list down the lefthand side of the screen of resources like Modules, Students, Assignments. Clicking one of those gives me a list of those things. Easy. Any ideas appreciated. Thanks!
posted by moonmoth to Computers & Internet (7 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
Well, I don't want to get your hopes up, but on my Windows 11 machine I have drive P: mapped to a ProjectWorkspace folder on my file server. I then use Agent Ransack to scan for files by name or extension and/or with wild cards. When you say "For a given project I'd like a list of file types" you could specify in the "Look in:" text box one or more folders/drives separated by semi-colons. Then click "Start". On the right side there is a "Summary" tab and on the left there is the File Name, Location, Size, Type, etc. If you double click a listed file the standard Windows behavior occurs (open the file in the default application).

The application also has the ability in the "Options" tab on the left side to specify whether you want it to consider the File Name you specify to be a "Regular Expression" or a normal Windows Wildcard. Same thing for the Contents (i.e., if you specify a "Containing text:" value in the text box). You can also specify a case sensitive or case insensitive search using a check box setting.

So it is kind of a swiss army knife, but reason I said not to get your hopes up is because I suspect it's not what you're looking for (and/or you may already have found it and rejected it).
posted by forthright at 4:46 PM on January 31


Something like RecentX, which lets you add tags to any file, via Explorer?

There is Intag, the free alternative.

Hers's another alternative, and one more.
posted by kschang at 8:58 PM on January 31


The "one file is in many projects" is hampered by Windows hating (what other operating systems call) "symbolic links" -- so it's difficult to make them. You can't easily use a tree of folders for each project with a pot of "reusable master files" that appear in the tree via symbolic links, but with some fiddling you can get there.
posted by k3ninho at 2:30 AM on February 1


From the cutting edge of the 1990s… describe your projects in HTML with links?


What tempo does “add these files to this project” have? All at once, mostly at once, drip by drip?
posted by clew at 8:21 AM on February 1


iMatch will do just about anything. Wincatalog will let you make virtual folders where you can move files into them. Caveat, you can't have one file in multiple virtual folders. Programmer is responsive, I'm going to suggest adding that feature.
posted by Sophont at 1:29 PM on February 1


Response by poster: It's drip by drip. In my fantasy version of this app, dragging a file from explorer to the list pane would automatically create a link. Thanks for the advice everyone.
posted by moonmoth at 4:47 PM on February 1


How often do you move or delete the underlying files?
posted by clew at 9:49 AM on February 2


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