Author Topic: Comment Explorer 2.5.0.4 (Read 42354 times)

MilesAhead · « **Reply #50 on:** September 01, 2011, 01:24 AM »

Comment Explorer 2.1.0.0 Added Taskbar Progress for Windows Seven to Comment Compaction routine.

(It makes for messy code, especially in scripts. But it looks cool.)

Contro · « **Reply #51 on:** September 01, 2011, 12:55 PM »

Okis Miles. I try.
Yesterday happen again the disfunction interacting with clipboard and ditto and have to close comment explorer.

Best Regards

MilesAhead · « **Reply #52 on:** September 01, 2011, 01:35 PM »

Comment Explorer 2.2.0.0 Minor code clean up.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #53 on:** September 01, 2011, 01:38 PM »

Okis Miles. I try.
Yesterday happen again the disfunction interacting with clipboard and ditto and have to close comment explorer.

Best Regards

-Contro (September 01, 2011, 12:55 PM)

Try double-clicking the Tray Icon so that you see
"=//=>" when you hover the mouse on the tray icon instead of
"==>"

That should temporarily disable messing with the clipboard for arrow keys and mouse.
Or you can right click the Tray Icon and click on Arrow ToolTips to remove the check mark next to it. It does the same thing.

Let me know if that prevents the side effects.

Contro · « **Reply #54 on:** September 01, 2011, 04:35 PM »

I'll try and comment
Best Regards

Contro · « **Reply #55 on:** September 01, 2011, 04:39 PM »

Done . I will continue using the program all the time with Ditto to see is something happen....

MilesAhead · « **Reply #56 on:** September 01, 2011, 05:47 PM »

Done . I will continue using the program all the time with Ditto to see is something happen....

-Contro (September 01, 2011, 04:39 PM)

Thanks for your feedback. I appreciate the updates.

Contro · « **Reply #57 on:** September 02, 2011, 07:35 AM »

At the present moment I have no problems with clipboard, but I can't see the comments after created. Not with the arrows keys, and not with the left click mouse over the icon.

Seems in relation with the option to no problems with the clipboard. When I deactivated the mode =/==> come back the comments.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #58 on:** September 02, 2011, 03:28 PM »

At the present moment I have no problems with clipboard, but I can't see the comments after created. Not with the arrows keys, and not with the left click mouse over the icon.

Seems in relation with the option to no problems with the clipboard. When I deactivated the mode =/==> come back the comments.
-Contro (September 02, 2011, 07:35 AM)

When it shows "=/==>" on the Tray Icon, the hotkeys just exit without doing anything. It gets the file name using the clipboard. It saves clipboard text, but anything else would bog it if I swap it around every time you hit a key or click. It's a compromise. You need to disable while using clipboard graphics or other stuff, then enable when using for comments. The only other way is shell extension. That has it's own problems besides not working in 64 bit. I think this method works fairly well. Anytime you use hotkey macro it's going to be a bit touchy. The other method I did was a TreePad file. But then you have to look stuff up and enter text pretty much manually. I didn't see any command line option to open TreePadLite to a search. You're pretty much stuck with opening the comment file and hitting Control-f.

TreePadGen

Contro · « **Reply #59 on:** September 03, 2011, 03:27 AM »

The program with the use of ==/====> is going well.
I'll take a look to treePagGen

MilesAhead · « **Reply #60 on:** September 03, 2011, 03:09 PM »

The program with the use of ==/====> is going well.
I'll take a look to treePagGen

-Contro (September 03, 2011, 03:27 AM)

OK.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #61 on:** September 26, 2011, 06:55 PM »

Comment Explorer 2.3.0.0 Added a primitive Comment Search to the Tray Menu.

If you are not running in FolderMode it searches the global comment file for any comments that contain what you type in. I suggest one word searches as it only tests that the entire substring is found in the comment. Matches are not case sensitive.

If FolderMode is active, it searches the comment file local to the folder. If one has not been loaded yet, or no comment file exists for the current folder, then the menu item will show as Disabled. Selecting a file with the arrow keys should enable the command for that folder if there is a comment file to load.

It's primitive. It just gathers the filenames associated with the comment matches to a text file and launches it using Windows file type association.

IainB · « **Reply #62 on:** November 14, 2011, 02:39 AM »

Not sure if this belongs in this thread:
This is a Q relating to putting file comments into "virtual folders" - not reparsed file links, but containing folders which hold pointers to a folder elsewhere.
In xplorer² (which I use most of the time) these are called "Scrap containers".

I was working with some files that I have in an xplorer² scrap container, and wanting to edit the file Comments for that file just for that scrap container view, but I could not.
This is because the Comments field is the same system field as is used in the main Windows Explorer (and xplorer²) window.
If you edit the properties (attributes) of that file in the scrap container, it actually edits them on disk.
But if you delete the file in the scrap container, it does not delete it from disk.

For comparison, I opened up my old 1999 vintage FileAlbum from PC Magazine/Ziff Davis (written by Gregory A. Wolking).
That provides sort of what I wanted, but in the shape of a virtual folder that is insulated from affecting the file properties and has an inbuilt proprietary file/folder commenting field.

The screenshot below shows 3 windows and how the file Radiolab - Numbers 100909a.mp3 appears, with its comments, in each one.

1. The scrap container.
2. The FileAlbum container.
3. The Windows Explorer file listing

What I want to get is:

sometimes a file listing display with the system file Comments displayed - that's OK, the system can already give me that in file listings in Windows Explorer or xplorer²;
then sometimes a file listing display in a collection or "scrap" container (or something that serves the same purpose) that displays the same files and the same (system) file Comments and also another field of file comments or notes that is peculiar to the files in that display/view.

Is this feasible?

MilesAhead · « **Reply #63 on:** November 14, 2011, 02:10 PM »

There are 2 modes to the program, Folder and Global. Folder uses the filename and extension with no path as the key to the comment. Global uses the entire path. Folder creates a data file in every folder where you create a comment. Global has one central data file in the same folder as CommentExplorer.exe.

If neither of the 2 modes reflect what you're asking then I don't see how I can do it. In either mode it's a simple associative array. String key fetches string comment.

hulkbuster · « **Reply #64 on:** November 14, 2011, 10:49 PM »

So each time i give a comment for a file or folder by pressing Shift+ F11 , will i be able to view it any way.???

MilesAhead · « **Reply #65 on:** November 15, 2011, 01:25 PM »

So each time i give a comment for a file or folder by pressing Shift+ F11 , will i be able to view it any way.???
-hulkbuster (November 14, 2011, 10:49 PM)

I don't understand the question.
The program is designed to me use with Explorer. Not 3rd party file managers.

There are 2 window class names used for Explorer Folder Windows. CabinetWClass and ExploreWClass. Only if the active window has one of the 2 class names will the hotkeys fire. That's to avoid interfering with other applications.

If you read the Readme I think this is clearly stated:

Readme for Comment Explorer 2.3.0.0

Comment Explorer is an AHK Hotkey Tray Utility
that allows comments to be associated with files
in Explorer. When you use the Up and Down Arrow
keys or click the Mouse to select a file in Explorer,
if there is a comment for the file, a ToolTip displays.

It doesn't say anything about FreeCommander,TotalCommander or whatever.

IainB · « **Reply #66 on:** November 15, 2011, 05:08 PM »

There are 2 modes to the program, Folder and Global. Folder uses the filename and extension with no path as the key to the comment. Global uses the entire path. Folder creates a data file in every folder where you create a comment. Global has one central data file in the same folder as CommentExplorer.exe.

If neither of the 2 modes reflect what you're asking then I don't see how I can do it. In either mode it's a simple associative array. String key fetches string comment.
-MilesAhead (November 14, 2011, 02:10 PM)

@MilesAhead: Thanks for this. I think I understand now.
I guess what I am asking for cannot be done by Comment Explorer.
It seems that it has its own wholly proprietary database. I think I need to use the OS file/folder "Comments" field sometimes, and something proprietary to the "virtual container" field at other times.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #67 on:** November 15, 2011, 05:59 PM »

I'm starting to think the mechanism should involve the shadow copy service. Kind of like "versions of files" only you have a db file in the shadow store with the comments indexed. Doing it from the outside will always be a kludge.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #68 on:** October 02, 2014, 10:12 AM »

The first post has been updated with new link. Also the Readme.txt has been edited to correct the directions in quick start to use the proper hotkey, shift-F11.

Note that the Check For Update commands etc.. will not be updated since I don't see that I can add anything useful to this design. The basic function works, to add a line comment to your downloads. At this point I am using a Laptop only. It's fine for posting in forums, using online programs, but for programming anything more than a few lines or fixing a bug in existing code, it's just too awkward. Even on a desktop with full sized keyboard I'm only about a 20 wpm guy anyway.

Hopefully some time soon I'll have a desk again at a permanent address so I can get another desktop PC. I just hope it isn't running Windows 11.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #69 on:** June 16, 2015, 07:46 AM »

Link in first post updated. New in 2.5.0.2 Comment Explorer no longer uses the clipboard to get the file selected in the Explorer Window. This eliminates conflicts with other clipboard functions such as Copy as Path. When a selected file or folder displays a comment, that comment is in the clipboard. This makes it possible to do things like save a url as the comment and paste it into your browser. Once the ToolTip with the comment disappears, the clipboard is restored to previous contents(at least for text.)

I added an exception catching routing since enumerating all the windows can trigger an exception if the user closes the folder window while the search is ongoing. In this case the search routine just returns an empty string and the script continues without a crash dialog.

It is still a flawed approach. Probably the right way to do it is with a database browser utility that can query partial matches on filenames and store multiple pieces of information rather than just a comment. But at least it is something.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #70 on:** October 10, 2015, 08:55 AM »

CommentExplorer 2.5.0.3 Fixed Tooltip handling bug that occurred when successive files were commented.(i.e. the old Tooltip was removed but the new one was not displayed.)

I think the only practical way to use this utility is in Folder Mode with all the files in the folder commented. That way one expects a comment to show up as each file is highlighted in Explorer.
Otherwise it feels too hit and miss. I am going to try commenting as I download and making certain the new download goes into a commented subfolder of my download folder.

The more I mess with it the more I believe the function should be a file system intrinsic. But as they say, it is better than nothing.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #71 on:** October 11, 2015, 02:42 PM »

Comment Explorer 2.5.0.4 Improve ToolTip action a bit more. Now clicking the mouse on the caption bar clears the ToolTip even if there is a file selected. However it is at the cost of losing the ability to click into the Explorer Folder when it does not have focus and still get a ToolTip. Just click the same file again or click next to the one you want then use the arrow to select it.

It's a kludge but the action is a bit more consistent now I think.

Curt · « **Reply #72 on:** October 11, 2015, 04:29 PM »

Is 2.5.0.4 then some kind of a "final" version, or a you certain it will change again some time soon?

MilesAhead · « **Reply #73 on:** October 11, 2015, 06:17 PM »

Is 2.5.0.4 then some kind of a "final" version, or a you certain it will change again some time soon?

-Curt (October 11, 2015, 04:29 PM)

I'll use it for awhile and see how it acts. If it doesn't seem buggy then it may end up pretty much as it is now.

abazh · « **Reply #74 on:** October 14, 2015, 09:31 AM »

Can I change hotkey combination?