Find File -> rationale behind "Search for content"?

[egmont]

In the Find File dialog, there's a checkbox "Search for content", unchecking it disables the fields of the right column.

The left column, however, doesn't have a corresponding "Search for file name" checkbox, there's no quick way to toggle if I'm interested in a file name or not.

This asymmetric behavior is in my opinion inconsistent and should be made consistent.

I'd personally remove the "Search for content" checkbox. It's superfluous, clutters the UI and doesn't provide any useful feature. If I'm not interested in the content, I can just clear the "Content:" field. (We need to make sure that the code doesn't actually scan all the files for the empty string.) If I become interested again, I can easily recall the previous value from the history of that input field.

[zaytsev]

I'm not sure if I agree, but I guess I just have to try clearing the input field before unchecking the checkbox and see if it feels much different.

Maybe if we decide to change that, we can disable the other checkboxes below the said checkbox if it's value is empty as a sort of visual feedback that this part of the search feature is inactive?

I use the checkbox rather often, and it never occurred to me that this is somehow cumbersome. I often look for something in files, then uncheck the box and look again, and then check it back again and look again, so it's kind of convenient that the last search value stays there.

On the other hand, of course, the input can be cleared just as easily (Ctrl+W) and last item recalled from history (Alt+H)... Hmmmm.

[ossi]

+1 on the OP. in fact, i have argued this years ago (not sure whether in a ticket or on the list).

[egmont]

Replying to zaytsev:

Maybe if we decide to change that, we can disable the other checkboxes below the said checkbox if it's value is empty as a sort of visual feedback that this part of the search feature is inactive?

Sounds good to me, and is a good feedback to distinguish a misleading whitespace-only field from the empty one. Of course, the left-hand fields should also receive this feature.

[andrew_b]

Replying to egmont:

Replying to zaytsev:

Maybe if we decide to change that, we can disable the other checkboxes below the said checkbox if it's value is empty as a sort of visual feedback that this part of the search feature is inactive?

Sounds good to me, and is a good feedback to distinguish a misleading whitespace-only field from the empty one. Of course, the left-hand fields should also receive this feature.

#3597

[andrew_b]

Branch: 3594_find_file_content
Initial changeset:a43018c2651d018884aa4ded2f6cb8909644d324

[zaytsev]

Pushed a minor nit fixup.

[andrew_b]

Merged to master: [d5668b60b6e6fbad508d6c00f34ebc33e0e8c878].

git log --pretty=oneline ebf57a8..d5668b6

[zyxmon]

I do not think this was a good idea for such a change. I am using mc for many years and this change makes mc uncomfortable.
May be this feature can be set up in configuration.

[ossi]

there is always somebody who will complain about a change. that's not a reason to stick with a bad decision indefinitely.

introducing a micro-option for such a thing is also counterproductive for about every reason you can imagine.

so just get used to it.