 |
Navigation Services provides the browser list as the primary user access to the file system. The browser list contains a list box, sort buttons, and a scrolling list of files and folders in the directory currently being displayed (the current location). The browser list is similar to the Finder's list view in Mac OS 8, as shown in Figure 1-2.
When your application first displays a Navigation Services dialog box, the browser list shows the Desktop location unless you provide a default location. Each type that dialog box is opened afterwards, the browser list defaults (or rebounds) to the directory location in use when that particular dialog box was last closed. If a file or folder was selected when the dialog box was last closed, the selection is shown, if possible. If multiple files were selected when an Open dialog box was last closed, the first file in the selection becomes the default selection when the dialog box is next opened.
In the browser list, either the Name or Date field can be used as sort keys; the user chooses the sort key by clicking the appropriate bevel button in the list header. The sort order (either ascending or descending) can be toggled by clicking the arrow button at the far right of the header. Navigation Services remembers the sort key and sort ordering for each type of dialog box used by each application.
When the user expands the dialog box by using the size box, the browser list expands proportionally. The dates displayed in the browser list provide more information as the browser list expands:
Navigation Services can open multiple files from within the Open dialog box. Users can select multiple files by Shift-clicking within the browser list or using the Select All command. Navigation Services allows multiple selections of files only; folders or volumes are not eligible. If the user tries to extend a selection to include anything but files, Navigation Services treats the attempt as a simple selection; that is, the new object is selected and all previous selections are deselected.
