On 9/12/25 02:38, Richard Owlett wrote:
My current environment is Debian 12, MATE, Caja file manager. SeaMonkey 2.53.21 is my browser. While searching my disk for a one PDF I discovered I had: 1. multiple copies of that file. 2. copies of similarly named files I was preparing to download.Caja's search function does automatically display the files location. You have to click on each file's "Properties" tab. Is there a search tool that will display file name and path.While working on a related problem I came across a sub-directory tree I would like to put in form suitable for a SeaMonkey bookmark. How?It's been so long since I've created a batch script that I had forgotten the term "bash". I now have a half dozen links to study ;}Suggestions? TIA
locate(1) and find(1) are the traditional Unix command-line utilities for searching the file system for files, directories, etc.. The first is simpler and faster, but relies upon a database that is updated daily by some automated process. So, recent files will not be located unless you update the database manually. The later crawls the file system, so it is slower, but it provides advanced options.
I think most users expect modern graphical desktops to include a graphical file manager that has the ability to search for files and/or directories accessible to the host. The makers MATE appear to understand this expectation and have provided a "search" toolbar item in the Caja file manager:
https://learnubuntumate.weebly.com/uploads/1/0/8/4/108446579/caja-file-manager.pdfI use Xfce, which includes the Thunar file manager. Searching the various menus and context menus, playing with the path edit box, etc., I am unable to determine how to search for a file (?). STFW I see questions, complaints, and instructions for adding a custom menu item action that relies upon other software. Comments and/or suggestions?
David