[WFX] VirtualPanel: Temporary panel for TC

[Usher]

2MVV
In the age of polished stone DOS there was very useful, though undocumented TRUENAME command:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_DOS_commands#TRUENAME
https://www.robvanderwoude.com/truename.php

Running TRUENAME from some (mapped, substed, joined etc.) directory without arguments gave the physical path (the real name of current directory).

Now things get more and more overcomplicated…

[MVV]

zxy,
Please tell how do you want to use physical path: pass to other program, copy into clipboard, or?
Passing to another program may be done with %P%N, you can also open system properties of file using Alt+Enter, context menu or buttonbar command.

[zxy]

I got it, you are right, The %P%N works for the file but fails for the directory.
especially for the directory created by the VP command "<add"

[MVV]

Well, you only can create links to physical directories via <add command, simple copying creates virtual folders. And unfortunately there is no way to get physical path from TC, however you can open folder properties (system properties dialog appears) or execute folder by Ctrl+Enter + Enter, or by executing "." command after entering folder, and physical folder will be opened in Explorer.

[quantum]

Is there a way to have shift+enter behavior, open source file in new tab, but with the tab in the other panel?

[quantum]

Another wish: add ability to associate icon with VirtualPanel link, such as link to cmd file. I can achieve this now by creating an additional lnk shortcut file pointing to the cmd, and setting the icon there. This adds an extra file and an extra step.

[MVV]

Is there a way to have shift+enter behavior, open source file in new tab, but with the tab in the other panel?

Try Ctrl+Left for right-to-left or Ctrl+Right for left-to-right side, these are built-in TC shortcuts.

Another wish: add ability to associate icon with VirtualPanel link, such as link to cmd file. I can achieve this now by creating an additional lnk shortcut file pointing to the cmd, and setting the icon there. This adds an extra file and an extra step.

Sorry, the only file type which may be associated with custom icon is VP script file (in a pure-virtual folder, not in a link to physical folder). However you can use script files for executing external programs or batch files.

Try following command:

Code: Select all

<add >RunMyBatch { <exec \Bin\Exec.exe D:\MyBatch.bat <<shell32.dll,84 }

(it assumes that you have added Exec.exe from VP installation folder into VP as \Bin\Exec.exe)

[quantum]

Try Ctrl+Left for right-to-left or Ctrl+Right for left-to-right side, these are built-in TC shortcuts.

After using TC since almost the beginning, somehow that useful keystroke escaped me. Thanks.

The script icon trick is good to know. I'll have to compare against lnk files which work but are awkward to maintain.

[quantum]

Using an <explore window, in the toolbar, icons 1,2,4,5,6,8,9,10,11 are missing.

Working ones are
3 Go to parent
7 Properties
12 Always on top

Not a big deal of course, but visible. I'd be satisfied to turn the bar off but I don't see a way to do that either.

[MVV]

There were some similar reports, but unfortunately I can't reproduce this problem, Virtual Explorer panel looks OK for me in both 32-bit and 64-bit TC. It would be nice of course to find the reason. All icons are taken from running TC executable and WCMICONS.dll library so should be available in any TC version.

[scarabaeus]

I understand, why CopyTree (or TreeCopyPlus etc.) gives error 161 (invalid path) when I try to use it to copy files with their folder structure (from a given level) to VirtualPanel. Still, is there any workaround for this? I would like to copy items from search results panel to VirtualPanel the way CopyTree does it to a real target folder.

[MVV]

Interesting, I haven't ever tried to copy with CopyTree to a virtual panel. Perhaps the problem is that TC doesn't support folder links (it only expects file links) so doesn't resolve their real paths. I don't think that I can do anything with it.

[Hurdet]

When I use a command with list %L from a VirtualPanel path I get f.e.:

\\\Virtual Panel\FolderToCopy\
c:\path\crypt.js

do it is possible to get, to use directly with commands?

[Path FolderToCopy]\FolderToCopy\file1.ext
[Path FolderToCopy]\FolderToCopy\file1.ext
[Path FolderToCopy]\FolderToCopy\[...]
c:\path\crypt.js

[Hurdet]

I tryed to select items in "\Virtual Panel" and hit custom button:

VPBatch.exe
<convert %L "c:\list.txt"
but get:
exported 0 entry
also with %WL or %UL

<convert %F "c:\list.txt"
exported 1 entry
other skipped

in the "xxxxxxx.tmp" i see wrong file name:

file1.js
xxxxxfile2.txt
xxxxxfile3.bar
xxxxxfile4.exe

instead of

file1.js
file2.json
file3.bar
file4.exe

it get "xxxxx" from file1.js path part.

[nsp]

Inside VirtualPanel, if you use %L %UL %WF you get real file names nothing else to do !
Main issue is that VPanel is not aware of selected item and you cannot indicate process with all selected files

if you want virtual names, you have to use %v or %V but you will not get a list file just the file under the cursor

%S will give you list of virtual file name and is the most useful parameter to get selected names.


using vpbatch ^convert command needs 3 parameters:
List, exported text file, VP folder (can be .)

%F %L are not the useful parameter as by default VP is looking for Unicode and Virtual Names ! (%WF can work if you have exact same names as real file name)

---

documentation of VP and TC are not 100% complete/exact
do use ^ instead of redirection is good practice
<convert command stop at first error

Current VPpath is exposed in ${}Path env variable if you have more than one VP you can insert VP name inside the {VPname} !

What you can do is to convert %S parameters as a single file utf-8 or utf-16 with BOM and then process it with convert !