Is there any #Linux desktop out there that uses proper file icons that indicate which application a file belongs to? (Not what type of data it is.) As it stands, most Linux applications don't even seem to ship document icons, only application icons. This needs to improve in #helloSystem.
@probono
You somehow went straight to the conclusion that this would be preferable. In the old Windows days, it annoyed the heck out of me when some random application changed file icons.
Anyway, why would that need a spec? This is purely an implementation detail of the DE: it knows what application it will use to open it, so it could display a fitting icon if the user so desires...
(1/4)
@probono
... Although I would rather do a small overlay indicating the app, especially for files with thumbnail. Who would want to see a gimp icon instead of a thumb?
Note: a DE could have multiple actions like EDIT, SHOW, PRINT, where shift click would open in Gimp, but default is GwenView. The icon/overlay could change when shift is pressed. (Could also be a different mechanism making that distinction, e.g. photoalbum app opens a picture in a viewer or for editing, depending on context.
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@probono
I guess my main point is: The app is not a property of the file. If you wish to indicate what happens on click, there might be better ways to achieve that: the mentioned overlay, or kind of a tooltip with whatever metadata you wish to show. Dolphin does that very well, although without associated app. Anyway, there's already a way to peek at the associated app: the context menu. Absolutely sufficient for me.
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@probono
Also: "Different documents with same data format may need to be opened w diff apps"
how should that work? Either the format is exactly the same or it is smh versioned/tagged. In that case, the DE might pick the proper app, but then, why bother w diff icons? A filefmt needing a specific app version sounds broken. Fix app, not icon selection.
SVG: my DE offers Inkscape as default, but ctxt menu has viewers, plus text editors, bc yes, SVG is text and occ I totally make use of that.
(4/4)
@probono
That sounds like explicitly added metadata. The screenshot app could already add that, and the DE could already consider it when opening.
Guessing the type will fail. Screenshot do occassionaly contain paintings :D
There might be implicit metadata (context) available for this: File is stored in /Pictures or in /Screenshots
@danielst Example: One png contains a screenshot, another a painting. The former should always be opened with GIMP, the latter always with Krita.