Filed under: OS, Software, Productivity, Reviews
10 Mac OS X Finder alternatives compared and reviewed
While the Mac community anxiously awaits a much-rumored and much-needed Finder update in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, Simplehelp decided to survey the landscape of 3rd party alternatives for a temporary fix. A total of 10 Finder replacements are reviewed, with a chart that rounds up the basics, and plenty of screenshots to accompany each app.While Path Finder is obviously one of the reigning kings of this genre, Simplehelp found some pretty unique - though not always functioning - takes on the file management paradigm, all with significant pros and cons to consider.
While I haven't put all these apps to the test recently, I've given many of them a spin at least in the last year or two, and I can't say I'm optimistic for a 3rd party's ability to replace the Finder any time soon. Apple seems pretty intent on locking down their (arguably aging) Finder, and it seems we're all stuck with it until those rumors of a revamp come true.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Daniel D said 3:29PM on 10-16-2006
I think the finder is great, as long as your organise your folders okay you can pretty much find everything you need and what not. THere isn't anything about the finder that has made me think about an alternative.
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cstromme said 3:31PM on 10-16-2006
An updated Finder is definately my biggest wish for Leopard.
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Elliot said 3:33PM on 10-16-2006
Obligatory "mad ups" to Quicksilver. While it's not something that Apple can put in the OS, as it's not very kind to the user, I'll never run a computer again without it.
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xploraiswakco said 3:32PM on 10-16-2006
"much-needed Finder update"? I have been hearing that for 15 years, but i've yet to see or hear a good reason as to why the Finder needs updating and what specifically needs to be updated?
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xploraiswakco said 3:33PM on 10-16-2006
I meant to add... I agree with the first comment here, I've tried lots of others, nothing does the job better than the Finder already does
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Owain Jones said 3:34PM on 10-16-2006
I don't get it... what is so outdated and rubbish about finder that people want to get rid of it? Finder is simple, it does its job, and it's easy to use. Why then replace it with something completely different, inaccessable to anyone but the most advanced users. Speaking as someone that has used a mac for 3 years, if it weren't for the simplicity of finder I would never have gone for macs. It was the more complex, "advanced search" stuff that put me off windows in the first place. Finder with spotlight is the perfect way to organise your files, why change it?
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Niklas said 3:44PM on 10-16-2006
Good idea, too bad the author didn't consider usability as something important. It was just a list of features.
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Niklas said 3:44PM on 10-16-2006
"Obligatory "mad ups" to Quicksilver. While it's not something that Apple can put in the OS, as it's not very kind to the user, I'll never run a computer again without it."
You got it a bit backwards: Quicksilver is kind to the user, if it wasn't you wouldn't be using it. Though, it isn't kind to the less computer-savvy.
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Chris said 3:50PM on 10-16-2006
Finder would be improved a lot just by making better use of the screen space. e.g. in icon view, when viewing small icons in an attempt to get many files in view at once, approximately 75% of the window is taken up by white space between icons - the column spacing is exactly the same for 128x128 icons as it is for 16x16 icons. Why's that?
Finder v.s. Explorer is the one part of my transition to Mac-dom that I still struggle with - I'm still much quicker re-arranging things in Explorer, which I mostly put down to the split tree-on-the-left, icons-on-the-right view.
My final complaint is that you have to perform an extra operation (Command-Click the title bar) on a Finder window to know the location of the folder you're viewing - a problem I often encounter when moving/copying between commonly recurring sub-directory names (e.g. "thumbnails", "src" etc.)
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David Chartier said 3:58PM on 10-16-2006
Many complaints against the Finder in its present form focus on the small pieces of its implementation that turn into big problems.
For example - the Finder can hang up, a lot. Trying to connect to a server via Go > Connect to Server can cause it to hang if anything goes wrong, such as the server not being available or the connection timing out. I hear this has to do with multi-threading and the Finder's lack of it, i.e. - if one task the Finder is trying to perform chokes (in this case: connecting to a server), the entire Finder grinds to a halt until the problem gets solved. For such a bad-ass multitasking OS as Mac OS X - this is a gross oversight, especially considering we're on the 4th major version and it's been about 6 years since its introduction.
Many other complaints are similar - tiny little issues that many users might not even notice, but they cause big problems, headaches and in some cases more serious issues that many of us experience, power users and basic user alike.
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louis Plante said 10:50AM on 10-17-2006
I really don't see what all the griping about the finder is for lately on this site. I think it's perfect the way it navigates files now.
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Peter van Impelen said 4:21PM on 10-16-2006
PathFinder suffers from what Apple apps are generally speaking very careful to avoid : too many unnecessary options in one app. It therefore has become extremely unwieldy, is not self explanatory to first time users and is definitely on its way to become bloatware. Why use a Swiss Army knife when a simple single blade knife would suffice ? I think it's worse than the present Finder !
As The Man says : "Make your app do just one thing extremely well in a very transparent way and you're in business!"
My tip ( are you reading this, Apple ? ) : Xfolders ! Simply brilliant.
It's all you need, and whatever 'extras' PathFinder now forces upon users can much better be taken care of by a number of existing very slick 3rd party apps ...
PS : as for Leopard : lose the eye-candy and just give me a POSIX compliant, 21st century file system to guarantee OS X security for the future.
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Tony said 5:07PM on 10-16-2006
I use a combination of QuickSilver and PathFinder. QS for quick app launching and some advanced hokus pokus, and PF for organization and other Finder-like activities. It has some great features missing from Finder. I love the delete button on the toolbar. Highlight a file or group of files, and click the icon. No need to drag down to the trashcan. And the drop zone is a KILLER feature! I use that all the time...
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Macskeeball said 6:54PM on 10-16-2006
Tony, Finder can have a delete button in the toolbar. You might want to actually look in your apps' Customize Toolbar sheets from time to time. A lot of OS X apps- Finder included- have them and they can let you have all sorts of neat things.
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Jason said 8:06PM on 10-16-2006
I've never had any major problems with Finder... maybe I'm lucky... I don't know. Anyway, I've been using Mac for a year now and the thing I've been learning is there are several apps available to replace the ones provided by Apple. I've tried a few other things too and the one thing I keep learning is that usually Apple has it down. Learn how to use their programs well and you don't need replacements. For instance, the Finder has a delete button.
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scottb said 1:33PM on 10-17-2006
The "grid" spacing will be back in 10.5.
Promise.
Long overdue too.
SB
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Dan said 10:56PM on 10-16-2006
Apple-Backspace beats any delete button. Keyboard shortcuts all the way.
I'm currently evaluating Path Finder but don't seem to use enough of its advanced features to justify the $35 price.
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Solo said 2:07AM on 10-17-2006
The main issues with the Finder are usability. The OS 9 desktop had a more consistent "feel" spatially. It is a big detail that Switchers wouldn't notice, but it is there.
There is much that is good about the OS X way of doing things, but having folders stay where I put them when I am working and having column/list/icon views remember which I last chose would be nice.
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Paul Blake said 3:42AM on 10-17-2006
I moved away from Finder simply because on my ibook it never remembers views and window sizes after restarts. I now use PathFinder. Peter is right - it is crammed full of features but if you take a minimalistic approach to the toolbars etc you end up with a app that looks and works like an improved Finder - and can avoid most of the feature overload...
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saitothesniper said 11:54AM on 10-17-2006
Tony:
it's very simple to add a delete button to the finder's toolbar. just rt.-click on that part of the toolbar and pull the delete button into place. i use the cmd-delete shortcut a lot myself. even quicker than reaching for a button.
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