A Better Finder Select is a utility which allows you to quickly select all the files matching a given criteria in the Finder. With this user interface enhancement you can, for instance, select all the GIF format picture files in a directory at a stroke. "A Better Finder Select" is a simple, yet surprisingly powerful tool.
New in Version 1.1
Version 1.1 introduces many enhancements:
• support for Unix/PC style wildcards
• "ignore case" option
• "invert" option
• "refine" button
• faster loading when working with large numbers of files
• minor bug fixes
How do I use "A Better Finder Select"?
Select a number of files in the Finder and bring up the contextual menu by clicking on one of the selected files while holding down the control key. You will see a number of menu items appearing. Select the bottom most menu called "Select Files...". This will bring up the "A Better Finder Select" dialog.
Fill out the dialog box to specify which files you want to select, e.g.
Select all files which "contain" "cat"
Select all files which "end in" ".gif"
Select all files which "begin with" "Apple"
Select all files which "match the wildcard" "*kitten*.gif" (more about wildcards below)
You can refine selections by using the "Refine" button instead of the OK button. For instance, to select all gif image files which contain the word "cat" in their title:
1) Select all image files in the Finder
2) Bring up "A Better Finder Select" through the contextual menu
3) Select all files which "end in" ".gif" and instead of OK click Refine
5) Select all files which "contain" "cat" and click OK to leave A Better Finder Select
When you select the "Refine" button the search is carried out and the dialog box remains on the screen. Pressing the "OK" button makes the dialog go away.
The "ignore case" checkbox turns case sensitive search on/off. For instance when ignoring case "Cat", "cat" and "CAT" are the same word, while when case sentivity is turned on they are different words.
The "invert" checkbox when checked, selects all items in the current selection which DO NOT match the chosen criterium.
What is a wildcard?
Wildcards are a powerful way of specifying text patterns. They were first introduced in Unix and are used in most operating systems including DOS/Windows. "A Better Finder Select" brings this powerful feature into the world of user-friendly Macintosh computing.
A wildcard is a special character that represents a word or a character in a text. The "*" character represents a word and the "?" character represents a character.
Let's have a look at a few examples:
"*.html" will match every name which ends in ".html"
"A*" will match every name which starts with an "A"
"*a*" will match every name which contains an "a"
"*cat*.gif" will match all files which contain the "cat" and which end in ".gif"
The "?" character works in the same manner but represents only a single character:
"?A*" will match every name whose second character is a"A"
"*.???" will match every name whose 4th to last character is a "."
What are the limitations of the demo version?
The demo version is limited to selecting at most 10 items. If your the result of your selection would contain more than 10 items, only the first 10 will be highlighted.
Registration
"A Better Finder Select" costs only US$10 and can be purchased online via the web, or through email, fax, mail, etc.. Consult the "How to Register" document for more details.
If you have web access and own a major credit card you can buy right now by going to:
http://www.publicspace.com/ABetterFinderSelect/
Installation
1) Move the "A Better Finder Select CM" file from the "For Contextual Menu Items" folder, into the "Contextual Menu Items" folder in your "System Folder" (if you cannot find this folder simply drop the file onto the "System Folder", the folder will then automatically be created and the file put inside it)
2) Move "A Better Finder Select" file from the "For the Extensions Folder" into the "Extensions" folder in your "System Folder"
You will NEED to restart your machine before using "A Better Finder Select" for the first time.
About the files in this folder:
README FIRST!
( this read me file )
How To Register
( contains detailed information on how to register )
Register
( this application allows you to produce an email, mail or fax document to order "A Better Finder Select" )
Register NOW!
( this is a Netscape web alias; if you have Netscape installed, double clicking this file will bring you to the "A Better Finder Select" website )
Download the Latest Version!
( this is a Netscape web alias; if you have Netscape installed, double clicking this file will bring you to the "A Better Finder Select" website )
Go to the Website!
( this is a Netscape web alias; if you have Netscape installed, double clicking this file will bring you to the "A Better Finder Select" website )
ABFS Registration Assistant
(you need this application to register your version of "A Better Finder Select" once you have paid and received your personal registration code)
More Information
For more information please visit the "A Better Finder Select" website at:
http://www.publicspace.net/ABetterFinderSelect/
If you have Netscape Navigator installed, double clicking on the "Go to the Website!" file will also bring you to this site.
It doesn't work?
The vast majority of problems can be resolved by going through this checklist:
1) the Contextual Menu Extension is in the Extensions folder (in your System Folder)
2) the file "A Better Finder Select CM" is in the "Contextual Menu Items" folder
3) the file "A Better Finder Select" is in the Extensions folder
4) You need to select the files you want to filter and then control-click ON one of the highlighted items. The "Select Files..." item should be at the bottom of the menu.
If you still experience any problems with "A Better Finder Select" or have any suggestions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact me at:
