konqueror file manager loses chosen view setting

[jcfp]

Binary package hint: konqueror

To reproduce: open konqueror file manager, set 'view' -> 'view mode' to "detailed list view"; then navigate to an appropriate directory, and open a file that is viewed in konqueror itself, like an image. Next, use the 'Up' button on konqueror's toolbar to move back to the directory, and see. All files are displayed as large icons.

Kubuntu 6.10 (new install, no upgrade), KDE/Konqueror 3.5.5

[Yuriy Kozlov (yuriy-kozlov)]

Confirmed on Feisty.

Closing the extra task.

[jcfp (jcfp)]

Still exists in edgy with KDE 3.5.6

[Neil Levine (levine)]

Confirmed on a fresh install of Kubuntu Edgy.

[jcfp (jcfp)]

View mode also gets changed when moving away from an opened file by clicking a directory in the tree view.

[Neil Levine (levine)]

Fixed it.

Go to Settings/Config Konq/File Associations.

Select Inode from the list and within the Embedded tab, move Detailed List view to the top.

Workaround rather than a fix but...

[Neil Levine (levine)]

Sorry should have added select Directory as the Inode submenu.

[jcfp (jcfp)]

Thank you. Seems to do fine as a workaround...

[Andrew Hunter (rexbron)]

This is present in KDE 3.5.6 on fiesty.

[Lachlan (lachlan)]

Thanks for the workaround, I couldn't believe that it was so hard to set a default directory view for new tabs.

[Martijn de Nerd (martijn-de-nerd)]

Thanks for the workaround!

BTW, this is also a dupe of
http://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=108542

[lenooh (lenooh)]

At last! :-)

This really bothered me, that every time I opened a new tab, I had the icon view.

Thanks for the workaround.

[Risto H. Kurppa (risto.kurppa)]

Confirmed here.

And I found 'a feature' that seems to be very similar to this bug, see https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/115337

[Yuriy Kozlov (yuriy-kozlov)]

I can confirm this on Feisty as well.

[Frode M. Døving (frode)]

This is the way konqueror works when "Save View Changes per Folder" is not enabled.

I belive we should add:
[MainView Settings]
SaveViewPropertiesLocally=true

to /usr/share/kubuntu-default-settings/kde-profile/default/share/config/konquerorrc

That is kubuntu-default-settings.

[Frode M. Døving (frode)]

re-assign to the proper package.

[jcfp (jcfp)]

For testing purposes, I made the proposed change to /usr/share/kubuntu-default-settings/kde-profile/default/share/config/konquerorrc, and konqueror then saves a .directory file if I navigate to some directory and then explicitly set a view mode for that specific directory.

Unfortunately, it seems this method only works for fixing this bug if, and only if, I navigate away from a file opened in konqueror to a directory that has previously had it's view mode set explicitly in abovementioned way. But not for any other directory, like when moving away from an opened file by clicking any random "untreated" directory in the tree view; when opening an empty new tab and clicking any "untreated" directory; or when setting view mode in one directory, then navigate to a subdir (retains view mode), opening some file there, and use "Up"-button to navigate away from it. It seems that the only fix for that behaviour is the workaround posted by Neil Levine on 2007-01-31?

Note that on my system "detailed list view" is used as the default view mode (I assume this is part of the 'File Management' profile?). Maybe a fix could be to automagically adjust the setting described by Neil Levine to match with view mode?

On a side note: regardless of whether it fixes this bug, I'm all for adding this SaveViewPropertiesLocally=true in kubuntu-default-settings since I find it generally most useful functionality to be able to set specific directories to a different default view mode this way.

[Frode M. Døving (frode)]

This is my understanding of how it works (might be totally crazy):
- Pri. 1: Settings are directory specific. (.directory file)
- Pri. 2: They are also saved when you save the profile, that will make it the default for the specific profile if no .directory file says anything else.
- Pri. 3: The default if none of the above are set, is as explained by Neil Levinein in comment 5 and 6. (file associations inode/directory).

[jcfp (jcfp)]

That is also my understanding of how things are supposed to work with regards to the priority of the various settings, and it seems quite logical too.

In reality however, it doesn't function completely in this manner: what should be lowest priority (file associations inode/directory) overrides the number 2 when moving away from some file opened in konqueror as described in the examples I posted earlier today.
And to complicate things further, there's also the possibility of starting konqueror file manager, then switch (for that session only; without saving the profile) to a different view mode than the one stored in the default profile; kind of a Priority 1½.

In the current situation, in order to actually get the things working as expected, a user would have to keep the setting for the association of the file type inode/directory in sync with whatever he has set the view mode to a the time, be it via the default profile or a "manual" setting just for this session. Unless of course an appropriate .directory file is created beforehand in every directory on the system, which is not a very realistic scenario.

[jcfp (jcfp)]

Of course, I don't mean to say that keeping things in sync is a solution to the bug, it would be just another workaround basically automating Neil Levine's findings. The actual thing that needs fixing is the priority the file association for inode/directory is getting over the view mode that is either set explicitly or as a default via the profile.

I'm not sure whether this stuff would be part of kubuntu-default-settings or something that requires code changes in konqueror.

[Gary W. (node45-55)]

This is also present in Gutsy.

[Anthony Mercatante (tonio)]

I wouldn't call that a bug in fact.
The point is that konqueror's based on kparts.

Browsing files uses a kpart, and browsing images uses another kpart.
When you change the view to "detailled", this isn't set to become the default, and will just stay "detailled" during your kpart session.
When you open an image, you "unload" the file browsing kpart and load the gwenview part.
Then, when clicking "up" you just re-load the file browsing kpart, and therefore reloading the configuration of it, which is still "icons" and not "detailled"

This shouldn't be consider a bug as long as you consider that konqueror is not a file browser, bug a plugin reader, which, logically, reloads a plugin configuration when the plugin is loaded.

Fixing this would be super complex in the code, as this means let konqueror cache dynamically the configuration of your plugin as long as not closed.

This, I'm sorry, will never be done, especially since KDE3 is now unmaintained

[Neil Levine (levine)]

On Fri, Sep 28, 2007 at 01:55:05PM -0000, Anthony Mercatante said:
>
> This shouldn't be consider a bug as long as you consider that konqueror
> is not a file browser, bug a plugin reader, which, logically, reloads a
> plugin configuration when the plugin is loaded.
>
> Fixing this would be super complex in the code, as this means let
> konqueror cache dynamically the configuration of your plugin as long as
> not closed.
>

Fair enough but doesn't explain why this 'feature' used to be OK in
previous releases..

[jcfp (jcfp)]

> Browsing files uses a kpart, and browsing images uses another kpart.
> When you change the view to "detailled", this isn't set to become the default, and will just stay "detailled" during your kpart session.
> When you open an image, you "unload" the file browsing kpart and load the gwenview part.
> Then, when clicking "up" you just re-load the file browsing kpart, and therefore reloading the configuration of it, which is still "icons" and not "detailled"

Note that this bug still happens if, like on my system, detailed list view is set as the default by storing it as such in the 'file management' profile. So, when starting up konqueror everything is correctly shown using detailed list view - yet "re-loading the file browsing kpart" causes icon view to appear. One would certainly expect that the result of reloading a "kpart" without modifying it's configuration inbetween would have an identical result to the first loading of the same kpart only seconds earlier.

Too bad this is not getting fixed - but on the bright side of things, at least we gained a workaround in the process

[Risto H. Kurppa (risto.kurppa)]

Too bad - dolphin has the same 'feature':
Change view to something else than default view
open a sub dir
it's shown with default view..
press arrow left (to go back to the first dir)
it's changed to default view..

And if I understand correctly, the 'remember view settings for earch folder' is not the option we're looking for...

[drieteenmeeuw (drieteenmeeuw)]

The comment on
https://bugs.launchpad.net/kdebase/+bug/69168/comments/5
worked for me in Gutsy. Should be easier to (find this) fix imo

[Risto H. Kurppa (risto.kurppa)]

Konqueror of KDE 3.5.9 seems not to have this problem anymore. Anyone confirm?

[jcfp (jcfp)]

This bug is still there in 3.5.9 (with the packages from the ppa linked to from kubuntu.org). Luckily, the workaround also still works.

[Rich Johnson (nixternal)]

Confirming in Hardy KDE 3.5.9. If you hit the back button however it works fine, just the up button doesn't save the previous view.

[Rich Johnson (nixternal)]

In Konqueror 4 and Dolphin 4, this works somewhat. If you set the directory to detailed and then click an image and hit the up arrow, it will go back to your previous view. However going to other folders and what not switch back to icon view if you didn't set that folder to detailed. Konqueror 4 however does have the detailed view option under Inode -> Directory.

If we were, in Konqueror 3, move the detailed list up under Inode -> Directory, then those who don't use it will end up filing a very similar bug. So that isn't an option for a fix.

And to top it off, Konqueror uses the Dolphin KPart for file browsing in KDE 4 now. I will keep an eye upstream and talk to devs to see what they say. Thanks!

[Jonathan Thomas (echidnaman)]

nixternal:
I believe your problem was that Konqueror is set to have per-folder settings by default. To enable common view properties for all files you have to go to Settings -> Configure Konqueror -> File Management -> Views, and check "Use common view properties". Once this is enabled, everything works as expected.