Improved address bar

The address bar that displays the path to the current directory has been known since the time when operating systems did not have a graphical interface and, interestingly, now looks like 10 years ago. It is time to improve it by providing useful functionality.

The main task of the address bar, it is located in the browser or file manager, is to display the path to the open directory or web page and it does the job. What to do when you need to get to the folder that is at n levels higher (to understand exactly how many levels higher, you still need to count)? Windows operating systems (up to XP) offer three options:

1. Select an extra part of the path in the address, delete it and press the transition button or the Enter key;
2. Press the "up" icon, raising us one level higher, until we are at the right level;
3. Open the directory tree with the button, view it and click on the desired directory.

In order to perform each of the options requires a certain sequence of actions. In the first case, the user is required to have complex motor skills (when hovering the cursor exactly between two characters), plus moving the hand from the keyboard to the mouse and back. In the second case, after each pressing of the “Up” icon, you need to read the name of the open folder and remember if we need it. In the latter case, you need to read the open directory tree from the bottom up, until we reach the desired directory, then click on it.

Fill in the address bar with new functionality - even if, when you hover the mouse cursor over one of the parts of the path, after a short period of time, the name of the folder (or section) is displayed as a link that allows you to go to the folder with one click.
We give examples. In the file manager:

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In the browser:


So, when the task is to go to the folder (or section) N, just hover over its name and click.

Benefits of improvement:

• added functionality does not require a new place, and therefore makes more efficient use of the existing one;
• does not require changes in the interface, but only expands the basic capabilities of the address bar and can be implemented, for example, with a third-party utility.
• does not require any additional mental operations or complex motor actions from the user;
• in the browse mode, the address bar has not changed at all and is read in the same way as before.

Anticipating comments “in Windows Vista everything has been done for a long time and much better,” I would like to note that my proposal is theoretical, and refers to the address bar as an interface element, i.e. can be implemented even in Linux, at least in MacOS. In addition, the address bar is used not only in file managers, but also in browsers.

UP. What is the beauty of social networks, so it is in collective knowledge. What I did not find during the preparation of this small article was advised in the comments. Therefore, now I can supplement the article with examples of similar implementations:

1. Plugin for FireFox - Locationbar ² (thanks to Gram )
   
2. zet : In Total Commander, when you click with the cipher clamped on a folder in the address bar (in the active panel), you go to this folder. Those. almost the same as proposed, but instead of waiting, quite a clear action - holding Shift-a. But you can manually edit the path only after a simple click on this line.