Folder functionality could use some improvements from current implementation.

Potential ideas:

  • The /api/datasets/:id/files list includes all files (including those in folders and subfolders) but doesn't indicate which folder they are in (or if they are in a folder at all). https://github.com/clowder-framework/clowder/issues/34
  • There is no way I see to get a list of files in a specific folder. https://github.com/clowder-framework/clowder/issues/35
  • The 'Download All Files' button on the GUI is somewhat misleading inside a folder/subfolder:
    • Here, I am in a subfolder 'tiny little foods' and it would be reasonable for someone to expect the button to just download files I'm seeing in the folder. 'Download Dataset' would be a better label (if we don't want to support people downloading folders individually - which would have metadata implications for the idea of dataset vs folder).
  • Dragging and dropping a folder from the operating system into the file upload GUI will correctly scan the folder and subfolders, but it adds all the files as a flat list and the folder organization is lost. I would expect the folder structure to be preserved. https://github.com/clowder-framework/clowder/issues/36
  • On the UI, files have a 'Move' button to move into and out of folders, but the folders themselves do not have such a button. I don't know if the API supports adding a folder to another folder either (see below). https://github.com/clowder-framework/clowder/issues/37

Current folder API features for reference:

  • Create a new folder
  • Move file in a dataset into a folder
  • Move file in a folder back out into a dataset (no folder)
  • Delete a folder
  • Update folder name
  • Get list of folder names and IDs by dataset ID
  • No labels

1 Comment

  1. +1 for the api enhancements. The current limitations definitely made it harder to do incremental uploads (trying to compare the local file structure with the folder contents).