Tabs have horizontal space wasted on bloated padding - and Active Tab name shifts its placement [RESOLVED]

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Forez
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Tabs have horizontal space wasted on bloated padding - and Active Tab name shifts its placement [RESOLVED]

#1 Post by Forez » 03.07.2022, 19:17

Every Tab has a lot of horizontal space wasted on its left and right sides- i.e. between edges of a Tab name and its edges. Or to be super precise: between its left edge and beginning of a tab name or locked Tab indicator preceding the beginning of a tab name; and between end of a Tab name and its right edge or the minuscule >> X << icon adjacent to the right edge of an Active Tab [of both Active Panel and Inactive Panel]



There is no need for such intervals, as Tabs themselves are clearly spaced apart with vertical gaps. If user's modus operandi relays on Locked Tabs and a user has a lot of them, then every horizontal pixel counts. On top of that there is this issues of FreeCommander moving up and down rows of Tabs [https://freecommander.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=27338] - and so the more Tabs such user can put in just a single row of Tabs then there is a less chance for such user of having to to use more than one row of Tabs [thus experience distracting shift of rows of Tabs]



And also: look at other elements- how much space is there between the icon of a drive and left edge of Address Bar? Or between texted items of main menu? Very little. And so, why then waste space on displaying nothing where it is very needed?



Plus there is this inconsistent display- because when a Tab is activated, then it moves its name from a centered position to the right edge of Tab [which happens also when there is a character Indicator "attached" to such name]. For me personally this is simply annoying

What is the point behind this? To make it stand out, as some users my not have set some colors for indication of an Active Tab? If yes: then I propose adding an option to disable this. Or an option to at least switch between this current [fail-safe] indication and an indication in form of formatted text for Tabs name to choose from: i.e.: underline, upper-line, italic, bold; preferably with a distinction between active Tab of Active Panel and Active Tab of Inactive Panel



And no: the option available under the

Tools > Settings > View > Folder Tabs > Tab Management > Maximum lenght of the tab title

does not govern this. And the available in the menu after right clicking a Tab option of

Properties > Tab Name

[also] helps for the aforementioned modus operandi of multiple pinned Tabs - but there are limits to how little characters a user must see in order to be able to distinct different Tabs / folders



And so I hereby propose that FreeCommander should allow users for precise defining of that space on the left and right side of Tabs' names - or at least a choice between e.g. small, normal, large [with the current one being large]
Last edited by Forez on 10.04.2023, 13:42, edited 2 times in total.

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Dreamer
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Re: Tabs have precious horizontal space wasted on bloated padding - and Active Tab name shifts its placement

#2 Post by Dreamer » 03.07.2022, 22:42

I'm using no text for tabs, use "-" as tab name to hide it, at least for the locked tabs, for some standard folders like:
- documents
- downloads
- programs
- videos
- music
- pictures
- recycle bin
- ftp

I'm using the big icons option and the custom icons from the system - Windows, it's even more intuitive than long name in text form.

It's a really good workaround which can save lot of space and even prevent the need to have multiple tab rows.

EDIT: You could still see the full path of the tab as tooltip.

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Forez
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Joined: 30.01.2016, 12:05
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Re: Tabs have precious horizontal space wasted on bloated padding - and Active Tab name shifts its placement

#3 Post by Forez » 31.12.2022, 15:02

Dreamer wrote: 03.07.2022, 22:42 I'm using
[...]
workaround
[...]
Yep, I also use such workaround

But that's just it- it is merely a workaround to a slightly lacking UI


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Forez
Posts: 1312
Joined: 30.01.2016, 12:05
Location: In front of a PC monitor

Re: Tabs have precious horizontal space wasted on bloated padding - and Active Tab name shifts its placement

#5 Post by Forez » 31.12.2022, 18:40

Karol wrote: 31.12.2022, 16:21 Try to deactivate the options:
- Bold active Tab
That did not help; but this
Karol wrote: 31.12.2022, 16:21 - Show close button on active tab
did the trick. [Although now I probably will have to change my Tab Style to Single Slant, as Round Corners and Square Corners make the Tabs now a little too close to each other for my taste. But even with Single Slant style the same amount of Tabs take less horizontal space than before]

So problem solved - thank you very much

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