Feature Request: Fence Folders

I would like to add to your idea of displaying directories/folders on the desktop through fences, which I think is a great idea.

I would like the feature to also include "yards"/more than one desktop, in relation to the fences concept.  Where each yard/desktop could be a set of fences that you can switch between.  So if you use the same computer for personal, work, entertainment, and default for an empty desktop or a folder for each yard.  You be able to set up a yard of fences for each use, using hotkeys to switch between them. (Preferably customizable hotkeys.)

The folder structure for the yards could actually just be:
.../User/Desktop/Personal
.../User/Desktop/Work
.../User/Desktop/Entertainment
.../User/Desktop/Default

This would be great for people who have mutliple major projects that they work on and software developers.  At my last job the programmer would have gone nuts if he had something like this where he could have a seperate desktop for each of the programs instead of having a bunch of programs listed on his desktop that he had to sort through to find the right one.

Having the ablity to see inside the folders makes it so you just have to open up the yard for a project that may have 10 folders.  Like if it was a web developer's desktop you would have a folder for the images, JavaScript files, CSS files, and so on.  For entertainment you could have a folder with a full list of movies, another of music, and another of games.

I would be very excited to see something like this happen.

I second the original request (I'm not sure I understood the second post).  I'd like the option of a fence equating to an actual location in the directory structure.  So really, the fence is an 'expanded' view of a physical folder.  I don't think I would want this for _every_ fence, though.

Ultimately, it would give me the ability to find 'fenced' items when browsing through explorer or from an app's Open dialog.

Thanks!

Sorry for the bad explaination, maybe this images will help.

Pretty much pressing different hot keys will show you different folder combinations depending on how you set them up.  This demos a setup of 4 combinations. (Default, Home, Work, and Entertainment)  If the user can create their own hot keys, then you can allow them to have as many of these as they can figure out hot key combinations for.

Man I had to dig out my account information so I could post a request -- only to find it's already been requested.

Let me put my my hand up in support of hctopcu's idea. I could seriously use 'folder' Fence functionality (and it'd be a great 'Pro' feature).

Hey guys! I like the idea its been something we've been toying with for sure. And would definitely make a killer Pro feature

Question though: operating system. Still have to toy with it to ensure its doable at all, but this kind of thing would unfortunatly only be particularly possible on Vista and Win7 systems. Do you guys make the cut??

Yes for me ... Win7.  Keep looking forward JMB.

Those XP guys have to upgrade sometime.

Had to dig up my login info as well. I just re-started using Fences again and this is a feature I'd gladly pay for as well. The reason for this: I'm using Belvedere to run rules against my folders to help keep my stuff organized. The use case I'm trying to solve is:

As a user I want to automatically organize my files based on attributes using rules. An example rule would be everything in my "Scratch" folder gets deleted if it is older than 3 days.

"Scratch" is something I need immediately accessible and not buried in my system because I use it to upload files, or drop things that need to be emailed, etc. These are not permament files, they are always going to be deleted.

Fences is great, because I can created a "Scratch" Fence and drop things in there. This gives me the benefit of quickly being able to see the files, and take action (they are on my DT).

But Belvedere can't see the Fence because it only works on Folders (likewise this is true of search, etc). So if I ran the rule as described above it would delete everything on my desktop older than 3 days (not a good idea).

The current solution options are:

a) Store a folder called "Scratch" in a Fence called "Scratch". This is rather pointless.

Add a #tag to end of every file that marks it as Scratch and then search on that #tag with the rule and place the files in the Fence. This works, and is something I'm doing because MS still can't get keywords/metadata right (can't they copy that from OSX already?). But this is more work than these files deserve.

Having a Fence type that could be an expanded view of an actual folder someplace would solve all of my problems. I could store the folder in a tiny fence on the desktop, have Fence of that folder, and run all the rules I want against that folder and be quite happy.

I'm using Vista and Win 7 so being confined to those two would be fine. I'd pay for this feature as part of the Pro set.

I think more Fences types could be a solution.

"Desktop's icons and Documents storage Fences to store icons on desktop.

"(multiple) Folder(s) display Fences" to display content of any or many Folders as a Fence. If it is possible give the ability to Fences user to create rules to move / copy any file is copied or draged on desktop to the folder(s) that is displayed in the Fence.
It also can be a cool stuff if Fences users could arrange the way multiple folders are displayed (mixed or separate as multiple tabs or collapsed button arrabged verticaly or horizontaly)

And in a final way, Fences that can do both of the behaviours. Folders files stilling in folders and desktop files stilling on desktop except if a rule was created to place it in a folder.

I have many other ideas to enhance fences and I am ready to help Stardock to do this by writing and designing what i meaned freely.

Sorry if I made mistakes, I'm french and my english level is perfectible.

Hey, I feel like an idiot.  I didn't read all the way down and I missed this thread.  My original post was this:

"Hey, new here and I had a thought.  I love the idea for Fences but I don't use my desktop.  lol  I keep it clean and empty and just view the desktop in my file browser as another folder.  I use it as a dropbin to save files to, download to or drag and drop to when I need a quick place to put something.  I even have gone so far as to change the location of my desktop so when I reinstall there is one less thing to have to remember to copy around.  That as what got me thinking about another way Fences could work.

I was wondering, in a future edition of Fences if instead of just the desktop we could choose what folder to target?  A different fence for different folders?  With this, you could move files around and have different drop sites for files.  I work in graphic design and using Fences like this would be perfect for file management and organization.

Otherwise keep up the great work!"

So I brought it in over here.

This is something that would easily get me to buy Fences!

Great idea! To show folders as Fences!! 

*I Like this Idea... I'm always wishing it was available* - *I think it would be a wonderful PRO Feature*

My work machine is XP. Not sure when they will upgrade to win7.

Workaround for XP would be to create something in "...\My Documents\Fences\FenceName\ShortcutToFileOrDirectory.lnk"

Also would like a way to archive fences, in case I close project #43572 and don't want it to show up unless I go to my directory list of closed fences. Archived fences would just be folders saved under "...\My Documents\ArchivedFences\"

Thanks,
C

This sounds like the Folder View widget from KDE 4. I've been looking for a way to do this in windows. 

If this feature is added i would seriously consider buying Fences pro.

Do you have an ETA on this feature?  This would make Fences an Amazing Product

I second the request of mapping folders to desktop fences

Right now I have to define a fence for each project and drag or link the appropriate folder inside it, not the best way

maybe have a look at nimi places (or the now defunct bumptop) for ideas, and don't fall in the not-invented-here syndrome, pls

Oh, I then move fences around the desktop depending on importance/urgency of projects (like in a matrix left-right = urgency, up-down = important), this is a productivity boost

I'll add myself to the list of people who'd use that. I have already paid for Pro, tho, so its not like you'd get an extra sale from me.

As a funny note: you could do that back in win98 days with active desktop, but not anymore.