Configure common Downloads folder or just sync?
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Foggy head so interested in 'words of wisdom'.
I have a self-organisation problem ref my Downloads folder(s).
After 40 years, I've decided I should do something about it.Stupidly (not showing off), I have 2 main desktops (6 in total) and 2 main laptops (4 in total).
Despite increasing use of self-hosted apps and Seafile, weak point is having the Downloads folder on on each machine in its conventional place.
[And 2 of the total are currently stuck in Kharkiv, Ukraine, so out of reach - tough for now, but if I'd bitten this issue earlier, it wouldn't matter. ]
I can almost guarantee that at least once per day I am on the 'wrong' machine for the file I need on a project.For me Downloads is important because it is often the folder which contains items used in recent work or projects.
[I've tried the simplest approach : get organised. That's not me.]
Seems to me that either :
- I change the location of Downloads on each machine (and maybe multiple apps on each), OR
- I sync contents of each Downloads to an always accessible location.
Leaning towards second approach :
- no reconfiguring
- easy to reverse if needed
- BUT need to check that sync process works reliably
Just wondering if any words of wisdom, or simply how do others handle this issue.
Yeah, I know, stop buying toys !TVM.
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Foggy head so interested in 'words of wisdom'.
I have a self-organisation problem ref my Downloads folder(s).
After 40 years, I've decided I should do something about it.Stupidly (not showing off), I have 2 main desktops (6 in total) and 2 main laptops (4 in total).
Despite increasing use of self-hosted apps and Seafile, weak point is having the Downloads folder on on each machine in its conventional place.
[And 2 of the total are currently stuck in Kharkiv, Ukraine, so out of reach - tough for now, but if I'd bitten this issue earlier, it wouldn't matter. ]
I can almost guarantee that at least once per day I am on the 'wrong' machine for the file I need on a project.For me Downloads is important because it is often the folder which contains items used in recent work or projects.
[I've tried the simplest approach : get organised. That's not me.]
Seems to me that either :
- I change the location of Downloads on each machine (and maybe multiple apps on each), OR
- I sync contents of each Downloads to an always accessible location.
Leaning towards second approach :
- no reconfiguring
- easy to reverse if needed
- BUT need to check that sync process works reliably
Just wondering if any words of wisdom, or simply how do others handle this issue.
Yeah, I know, stop buying toys !TVM.
@timconsidine my 'downloads' folder is on auto-clean
aka. a /tmp/mount.
The downloads folder does not survive a reboot.If I don't move stuff out of there it must be not important.
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A looong time agooo there was a nasty virus that did nasty stuff in the default install dirs for a set of apps.
Since then, I've always changed where things are installed to non-default places, including the downloads and document folders.
So on every box, there's an incoming folder for all things, "In" and when that's sorted by date, you always have a good idea where things are chronologically.
Now if you create a share/mount/sync place where each machine's incoming folder is mapped, they're always all in one place if they're online.
If you're on Windows, there's a nice instant search tool called Everything, which can be useful for finding stuff instantly.
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@timconsidine my 'downloads' folder is on auto-clean
aka. a /tmp/mount.
The downloads folder does not survive a reboot.If I don't move stuff out of there it must be not important.
@BrutalBirdie That's brutal, and I like it!
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A looong time agooo there was a nasty virus that did nasty stuff in the default install dirs for a set of apps.
Since then, I've always changed where things are installed to non-default places, including the downloads and document folders.
So on every box, there's an incoming folder for all things, "In" and when that's sorted by date, you always have a good idea where things are chronologically.
Now if you create a share/mount/sync place where each machine's incoming folder is mapped, they're always all in one place if they're online.
If you're on Windows, there's a nice instant search tool called Everything, which can be useful for finding stuff instantly.
@robi said in Configure common Downloads folder or just sync?:
If you're on Windows, there's a nice instant search tool called Everything, which can be useful for finding stuff instantly.
Spotlight / Alfred (also with full text index) or Find any File on macOS
If you're on Windows and don't have Admin rights (work PC...) as required for Everything: Locate32 (also available in 64bit
) is your friend, works standalone, albeit with an index that (automatically) updates from time to time
