How does this compare to Total Commander[0]? [0] https://www.ghisler.com/android.htm
Well this is so far my favourite Android file manager. I simply ignore the built-in file manager on all devices I use and pick Total Commander instead.
Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
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Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#52I still use ES file explorer pro from ages ago. I transfer the apk from device to device and backed it up on multiple locations. It really provides a unique set of features, browser-like tabs, ftp server/client, ... it makes managing files so much more doable on a phone. it saddens me that it got removed.
Yes. ES File Explorer is the best. I only resort to these material file explorers when installing any APK as newer Android versions have restricted APK installation from ES File Explorer.
Material UI file explorers have too much wasted screen space and unnecessary slow animations, lack of bottom positioned controls etc. and it makes managing files slow and frustrating.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#53This is one of a few apps that has perfect support for accessing /data/data directory on rooted phones.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38505229
Jeez, thanks for the warning! Looks like people are forking the project: https://github.com/fossifyorg But, of course, the question is whether anyone will actually maintain the apps.
Naveen, the admin of the fork is a heavy contributor to the original repos. So I hope its not that difficult for him to maintain the fork. Infact it has started to make its way to Izzysoft on F-Droid
https://apt.izzysoft.de/fdroid/index/apk/org.fossify.gallery
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
Naming is hard, and I already have to implement file management :P Just kidding. The reason is that I started the project mostly because I wanted a file manager with proper Material Design, and it's very unlikely that I (or AOSP) adopt a completely different design system.
Google has then created a new version of Material design: https://m3.material.io
Yes, and this app adopted it as well. There's a toggle in app settings for Material 3 v.s. the old Material 2 right now, and there used to be one between Material 1 and 2.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#56Used this for years, but after some repressive change to Android I can't access files in the Android/ dir where most apps save their files. Apparently it needs to be rooted for that to work. So, sadly pointless now. I'm stuck with the default file manager.
Material Files also allows you add a shortcut to the stock file manager (DocumentsUI), using "Add storage" > "Android/data" from app drawer. You may even manually edit the shortcut to point to a specific subdirectory inside Android/data, and I plan to make that easier (so that you don't need to manually URI-encode your path if you edit) in an upcoming version.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#57This has been my go to file manager for years. It is the first thing I install on a new phone. It can even mount network file systems like ftp, sftp, and smb. I use the sftp and it works really well all things considered. edit: double bonus points because it is available on the privacy centric/open source app store Fdroid.
Android does not natively have any kind of file browser?
It does, it's called DocumentsUI and provides the system file picker. However its main entry point is often hidden, and imo it's still somewhat suboptimal/limited in certain aspects. But it's the only way to access the private Android/data directory right now.
Material Files also provides the ability to easily open DocumentsUI for browsing Android/data.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#58Looks really nice! I've been using FX for years, looks like a lot of similar features, will have to try this.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#59Used this for years, but after some repressive change to Android I can't access files in the Android/ dir where most apps save their files. Apparently it needs to be rooted for that to work. So, sadly pointless now. I'm stuck with the default file manager.
Material Files also allows you add a shortcut to the stock file manager (DocumentsUI), using "Add storage" > "Android/data" from app drawer. You may even manually edit the shortcut to point to a specific subdirectory inside Android/data, and I plan to make that easier (so that you don't need to manually URI-encode your path if you edit) in an upcoming version.
Cool, thanks.
Re: Show HN: Material Files – Open Source Material Design File Manager for Android
#60This has been my go to file manager for years. It is the first thing I install on a new phone. It can even mount network file systems like ftp, sftp, and smb. I use the sftp and it works really well all things considered. edit: double bonus points because it is available on the privacy centric/open source app store Fdroid.
My goto used to be MiXplorer, but got into running only FOSS stuff where possible, and now Material Files has filled the role perfectly for me for over a year now.