PowerToys

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Description of the new feature / enhancement

We are thinking about phasing out the preview pane work in favor of Peek. Peek is designed in a way that allows us to iterate far faster than the File Explorer preview pane. Debugging / testing the preview pane extensions does add a lot of time. This adjustment will allow us to slim down PowerToys, iterate faster and simplify the code base

We'd love community feedback here as our plan of record will be to do the following:

1. Add GCode and STL file format to Peek for 3d file support
2. Mark File Explorer preview pane previewers as deprecated
3. Remove the preview pane previewers in the September 2023 release

I want to directly call out Thumbnail generation code will stay in PowerToys. This is only for the Preview pane

Scenario when this would be used?

Simplifying the PT code base and better user experience via PowerToys Peek

Supporting information

No response

This is great as the new FE has a new details pane anyways. It's better to consolidate effort with the one experience we want to provide to users.

I do not like the idea of removing the file preview in File Explorer. In some projects, when I'm working with a huge amount of small files (Markdown, Monaco Preview files), sometimes I just want to see what's inside without having to hit a few keys first. But these two preview file types are the only ones I regularly use for previewing (+ pdf I only use for thumbnails). I would be ok with the change if the Print key (detected as Apps/Menu) and the Alt Gr key (detected as Ctrl Alt) could be used as keys in the activation keybind and my second Ctrl' key (detected as normal Ctrl`) would be detected as a different one. I want to have the keybinds I use very often all in the line of my space key.

If I should open an feature suggestion... for the key things just write.

I hope you can understand it (my English is not so good).

I do not like the idea of removing the file preview in File Explorer. In some projects, when I'm working with a huge amount of small files (Markdown, Monaco Preview files), sometimes I just want to see what's inside without having to hit a few keys first. But these two preview file types are the only ones I regularly use for previewing (+ pdf I only use for thumbnails). I would be ok with the change if the Print key (detected as Apps/Menu) and the Alt Gr key (detected as Ctrl Alt) could be used as keys in the activation keybind and my second Ctrl' key (detected as normal Ctrl`) would be detected as a different one. I want to have the keybinds I use very often all in the line of my space key.

If I should open an feature suggestion... for the key things just write.

I hope you can understand it (my English is not so good).

Yes, please open a new feature request with your ideas for the activation key.

Please no. The preview pane is better because it's always available when you need it, and it can be integrated in 3rd party apps like Total commander. Peek requires the entire powertoys thing to be running. Also Peek adds one more window that you have to manage when multitasking. If it must be removed, at least make it a one-off standalone package.

The preview pane […] can be integrated in 3rd party apps like Total commander.

Would be neat if Peek also has an API for 3rd party additions [EDIT: see also #26422], although 3rd party devs’ awareness of PowerToys might be limited (namely compared to the Explorer preview) simply because Windows doesn’t pre-bundle PowerToys (despite heavy recommendations).

Peek requires the entire powertoys thing to be running. If it must be removed, at least make it a one-off standalone package.

That’s an inherent problem with toolkits like PowerToys … it’s basically a collection of bundleware if you view it from a certain perspective. [Update: filed this as #27729]

Also Peek adds one more window that you have to manage when multitasking.

What if – Explorer preview pane := Peek.docked (:?

What if – Explorer preview pane := Peek.docked (:?

I would also support this. IMO it's much quicker to have a look at the preview pane than pressing a shortcut if you just need a small glance at a file. If the devs want to focus on Peek, that's fine, but please give us the option to place the peek preview in the explorer preview pane.

and better user experience via PowerToys Peek

I just want to say that his is highly suggestive and not something I like to be reading. But maybe that's something they teach new employees at Microsoft?

On a different note. I agree with a few points mentioned above; the preview pane is built-in Explorer, so easily accessible and indeed so without the large PowerToys software to be running.

On another note, the new file Explorer im the Windows Insider builds has a new details pane, which will be easily accessible by a button in the top right, whereas the preview pane will be more a feature, that is moving to the background.

@Jay-o-Way Peek allows you for example to copy things out of files. It also allows us to more easely make a good user interface.

What if – Explorer preview pane := Peek.docked (:?

Although maybe not impossible that would be very difficult to do.

And how would it then differentiate from the preview pane?

And how would it then differentiate from the preview pane

Supported file types?

And how would it then differentiate from the preview pane?

(Possibly) different in a technical perspective. Perhaps the preview pane is nothing more than a widget, but the peek is a full-blown window. Docking the peek means borderlessly embedding it (in the preview pane or as an Explorer mod) or simply putting it next to the Explorer window.

@ParadoxV5 to your first comment -- all that would be just reinventing the wheel for no good reason whatsoever.

Nobody would ever use a 3rd party Peek API, certainly not the old-head file managers. Recreating the preview pane, when the one that has been in the OS for 15 years works fine, would be insane. And you'd still have to run Peek in advance no matter what you do, meanwhile the preview pane is always just an Alt+P away.

Recreating the preview pane, when the one that has been in the OS for 15 years works fine, would be insane.

On the user side it mostly works fine, you're right, but on the developer side we have to make a lot of quirks to make it work with newer technology like webview2. All this while the preview pane technology is very poorly documented and it's difficult to debug. These are all problems we don't have with Peek. So just focusing on Peek would bring us faster developer times and helps us to iterate faster.

On the user side it mostly works fine, you're right, but on the developer side we have to make a lot of quirks to make it work with newer technology like webview2. All this while the preview pane technology is very poorly documented and it's difficult to debug. These are all problems we don't have with Peek. So just focusing on Peek would bring us faster developer times and helps us to iterate faster.

Interesting insight. Devs (1st- or 3rd-party) would have much easier times if they can just work with Peek as an alternative/replacement of the preview pane. Even if docs fail, Peek source code is public after all, unlike Windows Explorer.

Well if you value ease of development over utility then remove it, I can't stop you. I'm just telling you that using the preview pane has several real advantages that Peek will never be able to replicate.

I'm just telling you that using the preview pane has several real advantages that Peek will never be able to replicate.

As I wrote some time ago, I prefer to use the preview pane. I am a person who has folders with a lot of files and I regularly have to look at what they are about and which one I need. With the preview pane I can just select the first one, see what's inside in a small pane at the side (size dependent on the file explorer size) and then press the arrow down (, ..., ). With Peek I first need to select a file, press a annoying key shortcut, close the window if I don't need the content (, ..., ). In addition I know some people, which are only using PowerToys because of the Markdown and Monaco preview in the preview pane.

I use the preview pane regularly, and this would be a loss for me. I would prefer the preview pane over peek, if a choice between the two needs to be made. The preview pane has a convenient docked location, in contrast to peek which places a window on top of current applications.

A nice benefit of the standard previewers is that they work in other file managers and utilities besides Explorer. Eg. Everything can load preview handlers in its own preview pane. I think tools like that would be much less likely to implement Peek previews, especially if there was no way to embed them in another window.

I'm glad you are keeping thumbnail generation around, as I have sent a PR to allow Peek to use those as main icon (and fallback to file icon when no thumbnail is available)! #27979

That PR also fixes the alpha channel transparency issue that Peek has been plagued since inception!

There is one thing I like about file explorer preview that no other replacement solution offers: When the preview is active, I can scroll through the file list with the cursor keys and always see a preview immediately without having to press another key. No, peek can't do that. Peek, once open, can scroll through the files with the cursor keys. But this is not the same as scrolling through the file list in explorer - I just don't see the file list anymore, with all its information. With the File explorer preview I can also decide at any time to select a specific other file with a single mouse click - and then immediately have a preview, while with peek you have to call peek again first. In browsing files, the file explorer preview is unbeatable, and I don't want to lose it.

What would be the possibility of adding the open file dialogs/widgets to peek? That way it could function as a standalone tool?

better user experience via PowerToys Peek

I disagree.

Workflow using preview pane:

1. select file (with mouse or keyboard) in file explorer
2. preview is shown in preview pane 🎉
3. press "arrow down" key to select new/next file
4. preview is shown in preview pane 🎉

Workflow using Peek:

1. select file (with mouse or keyboard) in file explorer
2. press hotkey for Peek (default I think is CTRL+Space)
3. new window with preview is shown 🎉
4. press ALT+F to close window or use mouse to close window
5. press "arrow down" key to select new/next file
6. press hotkey for Peek (default I think is CTRL+Space)
7. new window with preview is shown 🎉

My conclusion is that 4 actions (preview pane) < 7 actions (Peek). In which way is Peek a better user experience?

I quote @FroggieFrog

Workflow using preview pane:

select file (with mouse or keyboard) in file explorer preview is shown in preview pane 🎉 press "arrow down" key to select new/next file preview is shown in preview pane 🎉

This is literally my daily workflow, every single day. It has been for years. I cannot emphasize how much time this preview saves me. I cannot imagine preview not being a part of file explorer. I sincerely request the devs to keep this in PowerToys.

As for peek, well, I say keep it. There are people who prefer peek and there are people who prefer preview. Both are good in their own way.

I also think the functionality of getting a new preview with just moving the file selector is critical. Seems like this proposal is OK if a dockable peek that just stays open to save all the keystrokes can be conceived.

Peek is good, I like how it uses dark theme for .md files. But can I invoke it from terminal? I.e. peek.exe readme.md. There is a PowerToys\WinUI3Apps\PowerToys.Peek.UI.exe executable, but it doesn't react to anything.

Peek is good, I like how it uses dark theme for .md files. But can I invoke it from terminal? I.e. peek.exe readme.md. There is a PowerToys\WinUI3Apps\PowerToys.Peek.UI.exe executable, but it doesn't react to anything.

good feedback, outside the scope of the Q as a File Explorer previewer wouldn't do this as well

In my opinion, peek should truly rival preview pane only when it can update as soon as the user selects a different item. One use I use for preview pane is to just press ⬇️ repeatedly for viewing content, but peek currently doesn't have that (edit: you can use the arrows in the preview window as well)

I don't think that we should remove the preview handlers because Peek can use it too. If we do so, we definitely have to port them over to Peek.

we definitely have to port them over to Peek.

#28690

we definitely have to port them over to Peek.

#28690

I know. But they have to exist as explorer preview handler. If we remove them in File Explorer then they won't be available in Peek too.