uploaded a Nautilus script to create blank files in a folder.md

notes/a Nautilus script to create blank files in a folder.md

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+---
+title: a Nautilus script to create blank files in a folder
+date: 2024-12-13
+tags:
+- nautilus
+- scripting
+---
+I moved to Linux [time ago]. One thing I miss from the Windows file explorer is how easy it was to create text files.
+
+With Nautilus (Pop!\_OS' default file browser), you can create templates which appear when you right click in an empty folder (I don't remember where the templates file is and I can't find an obvious way to find out, so... search it yourself), but this doesn't work if you're using nested folders.
+
+i.e., I use this view a lot in Nautilus the file explorer, which is a tree-view that lets you expand folders instead of open them (similar to most code editors).
+
+```bash
+.
+├── ./5.3.2
+│   └── ./5.3.2/new_file
+├── ./6.1.4
+├── ./get_5.3.2.py
+└── ./get_6.1.4.py
+```
+
+But in this view, you can't "right click on empty space inside a folder" to create a new template file, you can only "right click the folder" (or if it's empty, "right click a strange fake-file called (Empty)").
+
+So, I created a script in `/home/alifeee/.local/share/nautilus/scripts` called `new file (folder script)` with this content:
+
+```bash
+#!/bin/bash
+# create new file within folder (only works if used on folder)
+
+if [ -z "${1}" ]; then
+  notify-send "did not get folder name. use script on folder!"
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+file="${1}/new_file"
+
+i=0
+while [ -f "${file}" ]; do
+  i=$(($i+1))
+  file="${1}/new_file${i}"
+done
+
+touch "${file}"
+
+if [ ! -f "${file}" ]; then
+  notify-send "tried to create a new file but it doesn't seem to exist"
+else
+  notify-send "I think I created file all well! it's ${file}"
+fi
+```
+
+Now I can right click on a folder, click "scripts > new file" and have a new file that I can subsequently rename. Sweet.
+
+I sure hope that in future I don't want anything slightly more complicated like creating multiple new files at once...