Fyler

Let's presume, for a while, that most file management operations are primarily handled by the built-in File Explorer of your Windows machine. Most users might not feel the need to step up to a more dedicated solution, and that's fair enough. But for those looking for something else, alternative solutions abound.

As an alternative solution, Fyler is a bit of an interesting case. It doesn't feature a dual-panel layout you'd likely find on other programs, and it's lightweight in a way that other such apps aren't: it's got a minimalist, yet practical interface, that doesn't skimp on functionality.

The installation is swift, so users should be able to get into the program really quick and not encounter any issues. Looks-wise, you'll notice that the interface adopts a sort of modern-looking, bordering-on-minimalist design. While some may consider minimalism to be form over function, it isn't the case here.

All of your files and folders are grouped in a compact manner, where details about their size, modification date, and type can be readily recognized. In the MIDI mode, the waveforms of your audio files are shown directly in the interface, which is a nice touch. Working on multiple files is possible through the tab-based interface.

The Columns Presets function works to further the file management aspect: based on the chosen type, the view and details for audio, image, MIDI, and video files are changed. For instance, in the Audio mode, the duration of each of your audio files, as well as their bitrate, channel, and format, are all summarily displayed at a glance.

Right-clicking a file will bring up a quite generous context menu, which usually contains a bunch of useful tools to help you with your file management needs. For instance, you can convert image files to another format right through that menu, and the same is true for audio and video files.

The highly-customizable nature of the program is welcome, too. You can assign verbs, which can basically import your file into a program to boost efficiency. For instance, you could create a verb for certain image files, whereby the program automatically launches your default editor, automatically importing your photo in the process.

There's a lot to Fyler, and the compact interface couldn't be any more deceiving. For that reason, it makes for a tempting software proposition. During testing, the program crashed quite frequently — which isn't a surprise, given its feature-packed nature — so I hope this can be fixed, or at least alleviated, in future updates.