2 Ingenious Apps To Help Organize Files and Folders On Your Mac

The Challenge of Digital Clutter on Your Mac
Do you ever feel the urge to completely wipe your computer and begin anew, simply to achieve a sense of order? Unfortunately, such a drastic measure is rarely practical. What, then, is the solution when your desktop or hard drive becomes overwhelmed with a multitude of files and folders?
For Mac users seeking organization, and crucially, the ability to maintain that organization, several options are available.
Two prominent applications offer distinct approaches: Nifty Box provides a centralized organization system without altering the original file locations, focusing only on the files you deem important. Conversely, SmartShuno automates the tidying process directly within the Finder, resulting in a consistently neat desktop and hard drive.
Nifty Box: A Centralized Hub
Nifty Box offers a fresh starting point for file management. While your Mac’s existing files and folders may remain disorganized, you can selectively include files and bookmarks within Nifty Box for streamlined access.
Instead of relying on traditional folders, Nifty Box utilizes tags to categorize your essential documents and files. Furthermore, you can attach concise notes to each entry, serving as reminders of the file’s contents.
Adding files is a straightforward, single-step process – simply navigate to the desired file. Alternatively, you can drag and drop files directly from the Finder into Nifty Box.

Adding bookmarks is equally simple, achieved by pasting the URL or dragging the link from your browser’s address bar into Nifty Box.

After adding a file or bookmark, you can assign relevant tags and notes to enhance organization.

With all your desired files and bookmarks within Nifty Box, locating them is quick and easy. You can browse by specific tags, or filter by file or bookmark type.

Nifty Box integrates with Spotlight for effortless searching. It’s important to remember that deleting a file from Nifty Box does not remove it from your computer. The application also functions as a quick launcher for your favorite applications, allowing you to easily access apps by adding them from your Applications folder.

SmartShuno: Automated Finder Organization [No Longer Available]
If you prefer to directly organize your files within the Finder, consider exploring the methods outlined in Jeffry’s article on utilizing the Mac’s native Automator. Alternatively, a user-friendly option exists in the form of the lightweight application, SmartShuno [Broken Link Removed].
To effectively use SmartShuno, you must first establish a series of organized folders to store your files. Employing a Getting Things Done (GTD) approach can help structure these folders to align with your workflow. A simpler system can also be effective; I’ve chosen three categories – Action, Pending, and Archive – to reflect my organizational needs.

Integrating SmartShuno requires incorporating specific tags into your file names to ensure correct folder placement. Appending the folder name to each filename is the most straightforward method.
SmartShuno then allows you to create filters that automatically move files based on their names, extensions, or sizes from locations like your desktop or downloads folder to their designated folders.
For instance, while working on an article for MakeUseOf, saving the Word file to my desktop, I can append the filename with the tag 'Action.' This triggers a SmartShuno filter to move any files containing 'Action' in the title into the Action folder.

Upon completion, renaming the file with 'Archive' and applying a similar filter facilitates archiving.
Automated batch renaming of files is also achievable using Automator, as detailed in Wez’s article. Automator allows you to create a rule to append text to filenames, quickly organizing numerous files on your hard drive.
SmartShuno is also beneficial for moving files with specific extensions to designated folders – for example, images to your Pictures folder, and videos to your Videos folder.

Finally, once your rules are configured, you can schedule SmartShuno to execute them automatically, maintaining a consistently organized system without manual intervention.

For alternative methods of file organization using tags and smart folders, explore Jeffry’s article, Simple Ways to Organise Your Files in Mac.
What strategies do you employ to organize files and folders and keep your hard drive tidy? Share your methods in the comments below.
Image credit: mrmanc
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