Forum Discussion
MicrosoftProvide run / open / save / save as options when downloading files - Discussion
Hello everyone,
Thanks so much for all the feedback provided regarding Open/SaveAs. We are now introducing an option for users using Edge version 87.0.629.0 and above to choose, for each download, whether they want to Open, Save As, Save, or Cancel a download. To enable this option, navigate to edge://settings/downloads and enable, "Ask me what to do with each download." Once you download a file after enabling that setting, you will have the option to Open, Save As, Save, or Cancel it. If you choose to open it directly, it will be downloaded to a temporary folder.
Additionally, we have exposed an option to directly delete downloaded files from your computer, in the browser so that you can easily clean up after downloading your files without leaving the browser.
To learn more about these features, please check out our post.
- Although this was a mainstay of IE, I think this "Open" button actually needs to die. The reason? Storage Sense. Windows 10's Storage Sense can automatically clean up the Downloads folder of old things we only needed temporarily (like program installers or things to print). The "Open" button of IE caused unneeded confusion, because people wanted to save AND open, and making them choose just confused them. Not to mention if you open a file and then decide you want to save it, you have to re-download it or use "Save As..." in whatever program opened it. If you treat the entire Downloads folder as the new, simply more visible, temporary cache, the "Open" button is unnecessary. Simply save everything, then offer to open if desired. If you really want to keep an Open button, you can leave an option to re-enable it in settings, but leave it off by default.
- This is something I do a lot, and right now, all major browsers make you either always open the Save As dialog or open the downloads folder and move stuff afterwards, messing with the download history. Some others suggested a button to move everything after downloading, which I think is an AMAZING idea. Put a button on the download bar on the right side where the useless "Show All" button is right now, that says something like "Move Downloads", which will open the Select Folder dialog box and move whatever files you just downloaded and are on the download bar into a folder you choose. You can also have an option to "Move & Rename" for each file, accessible via the ... button on each download. I prefer the former over the latter, but both would be great!
- Yes! Lightweight and fast is key. In my work, I use a website which recently forced me to download a bunch of files individually in succession (bad website design, but nothing I can do). I don't want to answer Open or Save for every file in that case.
- Interestingly, Firefox already allows you to set a default option per file type. The problem is file type is not an accurate predictor of contents of the file (family photo and clip-art might both be .jpg files), so that is not so great. If you use my suggestions in #1 and #2, I think those fixes will cover all scenarios you mention in #4, except wanting to delete a file immediately after viewing. For that, you could optionally add another option to the ... button for each download that says something like "Open Once" or "Open & Delete". When the user chooses that, transparently move the file from the Downloads folder to the traditional temporary cache where IE and classic Edge would store files to be "opened" instead of saved. Then, open the file from there, and delete the file from there as you would have done before if the user had clicked "Open" in Edge. In other words, assume the user normally wants to save to Downloads, because that is what Chrome does, it is faster, and it prevents unwanted loss of data, but provide the option to change your mind afterwards by marking the file as temporary.
I know these changes may sound radical now, but so was the idea of Microsoft making a Chromium-based browser.
I would be happy to further clarify any of my suggestions. Thank you for designing a browser based on community suggestions!
DinosaurTim, for this record, I strongly disagree with eliminating the "Open" or "Run" options we've had in IE and classic Edge. However, to your point that it causes confusion, I do think your naming suggestions of something like "Run once" or "Open and delete" could help. I have no objection to that. I'd think for clarity with other terminology, it would probably be "Run/Open without saving."
But I really want to emphasize that lacking this ability is the biggest negative to me with the new Chromium Edge browser and the chief reason I go to another browser (classic Edge, in my case) so please, MS, don't let DinosaurTim's feedback discourage adding this.
GraniteStateColin My main focus is on reducing the number of clicks needed to accomplish things and streamlining workflow. Old IE/Edge always asked what to do with stuff before downloading, waiting for me to choose, and not starting the download until I do.
It's not that I hate the Open button; I hate the pre-download prompt with the Open button. The only reason that prompt existed was to choose between Save, Save As, and Open. Considering that Save and Open both download a file first, I think they are technically redundant. If you disagree, I'd honestly like to know what unique purpose the Open button serves for you? If it is just temporary file deletion, I think that can be better handled by downloading first, then having an "Open (and Delete)" button.
Regarding the pre-download Save As... button, that can be also replaced with a post-download Move Downloads... button on the download bar, which streamlines organization of multiple downloads at once.
DinosaurTim wrote:GraniteStateColin My main focus is on reducing the number of clicks needed to accomplish things and streamlining workflow. Old IE/Edge always asked what to do with stuff before downloading, waiting for me to choose, and not starting the download until I do.
It's not that I hate the Open button; I hate the pre-download prompt with the Open button. The only reason that prompt existed was to choose between Save, Save As, and Open. Considering that Save and Open both download a file first, I think they are technically redundant. If you disagree, I'd honestly like to know what unique purpose the Open button serves for you? If it is just temporary file deletion, I think that can be better handled by downloading first, then having an "Open (and Delete)" button.
Regarding the pre-download Save As... button, that can be also replaced with a post-download Move Downloads... button on the download bar, which streamlines organization of multiple downloads at once.
Save and Open are NOT REDUNDANT. Save stores a file someplace. Run/open is for a single use, don't want to think about where to put the file and don't want to ever think about deleting it -- just open it and be done with it. Technically, of course both actually save the file someplace, so I understand what you mean when you say redundant, but from a UX perspective, they're as opposite as they are on the file menu in Word or Excel.
"Run/Open" is a HUGE TIME SAVINGS. Granted, the "Open" option that appears at the bottom of Chromium Edge helps compared with having to navigate to the saved file and open it, but it's still much slower.
A few examples:
- Voice messages in email -- I just want to play the attachment. I don't want to save it. I don't even want to look at the browser. Just play it. This is Open.
- Software updates -- Just want to run the update. I don't want the file after it runs. I don't want to have to go somewhere to clean it up. These can be large files, hundreds of MB, so forgetting to delete is a space risk. This is Run.
- Excel, Word, PDF documents that I may want to save, but I won't know until I've read it, so I want to open in the proper application, then I'll use that app's full File Dialog to save if I want to keep it, maybe after making some minor edits.
To do any of those without a Run/Open option, I would need to: Save it. Open it from the browser bar (an admitted improvement over the old much worse way of needing to navigate to the file), make a mental or physical note that I'll need to delete the file which I can't delete now, because the file is open. That last step is huge -- it absolutely destroys my flow. As soon as I have to pause to think about file management, my workflow and the UX is destroyed.
- josh_bodner
DinosaurTim just thinking as a fellow downloads user right now, not a Microsoft employee, but your view of downloads as a temporary cache is really interesting to me. If there were a checkbox either in our "clear browsing data every time you close the browser" page or the downloads section to empty the Downloads folder every time you close the browser, that would definitely fix the issue of files laying around on my machine. We also wouldn't need the open/run button at all, since it would still take the same number of clicks to get a file open: instead of clicking the link, then "Open" before the download starts like we currently do in Edge Legacy, it would be clicking the link, then clicking its entry on the Downloads bar after it's finished downloading to open it. I guess the only difference is maybe time, since I have to notice when it's done instead of just waiting and having it pop up as soon as it's finished.
josh_bodnerAn option to delete downloaded files on close sounds like a great idea, as long it only affects downloads from that session, not everything in the folder. (If someone has something already there, or something downloaded from another browser, that should not be deleted by Edge.) Also, I'd keep the option to delete downloaded files separate form the existing option to clear download history. Some might want one but not the other.
About your second point, the great thing about how Chromium Edge currently works is that you can click on the download while it is still in progress in the download bar, and it will open once downloading is finished (or your can choose to always open files of this type). The number of clicks is the same like you said, and it actually saves time, because the download can start faster than I can click open. All that changes is the order: click Open and then start downloading in classic Edge/IE vs start downloading and then click Open like current Chromium Edge.
josh_bodnerSorry mate but I do not like this idea. Some "low priority" files are opened on the fly, others are saved in the downloads folder. Clearing the browsing data will also delete more important files. Using Temporary directory is the best solution. Some old things just don't need much of a changing. Those design choices are really good. Even some browsers that are chrome based offer similar functionality, for example Vivaldi. This is rare and very useful feature for power users.
