Can't resize Finder List View name column past a certain maximum width

Question

Level 1

9 points

Can't resize Finder List View name column past a certain maximum width

I'm using High Sierra 10.3.3. I finally installed High Sierra a couple of weeks ago and I think this problem started after that. Previously, when using the Finder in "List View", I could resize the "name" column as wide as I wanted, which is useful when dealing with very long file names. I.e. so that you can see the entire filename on one line when you click to edit the file name. And when just looking at finder, you can see the entire filename without an ellipsis (...) in the middle of the name.

But now, there is a point at which I can't make the name column wider. The resizing tool changes from the <-|-> style to just being <-| . At that point I can only make the column narrower. See the image below showing the resizing tool. It looks like the limit is 1000 pixels wide. Why? Is there a setting I can change somewhere to NOT have width limits?

This is in LIST VIEW. I know that in Column View I can drag the resizing handle at the bottom, between columns, to any width. But I DON'T WANT to use Column View. I used to able to resize to any width in List View, and I want to do that again.

Please reply if you know what I can do to "fix" this. Thanks!

macOS High Sierra (10.13.3), null

Posted on Mar 10, 2018 1:48 PM

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Answer 1

liv0123

Level 4

2,877 points

Mar 11, 2018 5:45 AM in response to gapatrick

Hi gapatrick,

I resize my font size in the finder list view every great so often but not the column width.

I'm wondering if one of these suggestions may still work however:

Have you tried the following one first?:

》 To expand a column to show all filenames in their entirety, double-click the column divider.

------------------------------------

Other possibilities:

Further customize Icon, List, Column, or Cover Flow view

You can customize each view to suit your preferences. For example, you can change the text size of file names and, in some views, change the size of file icons.

Open a Finder window, select the folder you want to change, then click a View button: Icon, List, Column, or Cover Flow.
Choose View > Show View Options, then set the options you want. ----> For example, input column width
- To have the folder always open in the view, select the “Always open in” checkbox.
- To have subfolders also open in the view, select the “Browse in” checkbox.
  If a subfolder opens in a different view, select the subfolder, choose View > Show View Options, then deselect the “Always open in” and “Browse in” checkboxes. The checkboxes must be selected for the main folder and deselected for the subfolder.
To use these settings for all Finder folders that use this view, click Use as Defaults.
For example, if you set options for Icon view, then click Use as Defaults, all folders that use Icon view appear with the same options. Use as Defaults isn’t available for Column view because the settings apply automatically to all folders in Column view.

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Answer 2

gapatrick Author

Level 1

9 points

Mar 10, 2018 2:19 PM in response to Old Toad

Thanks. Just curious, how do you know that capability was dropped? If I could confirm that somehow then at least I would feel like it's not just some setting I could change. I'm not saying I don't believe you, I would not be surprised at all if it was a conscious change for High Sierra...

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Answer 3

Old Toad

Level 10

207,409 points

Mar 10, 2018 2:28 PM in response to gapatrick

I'm curious also. Why do you need such a wide name column? How long are your file names?

I just assumed it was dropped as you're the only person since High Sierra was introduced to question about that feature. If it was a frequently used feature I would expect more users to have questioned it here.

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Answer 4

gapatrick Author

Level 1

9 points

Mar 10, 2018 2:33 PM in response to Old Toad

Yeah, I have files with crazily long names, up to the maximum length (255 chars) due to a terribly designed system I use for work. "Let's cram all kinds of information into the file name, so we can search by substrings for various categories and fields!".

I doubt it's frequently used. I just thought it was strange that there would now be a (somewhat arbitrary) limit to the width of a column.

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Answer 5

gapatrick Author

Level 1

9 points

Mar 10, 2018 2:37 PM in response to gapatrick

And... not being able to see the full name means I have to hover and wait for the tooltip version of the name to show, or click to rename the file. It's not the end of the world as I can still make the column wide enough in Column View. Just odd that I can't also make the column wide enough in List View, which I really prefer.

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Answer 6

Apr 4, 2018 12:59 AM in response to gapatrick

Still a problem in macOS 10.13.4.

I tried snooping into com.apple.Finder.plist to see if I could dig up anything useful. That's where various column widths are stored, but no 'maximum' property that I could see. The 'width' property of the 'name' column maxes out at exactly 1000 there. When I manually modify the plist file (through defaults - which is supported, since it's a cached property list) to a number larger than 1000, the value gets reset back to 1000. So much for brute-forcing a fix in the meantime until Apple solves this...

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Answer 7

Old Toad

Level 10

207,409 points

Mar 10, 2018 2:20 PM in response to gapatrick

That capability was dropped with the introduction of High Sierra. Tell Apple what missing features you'd like restored or new features added via https://www.apple.com/feedback/macos.html.