Using mate-search-tool (with examples)

Searching files by name in a specific directory

mate-search-tool --named=string --path=path/to/directory

Motivation: This command allows you to search for files that contain a specific string in their name within a specific directory. It can be useful when you want to find files with a specific keyword in their name.

Explanation:

• --named=string specifies the string to search for in the file names. Replace string with the desired keyword.
• --path=path/to/directory defines the directory in which the search should be performed. Replace path/to/directory with the actual directory path.

Example Output:

/path/to/directory/file1.txt
/path/to/directory/file2.txt
/path/to/directory/subfolder/file3.txt

Searching files without user confirmation

mate-search-tool --start --named=string --path=path/to/directory

Motivation: By default, mate-search-tool prompts the user for confirmation before starting the search. However, if you need to automate the search process, you can use the --start option to skip the confirmation step.

Explanation:

• --start starts the search immediately without user confirmation.
• --named=string and --path=path/to/directory are the same as explained in the previous use case.

Example Output:

/path/to/directory/file1.txt
/path/to/directory/file2.txt
/path/to/directory/subfolder/file3.txt

Searching files by regular expression

mate-search-tool --start --regex=string --path=path/to/directory

Motivation: Regular expressions offer powerful pattern matching capabilities. This use case allows you to find files with names that match a specific regular expression.

Explanation:

• --regex=string specifies the regular expression pattern to match in the file names. Replace string with the desired regular expression pattern.
• --start and --path=path/to/directory are the same as explained in the previous use cases.

Example Output:

/path/to/directory/file1.txt
/path/to/directory/file2.txt
/path/to/directory/subfolder/file3.txt

Setting a sorting order in search results

mate-search-tool --start --named=string --path=path/to/directory --sortby=name|folder|size|type|date

Motivation: By default, mate-search-tool sorts the search results by relevance. However, in some cases, you may want to sort the results based on other criteria such as the file name, folder name, size, type, or date.

Explanation:

• --sortby=name|folder|size|type|date specifies the criteria to sort the search results. Choose one of the options: name for sorting by file name, folder for sorting by folder name, size for sorting by file size, type for sorting by file type, or date for sorting by file modification date.
• --start, --named=string, and --path=path/to/directory are the same as explained in the previous use cases.

Example Output:

/path/to/directory/file1.txt
/path/to/directory/file2.txt
/path/to/directory/subfolder/file3.txt

Setting a descending sorting order

mate-search-tool --start --named=string --path=path/to/directory --descending

Motivation: Sorting the search results in descending order can be useful when you want to view the newest or largest files first.

Explanation:

• --descending specifies that the search results should be sorted in descending order.
• --start, --named=string, and --path=path/to/directory are the same as explained in the previous use cases.

Example Output:

/path/to/directory/subfolder/file3.txt
/path/to/directory/file2.txt
/path/to/directory/file1.txt

Searching files owned by a specific user/group

mate-search-tool --start --user|group=value --path=path/to/directory

Motivation: When working in a multi-user environment or with file permissions, you may need to search for files owned by a specific user or group.

Explanation:

• --user=value searches for files owned by the specified user. Replace value with the desired user.
• --group=value searches for files owned by the specified group. Replace value with the desired group.
• --start and --path=path/to/directory are the same as explained in the previous use cases.

Example Output:

/path/to/directory/file1.txt
/path/to/directory/file2.txt
/path/to/directory/subfolder/file3.txt

These examples demonstrate various use cases of the mate-search-tool command, allowing you to effectively search for files in the MATE desktop environment. Whether you need to search by name, use regular expressions, sort the results, or find files owned by specific users or groups, the mate-search-tool provides the necessary functionality.