tdelibs/kio/Mainpage.dox

/**
 * \mainpage A network-enabled file management system in a library
 *
 * This library implements almost all the file management functions you
 * will ever need. In fact, the %Trinity file manager, Konqueror also uses
 * this to provide its network-enabled file management.
 *
 * The easiest way to use this library from a %Trinity application is via the
 * KIO::NetAccess class (for easy synchronous access) or via the
 * KIO::Job class (for more complex asynchronous jobs).
 *
 * This library also implements the System Configuration Cache (KSycoca).
 *
 * KMimeType:
 * The notion of a file type, already existing in Trinity-1.x
 *
 * KService:
 * To a mimetype are bound one or more applications, now called services.
 * Services can be applications, but also libraries, dynamically opened.
 *
 * KServiceType:
 * A service type allows the same mechanism to be extended to components.
 * For instance : the question "what are the koffice plugins" is solved by
 * a service type called KOfficePlugin, and by every plugin providing
 * a .desktop file stating that it is a service that implements the servicetype
 * KOfficePlugin.
 *
 * KServiceTypeProfile:
 * Stores the user's preferences for services bound to mimetypes/servicetypes.
 *
 * KTrader:
 * Use it to query for which services implement a given mimetype/servicetype.
 * Has its own language, in order to allow complex queries.
 *
 *
 * \section Trinity Filedialog widget and associated classes.
 *
 * This library also provides the Trinity file selector widget,
 * its building blocks and some other widgets, making use of the file dialog.
 *
 * The file dialog provides different views; there is a vertically scrolling
 * view based on KListView, showing things like filename, file size,
 * permissions etc. in separate columns. And there is a horizontally scrolling
 * view based on KIconView. Additionally, there are some compound views,
 * like a view using the icon-view for files on the right side and another
 * view for directories on the left. A view, that shows a preview for the
 * currently selected file (using KIO::PreviewJob to generate previews)
 * and any other view to show the files is also available.
 *
 * All those views share a common baseclass, named KFileView, which
 * defines the interface for inserting files into a view, removing them,
 * selecting etc.
 *
 * The one class encapsulating all those views and adding browsing capabilities
 * to them is KDirOperator. It allows the user to switch between different
 * views.
 *
 * KFileTreeView is a KListView based widget that displays files and/or
 * directories as a tree. It does not implement the KFileView interface,
 * however, so it can't be used with KDirOperator.
 *
 * Besides the filebrowsing widgets, there is the KPropertiesDialog class,
 * implementing a dialog showing the name, permissions, icons, meta
 * information and all kinds of properties of a file, as well as providing a
 * means to modify them.
 *
 * The KPropertiesDialog is extensible with plugin-pages via the
 * KPropsDlgPlugin class.
 *
 * The KIconDialog class shows a list of icons installed on the system (as
 * accessible via KIconLoader) and allows the user to select one.
 *
 * KOpenWithDlg implements a dialog to choose an application from, that is
 * to be run, e.g. to let the user choose an application to open a file/url
 * with.
 *
 *
 * KFileDialog:
 * The class providing the file selector dialog. It combines a KDirOperator,
 * KURLBar and several other widgets.
 *
 * KDirOperator:
 * The class encapsulating different KFileViews, offering file browsing and
 * file selection. Asynchronous, network transparent reading of directories
 * is performed via the KIO library.
 *
 * KURLRequester:
 * A widget to be used for asking for a filename/path/URL. It consists of a
 * KLineEdit (or KComboBox) and a button. Activating the button
 * will open a KFileDialog. Typing in the lineedit is aided with
 * filename completion.
 *
 * KURLRequesterDlg:
 * A dialog to ask for a filename/path/URL, using KURLRequester.
 *
 * KFileView:
 * The base class for all views to be used with KDirOperator.
 *
 * KFileIconView:
 * The KFileView based on KIconView.
 *
 * KFileDetailView:
 * The KFileView based on KListView.
 *
 * KFilePreview:
 * The KFileView, combining a widget showing preview for a selected file
 * and another KFileView for browsing.
 *
 * KURLBar:
 * A widget offering a number of clickable entries which represent a URL,
 * aligned horizontally or vertically. The entries are customizable by the
 * user both on a per application basis or for all applications (URLs, their
 * icon and the description can be added, removed or edited by the user).
 * This is the widget used as "sidebar" in the KFileDialog.
 *
 * KFileMetaInfoWidget:
 * A widget that allows viewing and editing of meta data of a file, utilizing
 * KFileMetaInfo.
 *
 */