Re: Smart Folder/Saved Search does not work properly on hidden files (Late 2013 MacBook Pro, OS X 10.13 High Sierra)

On 2024-06-03, Dudley Brooks <dbrooks@runforyourlife.org> wrote:

I have several files which I hid using
>
chflags hidden
>
They work properly in Finder: They originally do not show up, but
shift-control-period toggles them between showing and not showing.
>
I next made a Smart Folder/Saved Search:
>
[All] of the following are true
[File visibility] [Visible items]
<further criteria>
>
EVERYTHING satisfying <further criteria> shows up -- visible files AND
invisible files!
>
As an experiment, I also made
>
[All] of the following are true
[File visibility] [Invisible items]
<further criteria>
>
NOTHING shows up -- not visible files OR invisible files!  A completely
blank list!
>
What is wrong?

It seems the "File visibility" criteria is for whether you want dot
files (files whose names begin with a period character) to appear in
search results. It doesn't seem to consider files whose `hidden`
extended attribute is set. When you use the `chflags` command-line tool
you are setting an extended attribute on the file in question, which is
different than adding a dot to the beginning of the name. I'm not sure
whether the way search works is an oversight or just the way it was
designed to work. Personally, I consider it an oversight and would
encourage submitting feedback about it if it's something you care about.

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JR