■ xplorer² updated version 2.1

You don't expect much of leap years. Such cosmic anomalies are liable for all sorts of calamities like the IMF paying a visit (hello athens!) or windows 8 (metro) getting sillier than ever — it took me ages to realize how to turn the win8 consumer preview off after some bozo removed the familiar start button. To counter-balance the cosmic scales, here is a better xplorer² version ☺

The big addition in version 2.1 is the Details pane which can be turned on/off from View menu. It is similar to the details pane in windows explorer, showing extended information and a thumbnail for the selected item. The information is type-specific; on top of standard date and attributes you get particulars like dimensions when you click on an image or duration when you click on a video or music file. It is like an infobar on steroids. Moreover some properties like names and dates can be changed by clicking on the link-style label. The details pane can be a habit changer, you can switch your folder view to list mode, seeing more content, without sacrificing item details.

Other noteworthy added features include: (changelog)

Tag management. Actions > Set comment command is improved so you can add/remove tags to many files at once. For example if you select a bunch of computer related pictures and press <Alt+Z> you can set the computer tag to all of them by ticking append tag in the dialog. All existing tags are preserved. These tags are just comments as far as xplorer² is concerned but you can take advantage of them in search rules.
Regular expressions. You can use regular expressions in text search rules and for matching filenames. Set the fuzziness indicator in the <Ctrl+F> search dialog to 0 (the little box next to the Named field, usually set to 100) to activate the regexp mode for filenames.
Collapsible groups. If you have windows vista or later you can collapse groups (View > Arrange by menu) using the little arrow to the right of the group header. Click again to restore the group.
Default folder view. Setting the default folder view mode (i.e. the combination of pane style, sort method and grouping) is a headache for some users. Now all you have to do is setup a folder like you want it and activate Actions > Folder settings > Default menu command. When browsing another folder you can change e.g. to thumbnails temporarily, knowing that next time you change the folder it will be back to your default view mode.

Download xplorer² v2.1 (professional version, 32 or 64 bit)

If you already own a v2.0 license key this is a free upgrade for you, just install it on top of your existing installation (without uninstalling the old one). If you haven't got a v2 key yet have a look at the v1.x migration procedure, you may be entitled to a discount.

xplorer² ultimate edition

Up to now xplorer² had two flavors, a free lite and a paid for "professional" version. Now we have a 3rd paid option called ultimate. It is more expensive ($49.95) but it is the best xplorer² money can buy. It combines the file management power of the professional version with portability (no installation required and no impact on windows registry). It suits people on the move as well as system administrators in bigger companies. If you tried the old portable version you'll be glad to hear that the new ultimate version can be both installed on a hard disk and be kept in a USB stick at the same time.

In anticipation of the support turmoil this is going to cause, I regret to inform the owners of professional licenses that you cannot get the ultimate version unless you pay for the difference in price (use Help > Upgrade to ultimate menu command). The ultimate edition is a separate product with its own lifetime cover — a true leap year spawn. At any rate, if you don't need the portability you don't miss out on anything big, the v2.1 professional version is very capable as always.

Download xplorer² v2.1 (ultimate version, 32 or 64 bit)

The website navigation is becoming a bit tricky as there are two flavors to purchase and download, so please be careful which button you click. In addition for each version there are separate 32 and 64 bit builds to download, selectable from drop-down menus. When it comes to buying you don't have to worry about 32/64 bits, only choose between professional and ultimate.