Microsoft may make all the adjustments it wants to its File Explorer, but the old two-panel system that programs like Norton Commander and Midnight Commander is definitely superior. Unreal Commander is a free file manager whose goal is to reproduce a good part of the functions offered by more modern variants (let's say, Total Commander), and that any user can master in a matter of minutes.
The readers of NeoTeo know well that I have a certain preference for file managers that imitate the unforgettable Norton Commander. That software placed MS-DOS on a completely different level, and despite advances in graphics and interfaces, the truth is that its essential functions adapt wonderfully to Windows. Most users see File Explorer as a satisfactory solution, however, those of us who depend more on the keyboard can save time with this type of managers.
The big question is which one to choose. Fortunately, the offering is very broad. Total Commander has been with us for several years, and many projects have adopted its plugin system as a kind of standard, but the cost of its license (37 euros) is still too high. A direct alternative is Unreal Commander.
A Total Commander Alternative
The default color selection may not please all users, but the first good news is that they can be easily replaced, either by applying one of its integrated visual styles (the second image shows the “NC Style”, which I activated immediately), or by modifying values in each of the fields (background, cursor, fonts, etc.).
Personalization doesn't end there: The configuration menu presents options to disable all secondary bars and gain more space. The panel divider has automatic parameters (available when right-clicking), which reduces centering to a couple of clicks and saves us the tedious process of calculating by eye.
The rest of the commands in Unreal Commander are almost identical: F5 to copy, F6 moves files, F7 creates folders, F8 deletes, we select content using Insert or the spacebar, and at the bottom we find a command execution box. Unreal Commander can be run as a portable program, and its normal installation enables all basic functions. To release the rest, we only need to generate a free key that lasts 180 days, or make a small donation in euros.
