Yes

File and folder naming is something I struggle with continually. European and eastern languages are a particular challenge. Unfortunately, file naming rules are different for each operating system, as well as for HTTP. What works on your machine, might not work as a URL.

So I do my best.

Whatever you upload or add remotely to the File List’s folder will be automatically renamed (sanitized) as follows:

DOTS

Dots are not allowed in the file or folder name and will be replaced with dashes or underscores.

date.name.txt will become date_name.txt

Folder.A will become Folder-A

SPACES

Spaces are bad trouble in URLs, so:

My picture of my dog.jpg will become My-picture-of-my-dog.jpg

You can also hide the extension, if that part scares your users…

My-picture-of-my-dog

Special Characters

These special characters are OK. Anything else could be troublesome.

$ - _ . + ! * ' ( ) ,

Cyrillic Characters

If the file name sanitizing function has too much trouble cleaning your file name, it may simply be named unnamed-file.ext. You can rename this to something more suitable in the Admin File List.

Use the Nice Name Feature

As of Simple File List version 6, the file’s original name can be preserved as the file’s Nice Name. The file itself will still be renamed if needed, but the Nice Name will be displayed in the file list in it’s place. Go to the List Settings tab and check the box to preserve the file name.

Summary

Sadly, the rules for naming our files and folder are much more restrictive on the Internet than they are for our personal computers. I try to do my best to make links work while respecting the source name, and I will continue to do so.

Feedback appreciated…