What B.L.I.S.S. can do. The lab recommends reading this section before forming any opinions about what
it cannot.
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Desktop Window Environment
Multiple windows, each independently navigable. Drag, resize, minimize,
maximize, snap to halves or quarters via the snap-assist widget. Taskbar button for every open
window. It is a desktop. In a browser. The lab is aware of what it has done.
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File Operations
Upload, download, create folders, rename, delete, copy, cut, and paste —
all via toolbar buttons, keyboard shortcuts, or right-click context menu. Bulk selection with
Ctrl+A or Shift/Ctrl+click supports delete, copy, move, and ZIP operations on multiple files
simultaneously.
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Three View Modes
Details view with sortable columns. Large Icons for the visually inclined.
Small Icons for the efficient. Switching between them is instantaneous and the lab has strong
opinions about which one is correct but will not share them unprompted.
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ZIP Archive Support
Right-click a folder or selection to create a ZIP archive. Right-click a
.zip file to extract it in place. All handled server-side in pure Node.js — no system binaries
required inside the container, because the lab learned that lesson the hard way and documented
it for posterity.
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File Preview & Properties
Preview text files, source code with syntax highlighting, images, and PDFs
directly in the browser without downloading. Binary files get a hex dump. Right-click any file
for a Properties panel with size, type, and ownership data. The lab considers this thorough.
Some researchers consider it excessive. Both groups are correct.
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Persistent Settings
Theme choice, sidebar pins, wallpaper, and display preferences are stored
server-side in the config volume — not in localStorage. They survive across browsers, devices,
incognito sessions, and the kind of existential reboots that clear browser state. The experiment
remembers.
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Sidebar Pin Management
Pin any folder to the sidebar for quick access. Right-click a pinned item
to remove it. The default Home and Documents pins can be removed. All windows sync immediately.
The lab believes strongly in customization and will not be talked out of it.
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Wallpaper System
Set a wallpaper from any image in your storage, or upload one directly.
Three display modes: Stretch, Fit (maintain ratio), and Center. Wallpaper is stored in the
config directory on the server. The desktop, after all, should feel like home.
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Keyboard Shortcuts
F2 to rename. Delete to delete. Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+V for copy/cut/paste.
Ctrl+A to select all. Ctrl+N for new folder. Backspace to go up a directory. The lab is a firm
believer in not reaching for the mouse when a keystroke will do.
⬡
Integrated Text Editor
Double-click any text, code, config, or script file to open it in a full
editor window. The editor is a proper draggable, resizable window with its own taskbar button —
it observes snap-assist, respects z-index, and yields to other windows like a civilized
apparatus should. Ctrl+S to save. Ctrl+F to find.
⬡
Live Syntax Highlighting
Code files are highlighted as you type — JavaScript, Python, TypeScript,
Rust, Go, SQL, YAML, Bash, HTML, CSS, and 25 more. Highlighting is handled via a contenteditable
element, so the cursor lives inside the colored text and there is no drift. The lab spent time
on this. It was worth it.
⬡
Editor Toolset
Word wrap toggle. Line numbers. Font size selector. Find-in-file with
match counter and Prev/Next navigation. Prose mode for .txt and .md files with a rich-text
formatting toolbar. Unsaved changes are tracked with an indicator dot and a confirmation prompt
on close. Tab inserts four spaces. The lab has opinions about spaces.