Gloobus-Preview is an extension for the Nautilus file browser, which provides an instant preview of different kinds of files including videos, music, pictures, documents and source code files. It has been based on Apple’s Quicklook, which is a feature to get an instant preview of different kind of files. Gloobus-Preview is part of the three Gloobus projects, the other two being CoverGloobus (to preview and switch between audio files) and Coverflow which is being developed to allow users the utility of visually browsing files.

To install Globus-Preview in Ubuntu, enter the following commands in the Terminal. These commands are for Ubuntu 11.10, however, you can get older packages from Launchpad:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gloobus-dev/gloobus-preview sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get upgrade sudo apt-get install gloobus-preview

Once installed, click a file and hit Space key (from your keyboard) to get an instant preview. The file will be opened in a new preview window, without the need of any third-party application (such as a supported media player, image viewer, etc). This can help users avoid installing too many applications for different file types. You can view files in full-screen mode by clicking on the arrows (button) present at the bottom of the screen. To exit full screen mode, hit ESC.

The file preview window contains a Cog like icon (located at the top right corner), which provides access to application settings.

These settings allow users to keep the preview window on top, close the window when the mouse focus is shifted and to use the GTK theme for file preview (instead of the default black theme).

When you preview video files, you are provided with video playback for only a few seconds.

However, you can listen to entire audio tracks in the preview mode (just hit space key after selecting the file).

Gloobus-Preview package for Ubuntu 11.10 and older versions can be downloaded from Launchpad.

Download Gloobus-Preview [Launchpad Link]

Gloobus-Preview Homepage