Nautilus’ Custom Folder Feature Made Easier to Find
It’s all done using a native, built-in feature of the Nautilus file manager — it’s not even a new feature either as the file manager has let users change folder icons since time immemorial.
But it is currently an underexposed, lesser-known capability.
Unless you know to open a folder’s Properties dialog and click on the directory icon at the top (which opens a file picker from which you can select any valid image file) there’s a good chance you’d never discover the feature.
I certainly hadn’t until last year!
Why are custom folder icons useful?
Well, they can aid your workflow by letting you give important folders a distinctive, identifiable, or specific look. And they can scratch a personal aesthetic itch, as was my case when I used the feature to change the blank ‘snap’ folder in Ubuntu’s Home directory to one with an emblematic icon.