A little while ago, I suggested that the file browser should be enhanced with a recursive search function. I have another idea that would bring a similar level of convenience (i.e. the ability to quickly find a suitable sample or soundfont without having to rummage through folders or use an external search tool). My idea is to simply turn the already existing preset menus into a folder tree view with a search bar, located in the right pane where the file browser is.
That way, Renoise would only need to keep an index of its own preset folders, rather than the whole file system, in order for the search to be fast. The con is that you wouldn’t be able to do indexed search in other locations, but the workaround is to simply make a symlink of your sample library in the Renoise sample preset folder. (I don’t know how symlinks work on Windows, but they’re extremely simple on Unix-like OSes.)
This is an example of what I would want it to look like (the screenshot is from LMMS):
Or, like what we already have with the plugin browser:
