I want a linux symlink to resolver to the parent directory rather than the directory containing the symlink.
This is not the default behavior of linux but it is the default behavior of windows links.
I need the parent directory for two reasons.
One, if I drag and drop a file or folder into an email message I want the link to be from the parent directory.
Two, if I create a link to the desktop to a client’s folder I want to be able to go up one directory to the parent folder of the client, perhaps to choose a different client folder.
The following link provides alternative methods of getting to the parent folder of a link, but it is indeed messy.
That article suggests requesting a feature in Nautilus (Caja) that would allow a choice of how symlinks are made.
The only site I found so far that might entertain this is:
https://github.com/mate-desktop/caja/issues
I am waiting for an email that confirms my membership so I can make such a request.
These are other links that address the problem at least somewhat:
This is a post of my own http://forums.mate-desktop.org/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3771
Apparently this is the desired method but there was a time when nautilus did something different and people complained
https://askubuntu.com/questions/280431/how-can-i-stop-nautilus-from-dereferencing-symlinks
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/nautilus/+bug/1184720