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Portkey Drop - Product Requirements Document

Overview

Portkey Drop is an accessible file transfer client built for screen reader users. It provides a clean, keyboard-driven interface for connecting to remote servers via FTP, SFTP, FTPS, SCP, and WebDAV. Built with wxPython and Prismatoid for full NVDA/JAWS compatibility.

Why This Exists

Existing file transfer clients (FileZilla, WinSCP, Cyberduck) rely heavily on visual cues (drag-and-drop, tree views with icons) that don't translate well to assistive technology. Portkey Drop uses a dual-pane layout with properly labeled standard ListCtrl panes ("Local Files" / "Remote Files") that screen readers like NVDA and JAWS handle naturally. Each pane is a standard list control with SetName(), so screen readers announce which pane has focus. Every action is keyboard-accessible and every state change is announced.

Supported Protocols

  1. SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol) - Primary, most secure, most common
  2. FTP (File Transfer Protocol) - Legacy support, still widely used
  3. FTPS (FTP over SSL/TLS) - Encrypted FTP
  4. SCP (Secure Copy Protocol) - Fast SSH-based transfers
  5. WebDAV (Web Distributed Authoring) - HTTP-based, used by cloud services

Core Features

Connection Management

  • Site Manager: save/edit/delete connection profiles
  • Quick Connect bar: host, port, username, password/key
  • Connection history (recent connections)
  • SSH key authentication support
  • Automatic protocol detection from URL schemes

File Browser

  • Dual-pane layout: Local Files (left) and Remote Files (right)
  • Each pane is a labeled wx.ListCtrl — screen readers announce "Local Files" or "Remote Files" on focus
  • Tab switches between panes
  • Navigate files with arrow keys in either pane
  • File details announced: name, size, type, modified date, permissions
  • Path bar above each pane showing current directory
  • Go to parent directory (Backspace) in whichever pane has focus
  • Quick search/filter within current directory (Ctrl+F)
  • Local pane starts at user's home directory

Transfer Operations

  • Upload selected local file(s) to current remote directory (Ctrl+U, no file picker needed)
  • Download selected remote file(s) to current local directory (Ctrl+D, no save-as dialog needed)
  • Transfer queue with progress announcements
  • Resume interrupted transfers
  • Batch transfers (select multiple files)
  • Background transfers with speech notifications

File Operations

  • Rename, delete, create directory
  • View/edit file permissions (chmod)
  • View file properties (size, dates, owner)
  • Copy/move files on remote server

Accessibility

  • All actions via keyboard shortcuts
  • Speech announcements for: connection status, directory changes, transfer progress, errors
  • No reliance on visual-only indicators
  • Configurable speech rate/volume/verbosity
  • Sounds for: connected, disconnected, transfer complete, error

Settings (Sensible Defaults)

Connection Defaults

  • Default protocol: SFTP (most secure)
  • Default port: 22 (SFTP), 21 (FTP), 990 (FTPS), 443 (WebDAV)
  • Connection timeout: 30 seconds
  • Keepalive interval: 60 seconds
  • Max retries: 3
  • Default transfer mode: Binary
  • SSH host key verification: Ask on first connect, remember after

Transfer Defaults

  • Concurrent transfers: 2
  • Overwrite existing: Ask
  • Resume partial: Yes
  • Preserve timestamps: Yes
  • Follow symlinks: No
  • Default local download dir: ~/Downloads

UI Defaults

  • Announce file count on directory load: Yes
  • Announce transfer progress: Every 25%
  • Show hidden files: No
  • Sort by: Name ascending
  • Date format: Relative ("2 days ago") with full date on request

Architecture

  • UI Layer: wxPython + Prismatoid (screen reader announcements)
  • Protocol Layer: Abstract TransferClient interface per protocol
    • paramiko for SFTP/SCP
    • ftplib (stdlib) for FTP
    • ftplib with SSL context for FTPS
    • requests + webdavlib for WebDAV
  • Settings: JSON config at ~/.portkeydrop/settings.json
  • Site Manager: JSON at ~/.portkeydrop/sites.json (passwords encrypted)
  • Transfer Queue: Threaded background transfers with progress callbacks

Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Ctrl+N: Quick Connect
  • Ctrl+S: Site Manager
  • Ctrl+U: Upload files
  • Ctrl+D: Download selected
  • Ctrl+R: Refresh directory
  • Delete: Delete selected
  • F2: Rename selected
  • Ctrl+Shift+N: New directory
  • Backspace: Parent directory
  • Enter: Open directory / download file
  • Ctrl+Q: Disconnect
  • Ctrl+I: File properties
  • Ctrl+T: Transfer queue
  • / or Ctrl+F: Filter/search files