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basic_concepts:the_lister:metadata_pane
Metadata Pane
Metadata is information that is stored in a file that describes the file itself. For example, photos you take with your digital camera contain metadata like the date and time you took the picture, and the exposure settings used to take it.
The Metadata Pane is an integrated metadata viewer and editor that can be displayed within the Lister. When it is enabled, it will automatically show (if possible) metadata relating to the currently selected file or files. For supported fields, the metadata can be edited directly and saved back to the selected files.
Showing the metadata pane
The easiest way to display the metadata pane in a Lister is with the 
button on the default toolbar. You can also press F9, or select the Metadata Pane command from the Lister dropdown menu.
Metadata pane title bar
The title bar of the metadata pane displays the name of the currently selected file. It also has two arrow buttons that let you move the selection to the previous or next file in the Lister.
If you've edited the metadata for the current files, the Apply and Cancel links will become available - click Apply to save your changes or Cancel to abort and reload the original metadata. You can save changes automatically and move to the next or previous file by holding the Shift key when you click the appropriate button.
You can also have changes saved automatically by turning on the checkbox next to the Apply link. This corresponds to the Apply changes automatically option on the File Operations / Metadata / Editor page in Preferences.
For a full description of Metadata editing, please see the Editing Metadata section.