In macOS, I think pressing the spacebar lets you preview the file's contents before opening it. Is there a way to do the same in Ubuntu? (i.e. quickly open and close a preview of the file)
I've seen discussion of a preview panel, and installing additional software, but I'd like to use default software and not have my screen space permanently occupied by a preview bar.
Adding tags to this message, I see mention of Gnome Sushi and Gloobus-Preview. I will try to search more about these items.