Path: utzoo!yunexus!ists!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!apple!mattd
From: mattd@Apple.COM (Matt Deatherage)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: Problems for a new IIGS user (FST's)
Message-ID: <36520@apple.Apple.COM>
Date: 15 Nov 89 23:05:18 GMT
Article-I.D.: apple.36520
References: <2634.cortland.info-apple@pro-houston>
Organization: Apple Computer Inc, Cupertino, CA
Lines: 38

In article <2634.cortland.info-apple@pro-houston> dkl@pro-houston.cts.com (David Karl Leikam) writes:

>  And if it's the case that they must be SO strictly drawn that little or no
>development of that kind is possible, then I must ask, "Why have FST's, or the
>capability for them, at all? If they can't be implemented, why waste the disk
>space and time to store/access 'em as separate files, rather than embedding
>the code into the rest of the O/S???"  If you can't use 'em, what good are
>they?  If you _can_, let us see what use can be made!
>
>  n'cest pas?
>UUCP: crash!pro-houston!dkl
>ARPA: crash!pro-houston!dkl@nosc.mil
>INET: dkl@pro-houston.cts.com

Not to spend too much time on this, but storing FSTs as separate files is good
for much of the same reasons storing drivers in files is good:

1)  If Apple does release more, you can add them easily.
2)  If you don't want to use all that are available, you can remove the files
(or even inactivate them from the Finder).  Who without a CD-ROM wants to take
memory or boot time on a High Sierra FST?  Who wants AppleShare who doesn't
have a network?  If they were built-into the system, you might be stuck with
them.
3)  They've traditionally not done these things with files on the Macintosh
(most of these things are resources in the System file), and lots of people
don't like it.

I'd like to say I could go on, but that's probably the extent of it. :)

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