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From: cseaman@sequent.UUCP (Chris "The Bartman" Seaman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Re: How to improve Workbench 2.0!
Message-ID: <52355@sequent.UUCP>
Date: 5 Feb 91 17:58:40 GMT
References: <779@caslon.cs.arizona.edu> <1991Feb4.134336.23501@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> <1991Feb4.151637.5868@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>
Organization: Sequent Computer Systems, Beaverton, OR
Lines: 54

rjc@geech.ai.mit.edu (Ray Cromwell) writes:
< PROPOSAL:
< 
<   Why don't we all particpate in developing some standard Environment
< variables for applications to use. Then future updates and new programs
< could support them. Since env vars are on the 'user' side of things,
< and since users are the ones who are going to be using them, it should be
< only fitting that we develop their meanings. So follow-up on this post
< and attach your favorite env-var name and what it does.
< 
< I'll start it off..
< 
< 
< $EDITOR=path/name of default editor to use
< $PAGER=path/name of pager (less,more,leggi, ppmore, etc)
< $PAINT=paint program
< $VIEW=iff picture viewer
< $PLAY=smus/med player
< $MOVIE=anim player
< $TERM=term
< 
<  What are the benifits of env vars? How many times has a program
< assumed the path of a program. Like a picture file looking for 'myhd:picviewer'
< ? Of course you have to edit it with the info command.
< 
<   With env vars, the Icon can just execute '$VIEW'. Optionally you could even
< specify your favorite command line options. One problem with this is,
< neither WB nor AmigaShell support wildcard expansion. Until Commodore adds
< env var support in icons, it will have to be hacked with an iconx script.
< The tooltype of pictures/music/textfiles, etc would have to execute
< s:envexpand which would GetEnv the var and execute it.
< 
<  Any ideas?

This is similar to the notion adopted by SKsh.  You can create a file
(only needs to happen once) containing information about given TYPES
of files (ILBM, 8SVX, SMUS, text, binary, etc.), and provide the name of
the program you want to run when each type of file is encountered.
SKsh has a program called 'view', which takes one or more files as
arguments, and then makes a best guess from your parameter file as to
which program suits each file.  It would seem possible to modify such a
program to use WB arguments, and possibly simplify the maintenance of
the parameter file.  Then, for a given file, you would simply make its
default tool 'view', and let IT figure out which program to run, where
to find it, what arguments it needs, whether it requires a console
window, etc.

How does this sound?

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