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From: rmh@apple.com (Rick Holzgrafe)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.system
Subject: Re: Aliases not OK where?
Message-ID: <13737@goofy.Apple.COM>
Date: 30 May 91 01:10:36 GMT
Sender: usenet@Apple.COM
Organization: Apple Computer, Inc.
Lines: 36

References:<1991May29.131714.10976@xn.ll.mit.edu> <1991May30.093952.925@csc.canterbury.ac.nz>

In article <1991May30.093952.925@csc.canterbury.ac.nz> 
raymond@cosc.canterbury.ac.nz (cantva) writes:
> From article <1991May29.131714.10976@xn.ll.mit.edu>, by 
delaney@xn.ll.mit.edu (John R. Delaney):
> > I gather aliases can be used ALMOST everywhere. I believe that there 
are a
> > few locations in the System Folder where they cannot be used. Could 
some
> 
> Well, I havn't been able to use aliases to inits yet. Annoying really as 
I have
> both systems installed and switch between them.

Aliases are interpreted by the Finder and by the Standard File dialogs. A 
few System 7-savvy apps can interpret aliases on their own (and more will 
follow). Other than that, it's no dice.

This means they don't work for INITs (which are executed by the System 
before the Finder is launched), but they do work for Startup Items (which 
are opened by the Finder, as though you'd double-clicked them.) They also 
work nicely in the Apple Menu Folder, for the same reason.

Non-System-7-savvy apps which try to open files without using Standard 
File (for example, preference files, dictionaries, help files) will not be 
able to access these files through aliases. So you can't keep preference 
files in your 6.0.x system folder, with aliases to them in the 7.0 
Preferences folder.

Hope this helps.

==========================================================================
Rick Holzgrafe              |    {sun,voder,nsc,mtxinu,dual}!apple!rmh
Software Engineer           | AppleLink HOLZGRAFE1          rmh@apple.com
Apple Computer, Inc.        |  "All opinions expressed are mine, and do
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