Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!apple!lsr
From: lsr@Apple.COM (Larry Rosenstein)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.system
Subject: Re: Aliases again
Message-ID: <13844@goofy.Apple.COM>
Date: 3 Jun 91 18:02:19 GMT
References: <1991Jun01.033937.8241@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu>
Organization: Object Based Systems, Apple Computer, Inc.
Lines: 25

In article <1991Jun01.033937.8241@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu> ejbehr@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu (Eric Behr) writes:
>
>There may be some simple reason for this, but I stand by my gripe: aliases
>*do not* behave like applications, unless everything is on the same volume.
>This may be particularly important in network situations. Am I nitpicking?

I think aliases do behave as you expected.  I don't have Word, but I tried
this with MacWrite II.  I had MWII on disk A.  I created an alias and
dragged the alias to disk B.  I could drop TEXT documents on the alias
regardless of where the the document was.

On the other hand, the information about what types can be dropped onto an
app (or alias) is stored in the desktop database.  So I tried rebuilding the
desktop, and then the alias stopped working if the document and app/alias
have different creator IDs.  (If the document and app have the same creator
ID, then dropping still works.)

The solution is to get the information back into the desktop database by
either copying the app or a fresh alias onto the disk.  

-- 
Larry Rosenstein, Apple Computer, Inc.

lsr@apple.com
(or AppleLink: Rosenstein1)