Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!ucla-cs!ucla-ma!pico!barry
From: barry@pico.math.ucla.edu (Barry Merriman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: UI idea...comments, anyone?
Keywords: drag-and-drop, tools, documents vs. applications
Message-ID: <1991Jun3.024929.28033@math.ucla.edu>
Date: 3 Jun 91 02:49:29 GMT
References: <1991Jun2.203311.19795@fcom.cc.utah.edu>
Sender: news@math.ucla.edu
Organization: UCLA Dept. of Math, UCLA Inst. for Fusion and Plasma Research
Lines: 73

In article <1991Jun2.203311.19795@fcom.cc.utah.edu> 
burchard@math.utah.edu (Paul Burchard) writes:

>there's still one significant gap to filled: in  
>the UI it's hard to work on Documents using different tools---especially
> UNIX tools.  
>

I agree this point needs to be resolved before UNIX folks
can shed  their shells forever, on their NeXTs.

There used to be a partial fix for this, at least for unix commands
that always act on files with special suffixes (.tar, .tex, .Z, etc)
and produce an output file named via some convention: the
``Unknown'' App. ``Unknown'' seems to no longer work under 2.0,
though. Does anyone know if a 2.0 Unkown app is available?

(Even if NeXT works on this point, we still need an interim fix for
these things, and that must come in the form of some public
domain App like Unknown).

>I think it's possible create this ``multiple tool'' functionality with a  
>minimum of disruption to NeXTstep, by basing it on the drag-and-drop 
>mechanism which already exists in the Workspace.  
>Just as folder icons can now accept  
>file icons, icons of executables and Applications would then be able to 
>accept Document icons.

NeXT is not going to take lightly any amendments to the 
drag-and-drop paradigm, since user interface consistency is
a major issue for them. I'm sure getting permission to extend
drag-and-drop from a graphical alias for cp/mv/ln to a graphical
alias for an arbitrary command with file input would require
lots of internal debate at NeXT.


>doing this for UNIX  commands requires knowing how to construct the 
>proper command line. This can of course get hairy, but remember 
>that the goal is not to perform 
>arbitrary UNIX command lines, just to call programs that can be thought 
>of as performing an action on a single file.

[suggests using the defaults database/dwrite to create default
command line options conditioned on the filename suffix]

This is really similar to how the ``Unkown'' app worked, although,
If I recall, it kept its own database of command lines, rather than
using the defaults database. I suggest Unkown is sufficient, and nearly
optimal for this sort of thing---it worked pretty well for tar/untar,
compress/uncompress, tex-ing, etc.

You might want to just get ahold of the 1.0 Unkown,
and see if it can be modified to work under 2.0---probably no big deal.
it lives at nova.cc.purdue.edu in /pub/next/1.0-release/source
(I don't a version in the 2.0-release directory, and the 1.0 version
I had doesn't seem to work under 2.0).

>Do you have any advice on whom to write at NeXT?

I suggest that, since you are in higher ed, that you go through
the NeXT Director of Higher Ed, Dr. Ron Weissman; his addrss
is ronald_weissman@next.com. He should be able to forward your
mail to the appropriate internal group at NeXT.





--
Barry Merriman
UCLA Dept. of Math
UCLA Inst. for Fusion and Plasma Research
barry@math.ucla.edu (Internet)   barry@arnold.math.ucla.edu (NeXTMail)