Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!decwrl!pa.dec.com!decuac!hussar.dco.dec.com!mjr From: mjr@hussar.dco.dec.com (Marcus J. Ranum) Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards Subject: Re: file attributes Message-ID: <1991Jun22.171528.9624@decuac.dec.com> Date: 22 Jun 91 17:15:28 GMT References: <1743@sranha.sra.co.jp> <1991Jun20.021749.12011@gpu.utcs.utoronto.ca> <1750@sranha.sra.co.jp> Organization: Lines: 41 erik@srava.sra.co.jp (Erik M. van der Poel) writes: >Indeed. Many programs will suddenly stop working if we start adding >standardized metadata to the files themselves. That's why we need the >new system call. What's this "when" stuff? Don't hold your breath. Remember, a Mac is not a multiuser machine. If I go through my filesystem on my UNIX machine and set all my file colors to an attractive shade of blue, and the default application to "/bin/rm", that may not be the same color/application mix desired by someone else. Simplistic desktop models like Mac's aren't going to cut it for multiuser systems where you might have fifty users looking at the same file, each wanting a *different* set of options, and maybe a shared global default or two. You don't need a new system call - you need a system that keeps a global database of file information and local customized per-user file information. There are loads of nice databases around that can easily handle a simple index->attribute map like you'd need. A new system call would not only be inelegant, but it wouldn't provide half as much functionality. Another problem with the system call idea is that you'd then need to make every vendor support it, and use the same attributes and so forth for your application to work right. Using a database would give you an application that could even work on non UNIX machines. I realize that Macs do thier attribute stuff in the kernel, but there is only one vendor that makes Macs, and it's easy to standardize in that case. Don't junk up the already bloated kernel - write your application right. Besides - I don't see how you can say UNIX doesn't have good facilities for doing this kind of stuff - have you ever looked at Visix' "Looking Glass" or something like that? It works fine, and since they are producing a commercial product, they didn't have time to wait for everyone to see the light and ram some useless new system call into their kernel. mjr. -- Hell is owning a *diskless* Cray Y-MP.