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From: kinner@wsucshp.UUCP (Bill Kinnersley )
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Workbench improvements
Message-ID: <160006@wsucshp.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 24-Apr-87 13:11:04 EDT
Article-I.D.: wsucshp.160006
Posted: Fri Apr 24 13:11:04 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 30-Apr-87 03:21:12 EDT
References: <12907@watmath.UUCP>
Organization: WSU Computer Science
Lines: 48

acs@amdahl.UUCP (Tony Sumrall) writes:
> In article <3050@sunybcs.UUCP> jmpiazza@gort.UUCP (Joseph M. Piazza) writes:
> >	After following previous discussions I wonder how many people
> >realize that the Mac collects icons and other info from each file and puts
> >in a directory file called "Desktop."  I also wonder if other people realize
> >that the Mac isn't nearly as slow as the Amiga for directory listings.
> 
> Did we discuss this approach when the discussion about .info files began
> (way back when)?  I *like* the idea of a directory whose structure
> parallels the root and contains nothing but .info files (e.g. if
> 
> I've probably gone on far too long but, like I said earlier, how about a
> parallel structure for the icon files only?

Discussions about the icon structure are probably moot, being about two
years too late.

Nevertheless, you have to admit, the present system of having a separate icon
file for each data file is really cumbersome.  Carried to extremes, we could
have parallel structure for .comment files, .date files, etc.

Really, icons  should be system information.  They should be handled privately
by the filing system, not kept out in public to clutter up your directory,
and potentially get lost.

The Right Way To Do It would be to build icons into the filing system.
Dedicate a word in the file header block to point to the disk location of the
corresponding icon.  In fact, there are several spots in the header block
currently not being used.  A nil pointer of course means no icon for that file.

The copy utility would be designed to automatically copy disk blocks for the
icon when it copies the file, but the file size reported would not include
the icon size.

When Workbench opens a drawer, it would examine each file header in the drawer
to see if an icon is present.  (but it does this sort of thing now, looking
for .icon files, since the names are kept in the headers.  At least there
would be fewer files.)

You would need utilities to attach an icon to a file, modify it, etc. 

---
--Bill Kinnersley
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