Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!lll-lcc!ames!ucbcad!ucbvax!jade!eris!mwm From: mwm@eris.BERKELEY.EDU (Mike (My watch has windows) Meyer) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: Workbench improvements Message-ID: <3373@jade.BERKELEY.EDU> Date: Wed, 29-Apr-87 05:58:03 EDT Article-I.D.: jade.3373 Posted: Wed Apr 29 05:58:03 1987 Date-Received: Sat, 2-May-87 07:49:28 EDT References: <12907@watmath.UUCP> <160006@wsucshp.UUCP> Sender: usenet@jade.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: mwm@eris.BERKELEY.EDU (Mike (My watch has windows) Meyer) Organization: Missionaria Phonibalonica Lines: 41 In article <160006@wsucshp.UUCP> kinner@wsucshp.UUCP (Bill Kinnersley ) writes: >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. Did I just hear someone say "Unix needs file types?" Oops, nope, that's an old conversation that this brings to mind. The problem with this is that you need to look at every program, and decide what it should do with that icon information. A good example is "compress." What should it do with the icon? If you don't do anything to compress, the icon will get thrown away. Of course, if you have it chase the pointer, you're still got to decide what to do with the icon. Compress it at the end of the file, with marks indicating that it should be added as an icon? What happens if you uncompress on a system that doesn't understand them. Attach the icon to the compressed file? The next time a user treats it in whatever way the old icon got treated, someone is going to be surprised. Compress the icon into a different file? Not bad, you just have to remember to move the icon with the compressed file, and attach it to the uncompressed file at the other end. Similar problems occur for arc, tar, and (most notably!) bru. In other words, while this may be ideal in terms of keeping icons attached to files, it's really lousy in terms of programs that manipulate files. Being a great believer in caching, how about a tweak to the workbench that caches icons based on file name? It could even keep the "parallel tree" structure in memory, and build it as drawers get opened. After all, icons are small. Of course, a wb option to turn this off is probably a good idea. Better yet, put the cache in icon.library... Just 'storming,