Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!sri-spam!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!UIAMVS.BITNET!AWCTTYPA
From: AWCTTYPA@UIAMVS.BITNET ("David A. Lyons")
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: sparse files
Message-ID: <8801142052.aa10736@SMOKE.BRL.ARPA>
Date: 15 Jan 88 03:21:30 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The ARPA Internet
Lines: 25
X-Unparsable-Date: Thursday 14 Jan 88 7:08 PM CT

>Date:         Thu, 14 Jan 88 08:33:39 EDT
>From:         CS656%OUACCVMB.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
>Subject:      SPARSE FILES IN PRODOS 8

>Are sparse files always a product of text files?

No, a ProDOS file of any type can be sparse.

>In either case, is the creation of a sparse file something that ProDOS
>takes upon itself or is it a product of certain software packages?
>Bob Church  CS656@OUACCVMB

Well, ProDOS is still doing the actual work, but most software will never ask
ProDOS to do something that results in a sparse file being created.

A sparse file is just one where the *logical* file size is larger than the
disk space allocated to the file.

Be careful; Many file-copy utilities will make a full-sized copy of a sparse
file!

--David A. Lyons  a.k.a.  DAL Systems
  PO Box 287 | North Liberty, IA 52317
  BITNET: AWCTTYPA@UIAMVS
  CI$: 72177,3233