From: veijalai@klaava.Helsinki.FI (Tony Veijalainen)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.acorn.tech
Subject: Re: Sprite dragging/New Filer/Replacement ToolSprites
Date: 12 Nov 92 15:38:17 GMT
Organization: University of Helsinki
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]

In article <1992Nov12.095100.18123@aston.ac.uk> you wrote:
>  ..... directories to have sprites anyway (rather that having
> to use up one of your characters labelling it) I don't know whether this would 
> be anything like possible realy though.
>   If we must have a 'special character' to mark a directory which has an icon
> then can we have somethin unobtrusive like '-' NOT '*' or '?' etc. "~' might
> be quite usefull...
> ___
>  Mik Davis at Aston University, Birmingham 
> E-Mail: davism@uhura.aston.ac.uk           

I'd say that it is funny to use presious character for filenames, when
you only can reserve some special character to add (with sm also added
for small icon) in front to obtain spritename for it.

I am still using RISC OS 2 in my A340, mayby until Feb92 to let the
situation cool down and mayby buy ARM60/VIDC20/FPU?? (/MEMC20/IOC20 + 16
MHz SIM sockets + 1 MB Cache?) @32 MHz clock uppgrade instead of punny
ROM sockets.  What I find infuriating is that all programs seem to fall
over when they don't recognize the file layout, eaven when program
understanding the format (ex.  PD ArcFS2 , .TAR.Z (.TAZ) archive and
sparkplugII).  Another difficulty are the buggy exeption handlers in the
programs that leave the files over so taht only thing you can do is
F12+scsi:close+<return> which closes all the obey scripts.  I'd like to
have a facility to keep track of all the files open and graphically
close them selectively.

Second thing I would find essential is broadcasting some kind of
message, when renaming or deleting file and an application to make a log
out of those.  So when you rename a archive currently shown by ArcFs or
SparkPlug or any application, then they could react and change the name
they are using instead of killing themselves in next operation.  Also I
would like it to keep <Appname$Dirs> current , which means running the
Obey-files after move/rename.  Mayby also an application showing all
filename containing system variables to make manual adjustments and
spies those messages.  Another app (not necessary really, but mayby more
consistent with the Archimedes style) could keep library of the files
consistent and use it for file find operations.  All we would need then
to make us little happier in the jungle of hard disk file tree and
floppy archives would be new versions of the archivers that would send
the rename messages (mayby with archiver-flag or they name) of the files
moved to archives and some logic in the disk librarian program to know
to use the sender of the archived file to get into the file on request.
Mayby we would need a module, which periodically saves the changes in
the filesystems to configured disc catalogue file. I'd suggest to buffer
those messages until no uppdates in filesystems have happened for
certain period. Also we could rely on that module sending rename
messages on files contained inside moved/renamed directory. Mayby giving
also prompt for confirmation if you are trying to delete something
essential? Preventing the saving of dir to its own sub-dir would be
nice...... 

I have lots of ideas if somebody is interested about them.

-- Tony Veijalainen e-Mail:     Tony.Veijalainen@helsinki.fi (preferred)
 		(finger veijalai@plootu.helsinki.fi for more information)


-- 
Tony Veijalainen	e-Mail: Tony.Veijalainen@helsinki.fi (preferred)
 		(finger veijalai@plootu.helsinki.fi for more information)