Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc
Subject: Re: MACS COST TOO MUCH (NOT!)
From: ajross@husc10.harvard.edu (Andrew Ross)
Date: 8 Sep 92 20:49:59 GMT
 <ewright.714845483@convex.convex.com> <1992Aug27.202129.12780@CS.ORST.EDU>    
 <ewright.714954330@convex.convex.com> <92241.112023ASI509@DJUKFA11.BITNET>    <la4tfoINN43d@appserv.Eng.Sun.COM> <922

ewright@convex.com (Edward V. Wright) writes:

>In <92252.141443ASI509@DJUKFA11.BITNET> Michael Bode writes:

>>No it doesn`t and yes it does. The name of the diskette is not A: it is a name
>>of up to 11 characters that is almost never used. At least I don`t know anyone
>>who gives names to his floppies (except mac users exchanging disks with PC`s).

>I don't see what exchanging disks with PCs has to do with naming disks.
>Maybe you think Mac users are just doing this to annoy you.  I name all
>my floppies *except* the ones I exchange with PCs.  It makes it easier
>to know what's on them.  I bet most other Mac users do the same thing, 
>even if they never exchange disks with PCs at all. 

>You see, the Macintosh is smart enough that it actually knows what 
>floppy disk is in the drive at any given time.  On the PC, if you're
>saving your work on a certain disk, then remove that disk to do some 
>other task, and forget to change disks back before you save your work
>again, you may end up saving your latest version on the wrong disk
>without ever knowing it.  Several days later, when you insert the disk
>you *thought* you'd saved it on, you find that your latest work just
>isn't there.  That won't happen on the Mac because you can see the name
>of the disk you're saving it to.

OK fine, lets all go out and buy Mac's 'cause you can name disks.  Back
when floppies were king, this was a MAJOR advantage;  but now...  Well,
hands up people, how many of you use your floppies more than once a week? 
How many use them for anything but backup and software installation?  Of
those of you who do use them, how many are not planning on upgrading to a
better file exchange format in the near future?  At least where I am,
floppies are dead.


>>A: is the name of the DRIVE and that can be changed to almost everything. 

>Almost anything?  Well, in English, there are lots of things that you
>can't fit into 11 characters.  Like "Price Carl Wayne's floppy."  And I
>know for damn sure that there are lots of things in German that you
>can't fit into 11 characters.  And those 11 characters can't include
>spaces, mixed cases, or punctation marks like in this example.  At least,
>not in DOS or MS Windows.  Maybe this is different in OS2, but even if it
>is, I'll bet that those DOS and Windows programs you're running under OS2
>will go ballistic if you type in file name like "Michael Bode's New File".

No, No, No.  When he said 11 Characters, that is the limit for the DOS
name, which is stored on the media.  The DRIVE object in OS/2's  WPS can
be given any name you want.  You misunderstood.


>>Just ALT-click on the disk icon title and type something you like. That 
>>only works in WPS but in a command line window nobody would like to use 
>>a drive name like "Price Carl Wayne`s floppy"

>So, if WPS is great, why do you need a command-line window?  For that
>matter, if WPS is so great (and intuitive), why don't you call it by 
>a real name, instead of yet another TLA (three-letter acronym)? 

Because (and I still can't see why you won't admit this)  there are times
where a command line interface is just plain easier than a graphical one. 
Like being able to run over your command line and run an applet or
somesuch just buy typing it's name.  Clicking through folders typically
takes much more time than typing "clock", or "calc".  Also, some more
complex shell operations are difficult or immpossible with a GUI.  You'd
have to write a program to perform what would be a single line command in
a CLI.  By the way, WPS *IS* a real name.  It stands for WorkPlace Shell.
Look carefully, each of these words is one syllable.  The real name has
even fewer syllables than the acronym  ("W" is three, how inefficient),
thus is easier to say.  WPS, however, is easier to type, thus has become
the standard.  For general info:  WPS should ALWAYS be pronounced
WorkPlace Shell.  Are you happy now that you know it's got a name?


Andy Ross
ajross@husc.harvard.edu

Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc,comp.sys.mac.comm