Messages in this thread | | | Date | Tue, 29 Jun 1999 21:13:10 +0200 | From | Jamie Lokier <> | Subject | Re: If we cannot trim subject lines... |
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Mark-Andre Hopf wrote: > (a) Because it prevents the normal user from messing around with the > internal of the `directory' and with it preventing the application > programmer from adding tons of code to detect and workaround unexpected > changes.
All proposals so far don't _prevent_ the users, even normal ones, from messing around with the internals. Frankly any reliable application is going to have to deal with unexpected data in the file anyway.
> (b) The normal user expects a `bunch of data' in a single file, not in a > directory. > (c) The content of the `directory' isn't of interest to the user but to some > applications.
These points merely argue for something that behaves like a directory but doesn't look like one in an `ls' listing.
The only compelling reason I can see is:
(1) Ordinary users wish to copy/move compound files as a single unit, attach them to emails and put them on web sites.
Which argues for automatic conversion to/from flat form on demand. It could be done in user space, and a kernel hook could make it transparent for all programs.
-- Jamie
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