Bruce.Hoult@bbs.actrix.gen.nz (12/06/90)
In article <2994@crdos1.crd.ge.COM> davidsen@crdos1.crd.ge.com (bill davidsen) writes: > A much more interesting question (to me) is "what can be done with the > Mac interface to support subdirectories?" The command (diddle slashes > for UNIX or DOS) local/bin/graphics/myplotter maps to > click/pop hard disk > scroll and read, find local > click and pop local > scroll and read, find bin > click and pop bin > scroll and read, find graphics > click and pop graphics > scroll and read, find myplot > click and run myplot > > I just can't feature doing this, and the Mac users all offer solutions > which effectively defeat having a tree structure, by putting everything > in some low level directory (yes I know these things are all called > something else and some clicks above are double clicks). > > There must be a better way. The pop and click stuff worked well for > floppies, it wears a bit thin with a pair of 1.2GB hard drives (which > look like two drives rather than one namespace with mounted partitions). Why not have the finder do it the same way as the Standard File requestor dialog boxes already do it? For those not familiar with Standard File, as well as letting you click on a file or folder to select it, you can type the first few letters of its name, and instead of pressing the "Open" button (or double clicking the mouse button) you can press <return> to open the file or folder. You can also press <tab> to move to (the top level of) another disk. So: to open the file "local/bin/graphics/myplotter" you might type... lo<cr>bin<cr>gr<cr>mypl<cr> ... with visual feedback at each stage that you have typed the correct name (to a sufficient degree of uniqueness), and that it exists. It works really well. I don't see any reason that the Finder couldn't act the same way -- especially in the "View By Name" style of window, but in others as well. IF there is a file currently selected THEN rename it ELSE select the file with the prefix typed. -- Bruce.Hoult@bbs.actrix.gen.nz Twisted pair: +64 4 772 116 BIX: brucehoult Last Resort: PO Box 4145 Wellington, NZ
alexis@panix.uucp (Alexis Rosen) (12/08/90)
Bruce.Hoult@bbs.actrix.gen.nz writes: >davidsen@crdos1.crd.ge.com (bill davidsen) writes: >> A much more interesting question (to me) is "what can be done with the >> Mac interface to support subdirectories?" The command (diddle slashes >> for UNIX or DOS) local/bin/graphics/myplotter maps to >> click/pop hard disk >> scroll and read, find local [ more of the same, edited for brevity ] >> >> I just can't feature doing this, and the Mac users all offer solutions >> which effectively defeat having a tree structure, by putting everything >> in some low level directory (yes I know these things are all called >> something else and some clicks above are double clicks). Sometimes those solutions are best. In fact, you usually don't need to know where an applcation is, just documents. (But your point can also be applied to documents- see below). One of the most popular types of Mac system-software extenders is a software gizmo to provide one-click access to files which are frequently used, wherever they may be on the HD. >> There must be a better way. The pop and click stuff worked well for >> floppies, it wears a bit thin with a pair of 1.2GB hard drives (which >> look like two drives rather than one namespace with mounted partitions). > >Why not have the finder do it the same way as the Standard File requestor >dialog boxes already do it? For those not familiar with Standard File, as >well as letting you click on a file or folder to select it, you can type the >first few letters of its name, and instead of pressing the "Open" button (or >double clicking the mouse button) you can press <return> to open the file or >folder. You can also press <tab> to move to (the top level of) another disk. > >So: to open the file "local/bin/graphics/myplotter" you might type... > >lo<cr>bin<cr>gr<cr>mypl<cr> > >... with visual feedback at each stage that you have typed the correct name >(to a sufficient degree of uniqueness), and that it exists. In fact, that's frequently what I do. I find that in normal work situations, the files that need to be accessed in a folder far away from where you are currently, are typically occasional-use documents which are generally accessed through Standard File anyway, not the Finder. >I don't see any reason that the Finder couldn't act the same way -- especially >in the "View By Name" style of window, but in others as well. IF there is a >file currently selected THEN rename it ELSE select the file with the prefix >typed. Neither did the folks at Apple. That's why System 7 does exactly this. You can traverse the entire disk in any way you like without touching the mouse. It's a major improvement. You can also install one-click access to items you use frequently, without resorting to third-party software. System 7 also provides for "Stationary", which is a document which opens a copy of itself when you try to open it. The times when you now want to keep applications close to the root of the disk won't be a problem, because you could keep an appropriate piece of stationary (blank if you like) in the same place instead. --- Alexis Rosen Owner/Sysadmin, PANIX Public Access Unix, NY {cmcl2,apple}!panix!alexis