TMPLee@DOCKMASTER.NCSC.MIL (08/27/90)
One already has the ability to cause a specific application (e.g., editor, sound player) to be launched when one double-clicks on an icon. You can have specific to file type (and aux type? not sure about that) or to file name. Works great as long as the application uses the message center appropriately. What I would like is the ability to select several icons and then to be able to pick the application I'd like to have work on them. In effect, I guess what I want is the ability to add applications to the Finder's menus, in addition to the current way which binds the application to a file type and/or file name. (The interface to the application would be the same: it just looks to see if there are any file-path-names in the message center; I assume there is something in a tech note somewhere about what message type is used and what its format is.)
toddpw@tybalt.caltech.edu (Todd P. Whitesel) (08/28/90)
I'd like to be able to drag a document onto an Application, and have that open the Application with the document. It requires no file system context (i.e. icon files, desktop database) and is (to me) far more 'intuitive' than double clicking. I would like to be able to put all my main applications on the desktop and just drag stuff onto them. Hey Dave, is this why you're moving to system software? If you get an office in VG6, let me know and I'll come over to visit. By the way, why couldn't we use MessageCenter to implement a more general form of IAC than the 'open documents' message? Todd Whitesel toddpw @ tybalt.caltech.edu
dragon@pawl.rpi.edu (Carl L. Norden) (09/02/90)
What it seems that you are asking for is an icon editor. You may not realize
it, but the icons in the finder do alot of the work.
When you click an icon that is not an application, the finder checks a
special record in the icon files in memory. The record points to the
application that created that file (usually). If the record is blank, you
get the typical dialog:
"An application cannot be found for this document"
The icon editor I have, IconEd, does use this feature, but right now, I am
unable to get it onto the net. Perhaps someone else can help you get it. (I
need a better terminal program, ShrinkIt, and Bascii.)
-Dragon