jrk@sys.uea.ac.uk (Richard Kennaway) (06/05/91)
In <1991Jun3.150453.1287@husc3.harvard.edu> khoo@husc9.harvard.edu (Oonchye Khoo) writes: >Let me second the motion for Downline. It's terrific. It can automatically, >in the background, process any .hqx, .sit or .pit file that comes your way. >You don't even need to strip of the stuff preceding the real hqx stuff. Just >designate a folder for Downline and direct anything you want processed into it. >Ken Kreshtool >kik@wjh12.harvard.edu (my real e-mail address; this post is from elsewhere) DownLine is wonderful. I haven't saved so much time since I gave up reading Sunday newspapers! Drop input files here, output files appear there. No moronic dialogs asking you which files you want to extract, where you want to put them, whether to delete the input, what you want for breakfast, blah blah blah. A refreshing change from programs which ask the user for advice every time they want to blow their nose. True, if you want to do something more selective with archives, you need a more complex program. Personally, I don't recall ever wanting to do anything with an archive but decode the whole thing and chuck the original. DownLine does that task better than any other decoding program I've seen. Let's hear it for minimal interfaces. "The best interface is no interface." "Number of features, number of options, thickness of manual, size of program: measures of demerit, not of merit." "Don't ask the user anything you can guess the answer to." "If it needs explained, it's a bad idea." "Is your program really necessary?" -- Richard Kennaway SYS, University of East Anglia, Norwich, U.K. Internet: jrk@sys.uea.ac.uk uucp: ...mcsun!ukc!uea-sys!jrk Had we but world enough and time But we don't So let's get on with it. -- Marvell "To His Coy Mistress"
doner@henri.ucsb.edu (John Doner) (06/12/91)
In article <676362108.17@egsgate.FidoNet.Org> Richard.Kennaway@f98.n250.z1.FidoNet.Org (Richard Kennaway) writes:
=DownLine is wonderful. I haven't saved so much time since I gave up reading
=Sunday newspapers! Drop input files here, output files appear there.
I feel the same way about Downline, a great idea. With System 7, I
could run Downline in the background and share its input/output
folder. Then everyone on our network could use its service without
even having a copy on their own machine. (No, I'm not going to make
this permanent, my own machine has better things to do for me. But I
will consider using a machine less in demand for this service.)
It does suggest an idea, though. Presumably any sort of service can
be provided over a LocalTalk network via this simple mechanism---i.e.,
using a program that automatically processes files appearing in a
designated folder. Does anyone have suggestions for services that
might be provided this way?
John E. Doner doner@henri.ucsb.edu (805)893-3941
Dept. Mathematics, UCSB, Santa Barbara, CA 93106Juha.Hyvonen@hut.fi (Juha Hyv|nen) (06/12/91)
In article <12025@hub.ucsb.edu> doner@henri.ucsb.edu (John Doner) writes: +------------------------ ! I feel the same way about Downline, a great idea. !........................ If I keep DownLine in the background and start downloading a file into DownLine's input folder, it immediately tries to process the file (and fails, of course). When I move the file from DownLine Bad Files folder back to the input folder, everything works OK. (This happens with BYU Telnet 2.3.4, non-MacTCP version.) / (.__o /_/ __/ .. ! / ! Juha.Hyvonen@hut.fi (juh@cs.hut.fi) !/ ) ! ------
francis@zaphod.uchicago.edu (Francis Stracke) (06/14/91)
In article <12025@hub.ucsb.edu> doner@henri.ucsb.edu (John Doner) writes: >I feel the same way about Downline, a great idea. With System 7, I >[...] >It does suggest an idea, though. Presumably any sort of service can >be provided over a LocalTalk network via this simple mechanism---i.e., >using a program that automatically processes files appearing in a >designated folder. Does anyone have suggestions for services that >might be provided this way? Mail and news jump to mind. -- /============================================================================\ | Francis Stracke | My opinions are my own. I don't steal them.| | Department of Mathematics |=============================================| | University of Chicago | Earth: Love it or leave it. | | francis@zaphod.uchicago.edu | | \============================================================================/
dnebing@bgsuvax.UUCP (David Nebinger) (06/14/91)
In article <FRANCIS.91Jun13215337@magrathea.uchicago.edu>, francis@zaphod.uchicago.edu (Francis Stracke) writes: > In article <12025@hub.ucsb.edu> doner@henri.ucsb.edu (John Doner) writes: > >It does suggest an idea, though. Presumably any sort of service can > >be provided over a LocalTalk network via this simple mechanism---i.e., > >using a program that automatically processes files appearing in a > >designated folder. Does anyone have suggestions for services that > >might be provided this way? > > Mail and news jump to mind. The basic argument here is "What is a background task, and what is not." I enjoy using Downline because I consider the unbinhexing, unstuffing, and unpiting to be a background task. I do not discard the .sit files, however, because sometimes I just leave them in that form on disk somewhere. There are a number of things that can be done in the background. Printing is the best example, but other things might include programs that will archive and binhex files moved into a folder, preparing them to be sent out to the net. Others, such as a background virus check on occasion, or a trashcan folder that will destroy the files put into it instead of just making the file appear to be gone. It boils down to what a person feels is a background task. Some might not have liked my ideas because they like to do them themselves, which is fine. There are alternatives to everything one wants to do. David Nebinger dnebing@andy.bgsu.edu
arie@eecs.umich.edu (Arie Covrigaru) (06/14/91)
>>>>> On 14 Jun 91 03:53:37 GMT, francis@zaphod.uchicago.edu (Francis Stracke) said: | In article <12025@hub.ucsb.edu> doner@henri.ucsb.edu (John Doner) writes: |>I feel the same way about Downline, a great idea. With System 7, I |>[...] I followed this thread about DownLine and I tried it on a System 7.0 equiped Mac. It performs as advertised except for one problem: It (version 1.0.4) interferes with the Balloon Help mechanism. When DownLine is active (open) doing something or just idle and the Balloon Help is turned on, positioning the cursor on a "Balloon Help sensitive spot" causes the help to flicker, turning itself off and on, with such a frequency that it is almost impossible to read the help. This happens without any extensions loaded. Is version 1.0.4 the latest version of DownLine? -- ============================================================================= Arie Covrigaru | University of Michigan AI Lab Phone: (313)763-1255 | Room 149, Advanced Technology Bldg. Internet: arie@eecs.umich.edu | 1101 Beal Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48109 =============================================================================