Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!bloom-beacon!mit-eddie!uw-beaver!ssc-vax!cxsea!blm
From: blm@cxsea.UUCP (Brian Matthews)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: 'Virtual' Folders - bad idea!!
Message-ID: <2421@cxsea.UUCP>
Date: 21 Jun 88 22:29:40 GMT
References: <8806161351.AA09732@decwrl.dec.com> <3216@polyslo.UUCP> <3818@saturn.ucsc.edu> <12530@apple.Apple.COM>
Reply-To: blm@cxsea.UUCP (Brian Matthews)
Organization: Computer X Inc.
Lines: 31

Larry Rosenstein (lsr@apple.apple.com) writes:
|In article <3818@saturn.ucsc.edu> gagaku@ucscd.UCSC.EDU (PUT YOUR NAME HERE) writes:
|>Since my original posting of this idea, I've seen a bunch of follow-ups
|>generally enthusiastic, but nothing from programmers or Apple folks as
|>to whether the concept is even feasible within the structure of the Mac
|>System.  Any ideas on this?
|The idea of "virtual folders" technicay possible, since it is done on MFS
|systems.  I don't think it would be such a good idea from the user interface
|point of view.  One would end up with 2 ways of organizing files that have
|subtle differences.  Even if you make the virtual folder icons look
|different, the concepts would still be the same (a way to categorize files).
|
|For example, one problem is the proliferation of cdevs, INIT, etc. in the
|System folder.  As was pointed out, it would be simpler and cleaner to
|modify the System to search for these things in a subfolder.  If this change
|would solve 90% of the problems, then it would make more sense than adding
|virtual folders and their possible complexity.

I agree completely.  I think virtual folders would increase the
complexity of the system and the user interface a lot, compared with
little gain.  I've always considered it a problem that so much junk has
to be stuck in the top of the system folder, but the fix I'd like to see
is for INIT 31 and Control Panel to look in all subdirectories also.
I've dug around in INIT 31 for just this reason, and although I haven't
made any changes, it looks like it would be relatively simple for INIT 31
to search directories (and directories in directories (and directories in
directories in directories (and ... :-) ))).

-- 
Brian L. Matthews  blm@cxsea.UUCP   ...{mnetor,uw-beaver!ssc-vax}!cxsea!blm
+1 206 251 6811    Computer X Inc. - a division of Motorola New Enterprises