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From: dtw@f.gp.cs.cmu.edu (Duane Williams)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: 'Virtual' Folders - good idea!!
Keywords: why not user definable search paths?
Message-ID: <2014@pt.cs.cmu.edu>
Date: 21 Jun 88 13:47:38 GMT
References: <5191@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu> <1124@aucs.UUCP>
Sender: netnews@pt.cs.cmu.edu
Organization: Carnegie-Mellon University, CS/RI
Lines: 23


| I've always felt that when Apple introduced the HFS, they should have had
| some user interface guidelines to go along with the new feature. For example,
| instead of just dumping everything in the system folder, recommend to
| developers that they create a folder in the system folder for storing
| things like help files and dictionaries (and possibly even have sub-folders

Apple should introduce a flexible search path mechanism into the file system
so that the user can organize his files as he wishes, while minimizing the
number of folders that have to be searched to find a file.  

The current "poor man's search path" is largely responsible for the clutter
in the System Folder.  It's well named.  It was a poor idea.  If the "poor
man's search path" had just been the default value of a user definable
search path, users could eliminate the clutter to suit themselves.

The search path is nothing new to the Mac.  The problem is simply that you
can't edit/extend the one that's there.

Duane
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