Re: moving gnome-vfs MIME code into libgnome so libbonobo can use it

[Darin Adler <darin bentspoon com>]

On Monday, July 2, 2001, at 10:16  AM, Michael Meeks wrote:

> > What's the concept of libgnome? Perhaps if I understood libgnome
> > better I could see more clearly that it should include MIME sniffing,
> > for example, but not a virtual file system layer, for example.
>
>         The concept of libgnome is becoming increasingly deprecated to
> bonobo - but it still includes some useful stuff, especialy for
> compatibility.

Do we really want to put more stuff into an increasingly-deprecated 
library? It seems unfortunate to move the MIME sniffing code or the 
monikers from a happy home in non-deprecated gnome-vfs or libbonobo to the 
soon-to-be-obsolete grab-bag libgnome library. Doesn't it?

On the other hand, I'd like to see some of the more marginal gnome-vfs 
modules moved upstream too so that gnome-vfs itself has fewer dependencies.
 Perhaps they should go into libgnome.

>         I just want to push the monikers up hill from libbonobo into
> libgnome that do the file sniffing - it's really rather
> non-controversial I hope.

OK. I see. No proposal to move the gnome-vfs MIME code at all. My 
misunderstanding I guess.

> Of course, merging libgnome with gnome-vfs
> would have the effect of adding a libbonobo dependency - which I
> understand you want to avoid. [1]
>
> [1] - but it would make sense to have the file monikers in gnome-vfs
> to my mind personaly - and a CORBA API for the gnome-vfs layer.

I see no harm in having gnome-vfs depend on libbonobo. It does seem 
strange to me, but wouldn't cause any problems that I can think of.

I guess I am stuck mentally on the underlying layering in Unix, where the 
shared library system (which I think of as analogous to bonobo) uses the 
file system (which I think of as analogous to gnome-vfs) rather than the 
other way around.

    -- Darin