Re: Brainstorm: Desktop

["Robert J. Slover" <robert slover Rose-Hulman Edu>]

My only comment would be to suggest that the implementation of this
should
use VFS support and use a single .gnomerc to specify a URL to the rest.

There are several potential advantages for going that route rather than 
just expecting a configuration tree to exist in the home directory.  The
first that I can think of is remote access to your configuration without
need of NFS or AFS.  If I set my configuration up to live under my HTML
directories, I could use my work configuration from home just by setting
my gnome 'root' to the HTTP URL for that configuration.  

This also opens the possibility of having multiple configurations that
could be swapped by changing a single URL.  Additionally, if any of the
'extended attribute' functionality discussed on this list earlier ever
comes to exist, I'm betting the VFS will be at it's core.  I feel it is
likely that this directory heirarchy would make use of such features.

Derek Simkowiak wrote:
> 
>         I suggest we make a standard Directory where _any_ GNOME-compliant
> window manager could look for desktop-related info.  This would be
> basically the same as $HOME/GNUstep for the GNUstep project, only it would
> be for GNOME.
> 
>         Here are a couple of examples:
> 
> ...under $HOME/Desktop:
> 
> Desktop/
> |-- Defaults
> |-- Prefs
> |-- Startup
> `-- Themes
> 
> ...or maybe under $HOME/GNOME:
> 
> GNOME/
> |-- Defaults
> |-- Prefs
> |-- Startup
> `-- Themes
> 
>         The purpose would be to avoid four thousand .*initrc files in my
> $HOME directory, and a hideous directory tree for things like themes,
> backgrounds, etc.  Basically, the $HOME/GNUstep things works great for me
> with AfterStep and WindowMaker, and I'd like to see something similar for
> GNOME.
> 
>         Also, if the window manager allows the user to drag files,
> folders (did I really just use that word?  Ugh...I mean DIRECTORIES), etc.
> onto the root windows (aka "Desktop" under Win95 and MacOS) then those
> files and directories could simply reside in the $HOME/Desktop directory,
> as normal, every-day files (without having to worry about any sort of
> weird desktop-icon to file linking).
> 
>         Comments? Does KDE have anything like this?
> 
> Derek Simkowiak
> dereks@blarg.net
> 
> --
>          To unsubscribe: mail gnome-list-request@gnome.org with
>                        "unsubscribe" as the Subject.

-- 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Robert J. Slover | Admin Sys Mgr | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
------------------------------------------------------------------------

 "Yesterday starts tomorrow, Tomorrow starts today.  The problem 
  always seems to be we're picking up the pieces on the ricochet..." 
                                                    -Marillion, "Jigsaw"