Re: app filetype-registration, how?

[Tom Tromey <tromey cygnus com>]

>>>>> "David" == David Jeske <jeske@home.chat.net> writes:

David> ** How are applications going to publish to this ORB server that they
David> ** can handle a given filetype.

When application A wants to edit file F, it talks to some kind of name
service to find the object that can service its request ("edit F").

I don't know the precise form of this negotiation.  One idea is to use
something like the CORBA Naming Service, though perhaps this is too
simplistic.  Another is to use something like the CORBA Trader
Service, though perhaps this is too big.

Anyway, whatever service it is will have an API for asking questions
of a certain form.

Ok.

So the answer it will also have an API for registering a file type to
application mapping.  Then applications can just run a special program
at install time which will set up this mapping in a global way.

Presumably the name service will handle multiple applications that can
handle a single file type.  This is where user preference feeds in:
the user can choose as the default editor for a type any application
which can handle it.

Tom