Re: hats off + app-finder

[Daniel Burrows <Daniel_Burrows brown edu>]

On Thu, Dec 10, 1998 at 10:53:05AM -0600, Alan Shutko scribbled:
> G> Could somebody explain the 5WH about GNOME finding applications,
> G> and add any comments w/r/t how it could be improved?
> 
> Hmmm... I'm not sure how it could be improved other than getting more
> things to use it.  8^)  Here's how it works (and if I am wrong on
> something, please correct me.)
> 
> Under the share directory, you have "apps".  Under that are a lot of
> directories corresponding to panel submenus.  In each directory, there
> are multiple .desktop files.  For example, under my Graphics dir are
> GIMP.desktop and ee.desktop.  These files list the icon, the program
> name, and other properties about the program (including a way to test
> if the program is installed).
> 
> So, for an app to show up on the GNOME menus once it's installed, all
> it should need is for the RPM to include a app.desktop file and put it
> in the right place.  For non-GNOME apps, we may want to start
> including more and more .desktops somewhere in the GNOME distribution,
> so that they'll appear on the menu if they're installed (that test
> property I mentioned above).  It's pretty easy to set these things up,
> and all you'd need to add is an (optional) icon for each, the .desktop
> file, and the category in the menus it should appear.
> 
> -- 
> Alan Shutko <ats@acm.org> - By consent of the corrupted
> Real programs don't eat cache.
> 
> 

  This sounds a lot like the Debian menu system.  I know there's a gnome script
for Debian, but it seems kinda redundant to have two sets of menu files hanging
around on the system.  Does anyone know whether they could somehow be
made more interoperable?

-- 
  Daniel Burrows

"I think that the surest sign that there is intelligent
 life out there is that none of it has tried to contact us."

  -- _Calvin and Hobbes_, Bill Watterson

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