Re: Request: Test suite for EFS.

[bob thestuff net]

On Thu, 17 Feb 2000, Kent Schumacher wrote:

> bob@thestuff.net wrote:
> 
> > First, a few questions. What file system does EFS use? Is it something
> >that any unix that supports mounting a file vea loop back can mount? Is it
> > a standard file system? If not, being able to read the file by any non
> > gnome app would be difficult to implement. Also, why EFS? Can gnome-vfs
> > not do what you want? No one commented on the use of tar as the file
> > system to maintain portability. What do you guys think of it?
> >
> 
> Regarding tar files.
> 
> Tar has at least 3 shortcomings.
> 
> 1) There isn't an index to allow quickly moving to a given data item.

Well, when the file is first opened, that info could be cached to allow
faster access.

> 2) There isn't any way to insert a data-element that has grown without
>     re-writing the whole file
> 3) There isn't any way to remove or shrink a data-element without rewriting
>     the whole file.
> 
> It's interesting to note that points 2 and 3 are problems that are common to any sort of
> storage management system, be it malloc, a filesystem, or a data-base.

Well, if a file system already has the same problem, just use its solution
on the tar fs problem. Im sure that the tar libs that already exist have
the limitations that you have stated, but I dont see why a new lib that
doesnt have the limitations couldnt be created.

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