grailbrowser now running under python 2.5 (probably above too)

[Stephen Hansen]

On 7/11/10 9:31 AM, Thomas Jollans wrote:
> Cross platform file manager. Hmm. Does "cross platform" involve UNIX and
> something that isn't UNIX, say, Windows?
> Erm, no. No, no, no. It won't work. Well, it would work, but it wouldn't
> be any good. The UNIX and Windows concepts of "file system" are similar
> enough for most programs not to care too much, but for something like a
> file manager, that works intimately with the file system, trying to
> support both UNIX and Windows is NOT a good idea.

Indeed so.

And you can't lump the Mac in with "UNIX" here, even though it really is
UNIX at the foundation, because there's some very fundamental
differences between HFS+ (and some other details that are higher level)
and more traditional unix FS's. Not to mention that the Mac FS situation
is slightly schitzo since it has two very different ways at looking and
treating the files, the posix way and the Foundation way... and users
think more in terms of the latter, usually. At least less sophisticated
users.

You can't do a cross-platform file manager without either doing a huge
amount of work exposing each platform separately-- essentially getting
separate codebases for each-- or doing a least common denominator
situation, at which point I boggle: why the hell did you bother to begin
with? Even Finder is better then that, let alone windows' Explorer.

Even if you did the former... what the hell is the point, still? What
real problem needs solving here that people should drop something and
rally behind*?

-- 

   Stephen Hansen
   ... Also: Ixokai
   ... Mail: me+list/python (AT) ixokai (DOT) io
   ... Blog: http://meh.ixokai.io/

(*): I do not argue that a non-default file manager on an OS might be a
great thing. I use Path Finder on the mac and have been very pleased
with it for years, and consider its purchase money very well spent. Its
hands-down the absolute best file management tool ever done, in my
opinion. But really. When I'm using windows (or ubuntu), the only thing
I miss is the drop stack(**). I'd *almost* consider a bare-bones LCD
file manager which brought only a drop stack to windows and linux to be
worth the effort-- except then I'd keep having to switch over to an
entirely different program whenever I wanted to do permissions, since
Windows and Linux have /completely/ different permission models.

(**): The drop stack is a little corner of the window that you can drag
files onto. Then drag more files onto. Then drag more files onto. Then
you can navigate to another part of the system, and drag files off of
said stack, in a LIFO manner, moving them as a result of this action.

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