From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: Jim Choate To: 9fans@cse.psu.edu Cc: hangar18-general@open-forge.org In-Reply-To: <200207102158.g6ALw3s08063@dave2.dave.tj> Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Subject: [9fans] Re: blanks in file names Date: Wed, 10 Jul 2002 17:42:30 -0500 Topicbox-Message-UUID: c838734a-eaca-11e9-9e20-41e7f4b1d025 On Wed, 10 Jul 2002, Dave wrote: > If I had to vote a priori, blanks would certainly be a no-go for > filenames. However, the pressure cooker has already burst, and our > chicken is headed straight towards the ceiling. Getting rid of spaces in > filenames is not much of an option, if we want to be able to get along > in the wide world of non-space-restricted systems. Um, strictly speaking for most OS'es (and logically in general) the 'string' that represents the filename canonicaly -should- be (usually) "" delimited. In other words, ls filename.foo should really be, ls "filename.foo" or perhaps, ls "file/"Bill/".foo" The fact that the OS allows one to drop them (assuming you don't use things like blanks in filenames) is really a courtesy of the shell implimentation. That's where it should stay. Why the filesystem would -ever- need the filename for internal operations would, at least to my mind, be a major error in implimentation. Other than in 'friendly name' situations (ie UI related) the system should be oblivious of the filename. If it's a valid character in the character set, it should be allowed in a string (except for logical issues - eg printing some non-printable) should print some sort of symbol allowing one to recognize this. This 'conversion' should also stay strictly in the UI related code. To do otherwise raises a host of issues about side effects and special cases w/ regard to sting handling libraries. To not allow spaces in filenames only makes the world more complicated. It also destroys a layer of generality, and that is -almost always- a BAD thing. With respect to filenames, it's a string of -reasonably- unique (re issues of location and such) 1's and 0's to the OS. It doesn't really 'mean' anything to the OS::File System. It's the User::UI that it matters to. User::UI::OS::File System Leave the problem where it belongs, in the cli/shell. -- ____________________________________________________________________ When I die, I would like to be born again as me. Hugh Hefner ravage@ssz.com www.ssz.com jchoate@open-forge.org www.open-forge.org --------------------------------------------------------------------