Summary of some install folder issues:
*** Requirements
0. simple standard install - single user with no admin requirements
1. no unnecessary differences across platforms
2. easy for more experienced user to install as multi-user system
3. easy to use standalone on USB
*** HOME - all platforms have the same concept of HOME
Linux: /home/username
Mac: /Users/username
Vista: c:\Users\username
XP: c:\Documents and Settings\username
There seems to be some agreement that J should work with the HOME structure.
*** Documents - concept varies across platforms and across applications
Linux: Documents exists on some recent distributions and not on others..
Mac: Documents exists and by default textedit etc. save directly in
Documents. A user would want to provide their own folder structure under
Documents. Mac and Vista put things like Movies/Music/Pictures at the same
level as Documents whereas XP puts them in Documents.
Vista: Documents exists and by default Wordpad etc. save directly in
Documents. Similar to Mac but I have examples of applications that create a
folder structure under Documents.
XP: "My Documents" exists and is used in the same way as Vista Documents.
A brief internet search found nothing useful in terms of general Documents
quidelines. Althought I didn't pursue it, I wouldn't be surprised to find
platform specific polemics on what should and should not be in Documents.
I don't find the argument that j602-user is so similar to word processing
documents it should live in the same folder structure. Personally I would
want to keep J development stuff separate and wouldn't see having j602-user
in Documents as natural or good in any sense.
The simple standard install has j602 and j602-user in the same folder and I
think it makes even less sense to have j602 in Documents.
*** Conclusions
The default/recommended install on all platforms will be HOME\j602 and
HOME\j602-user.
On all platforms it will be easy for someone with a little host experience
to install j602 to any location and the default user folder will be
HOME\j602-user. A good reason for this is for a multi-user install. I think
doing it out of some sense of conforming to what the host wants is
misguided.
It will be easy for someone with a little host experience to move j602 to a
new location with the exception that launch icons, links, etc, will have to
be adjusted.
It will be easy for someone with a little J experience to overide user with
a new definition.
With user override it will be easy to have a standalone J USB system that
has j602-user on the stick. Without the override you'll get j602-user in
HOME which might be appropriate in some cases.
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