- ShareWith.comp can also have icons representing other users on the
system -- no need for a Users folder
- If users need to update/upgrade the system, they run an Update
System
command and everything is updated -- no need for a System folder to
add
stuff manually
Wouldn't it be much better to just turn ShareWith into a sort of
virtual directory structure that is mounted into the user's folder.
The internal implementation would be the same as what you propose, but
to the user it would look like a special "System" folder that seems to
contain subfolders for preference panels, fonts, sounds, components
etc.
You always have to ruin my fun, huh? :)
While something like this would probably work for a System folder, I
think ShareWith is still a good metaphor for sharing documents with
other users (via email or chat), or sending to a printer -- actions
where when you drop the file you are performing a bunch of other
actions behind the scenes (for example, convert data to print-ready
format, or encode or compress data for transfer via IM). I thought it
might be natural to extend that style of interaction to the system as a
whole -- make the desktop be smart enough to manage it's own file
organization. My original concept does lead to questions on how the
user would remove installed components, though, which the folder idea
solves.
And for the curious or graffiti-inclined, I put up a page on the wiki
about ShareWith.comp -- please edit and refine as you see fit:
http://dromasoftware.com/etoile/mediawiki/index.php?title=ShareWith
J.
