<top posting intentionally> Jan, and all,
Thanks for the reply! I didn't know about the ~/bin (that's a good thing, although I use it already anyway), and I understand your point about the need to get authors of other programs to use ~/.config instead of whatever else they may use (often ~/.<program_name>). And, of course, I think I can use soft links to get some of the mess out of the real / physical ~, but: * I still think the entire ~ situation is messy, kludgy, and confusing for newbies / normal users, and * I stand by my suggestion, that is, if an extensive modification is made to the Linux filesystem hierarchy, then the ~ situation should be thoroughly considered at the same time. Randy Kramer On Wednesday 15 February 2012 01:32:50 pm Jan Engelhardt wrote: > On Wednesday 2012-02-15 15:47, Randy Kramer wrote: > >I would like to see /home separated into at least 3 directories. The > > "names" below are obviously placeholders--actual names can be debated at > > some point in the future): > > > > * /<real_user_data>: Files containing documents written by or used by > > the user, likewise for videos, music, graphics, program source code, > > ...--real user data that the user views, modifies, creates and needs to > > be backed up and would be transferred to a new system if the user > > migrated to a new system. > > That already exists - /home/yourusername/. > > > * /<user_config_files>: Files containing configuration data for various > >applications. > > That too already exists - /home/yourusername/.config, as per the XDG > standard. You have to talk to the authors of the programs that > unfortunately dump their config in /home/yourname/.program rather > than /home/yourname/.config/program to get this fixed. > > >It is typically backed up, but when the user migrates to a new > >system, this data might or might not be migrated to the new system. > > Or might be forgotten. Hence - better leave it in ~. > > >(Just as a bad example, if the user migrates from a GNOME system to > >a KDE system, there is little use for those configuration files. > > That is too shortsighted. One can use GNOME or KDE or whatever other > programs from one or another DE or WM. Point in case: I use the > "marble" globe program, a KDE-phil program, while Xfce as a DE is > more on the gnomey side w.r.t. config files. Hence I need all files > should I be changing my system. > > > * /<user_temp_and_transient_files>--I won't think of all the types of > > files I'd put here, but it would include all files that might otherwise > > go in /tmp or /var but but should not (in a multiuser system) for > > security reasons. Includes any type of file that can be reconstructed > > from other data in the system--for example, indexes related to databases > > or just files, ... * /<user_binaries>--A potential 4th hierarchy, > > containing binaries written by or used (only) by, or customized for one > > particular user. > > That is ~/bin. This is not standardized, but the dir appears > sometimes. (E.g. on openSUSE, /root/bin exists) > > >I think we should plan for long term cleanliness of the LInux > >filesystem. I, for one, would not want to be resurrected (not that > >that can happen) in the year 2500 and still find that conglomeration > >of junk in the /home directory. > > Yeah and then we end up with http://xkcd.com/927/ _______________________________________________ fhs-discuss mailing list [email protected] https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/mailman/listinfo/fhs-discuss
