Re: silent semantic changes with reiser4

Horst von Brand
2004-08-29T14:28:07Z

Spam <spam@tnonline.net> said:
> Andrew Morton <akpm@osdl.org> said:

[...]

> > For example, some image file formats already support embedded metadata, do
> > they not?

> Yes, JPEG, TIFF and PNG files for example. But, if you modify any of
> these with an application that doesn't support the extensions then
> you will loose them.

As you will each time you muck around with your files-are-directories.
Nothing new there.

> Also, you are thinking _very_ narrowly now. There are thousands of
> file formats. Implementing the support for meta-data/ streams/
> attributes in the kernel will make it possible to use this
> generically for all files.

So the _kernel_ has to know about thousands of formats, just in case it
some blue day it comes across a strange file? Better leave that to the
applications.

You will _not_ be able to define a single format for extra data about the
file, there will be differing extra data for different users (do you
suggest a root-only file with special writable pouches for "graphical icon
for the file" for each user on the system?!), so the idea in itself is
doomed from the start.

> I use this in Windows quite much.

Then use it and be happy. No need to screw up Linux for that.

> I put information description
> fields for lots of different files. These descriptions are then
> searchable etc. I could use the command prompt to copy the files and
> the descriptions would still be there.

The descriptions might make sense to _you_, _now_. No guarantee they make
any sense (or are in the least useful) for other users on your system, and
I might want them in arabic or some such. The descriptions might make no
sense to you in a couple of years.

> Secondly, do you expect file managers like Nautilus and Konqueror to
> support every piece of file format on the planet so they could read
> information directly from the documents?

That's their (self-selected) job, yes.
--
Dr. Horst H. von Brand User #22616 counter.li.org
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