File System

The OpenStep^(TM) file system keeps information in files and folders. A file might be a magazine article you write, an illustration you create with a graphics application, or the application itself. A folder is a container, and it can contain files and other folders, which can themselves contain more folders. Folders can be "nested" in as many layers, or levels, as you find useful.

The files and folders make up a file system. You can think of this file system as an upside down tree, with a root folder at the top and branches that grow downward. Figure 3-1 shows three branches of a typical OpenStep file system.

Figure 3-1

Each file or folder has a name that identifies its contents. For example, a folder containing the Solaris^(TM) OpenStep^(TM) applications is called Apps. A file might be called EB_draft.rtf.

A file or folder also has a path name that identifies its location. The path name lists the folders along its branch of the file system. The folder names are separated by slashes (/). A slash at the beginning of a path name represents the root folder.

The complete name for the Apps folder (referring to Figure 3-1 on page 3-2) is /usr/openstep/Apps; the complete name for the text document is /home/starr/EB_draft.rtf.

You often identify a file or folder by its path name. You might type a path name or read it in a panel.

Workstations running the OpenStep desktop are typically part of a network, and make use of files on other computers. Many of these files are displayed in a path that includes the /net folder, which represents the network. Referring again to Figure 3-1 on page 3-2, the path name /net/fred/export/publicity identifies a folder named publicity on another computer that is named fred.

As Seen in the File Viewer

To get to the files and folders in the file system, you use the File Viewer (see Figure 3-2 on page 3-4). The File Viewer appears when you enter the OpenStep workspace and can stay open the whole time you are working.

Figure 3-2

Files and folders are displayed as icons. Different areas of the File Viewer have the following uses:

• Icons on the shelf can provide a shortcut to files and folders you access frequently. The shelf always contains your home folder, which is where you keep your own work. You can add or remove other files and folders.
• The icon path shows where you are in the file system. This row of icons shows the selected file or folder and the folders above it in its branch of the file system.
• The bottom area displays the contents of the current folder--the one you are currently working in. When you use OpenStep for the first time, files and folders here are shown as icons.

When you enter the workspace, you see the contents of your home folder. Your home folder has the icon of a house. Its name is your user name.

Opening a Folder

You open a folder (as shown in Figure 3-3) to see its contents, which are displayed in the bottom area of the File Viewer (as shown in Figure 3-4 on page 3-6). When you first use OpenStep, files and folders here are displayed as large icons. To see them as large icons if you do not currently, open the View menu and choose Icon.

* Click on a folder on the shelf or in the icon path.

or

* Double-click on a folder in the current view.

Figure 3-3

Figure 3-4 ReactionReports

With the icon view, you can select a folder without opening it by clicking on it in the current view instead of double-clicking on it.

The way you move through the file system when you open a folder depends on what part of the File Viewer you open it from (see Figure 3-5, Figure 3-6 on page 3-7, and Figure 3-7 on page 3-7).

Figure 3-5

Figure 3-6

Figure 3-7

The file system contains UNIX^(R) files that are not displayed in the File Viewer unless you specify that you want them to be displayed. See "Displaying UNIX Files" on page 15-24.

Opening a File

You open a file (as shown in Figure 3-8 on page 3-8) to see its contents.

If a file is associated with an OpenStep application, the application associated with the file starts, if it is not already running. It then shows the contents of the file in a window. See "Which Application Opens a File" on page 3-10 for information on the file extensions that are recognized by OpenStep desktop applications.

* Double-click on the file on the shelf, in the icon path, or in the current view.

Figure 3-8

If a file is associated with a non-OpenStep application (for example, a document file associated with FrameMaker), opening the file in the File Viewer does not start the non-OpenStep application, but may start an OpenStep application.

If you open a file that is an OpenStep application, the application simply starts.

If you open a file that is a non-OpenStep application, OpenStep does one of the following:

• Starts the Terminal application, which then attempts to start the application you opened.
• Displays an alert panel with the message "This application doesn't contain software for this kind of computer."

When an OpenStep application that is not in the dock starts, its icon is displayed at the bottom of the screen. You can drag the icon into the dock, as shown in Figure 3-9 on page 3-9. Do not drag icons of non-OpenStep applications into the dock.

Figure 3-9

If a file does not open, you may not have read permission for it. See "Permissions Granted" on page 6-2 and "Changing Permissions for a File or Folder" on page 7-9.

Which Application Opens a File

You can tell which application opens a file by the file icon. Usually, it resembles the application icon (see Table 3-1). You can also tell by the file name extension--the last period in the name and the characters that follow. The extension describes the type of information in the file. For example, a file in Rich Text Format (RTF) has the extension .rtf. A file with encapsulated PostScript^(TM) has an .eps extension. A plain text file has no extension.

Table 3-1

File Extension	File Icon	Application Icon	Application
.eps			Preview
.rtf			Edit

OpenStep desktop applications recognize files with the extensions listed in Table 3-2, and the correct application is started to open these files. The icons for these file types are shown in Table 3-3 on page 3-11.

Table 3-2

Opened by	Extensions
1 Edit	.rtfd, .rtf, .text
Mail	.mbox, .vox
Preview	.ps, .tiff, .eps

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Note - For more information, see "Changing the Application That Opens a File" on page 7-6.

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Icons in the File System

Different kinds of files and folders have different icons. There are also icons for disks, disk drives, or any other devices that might appear in your file system. Table 3-3 shows some common icons. (For information on other icons, see Chapter 4, "Working With Applications" and Chapter 8, "Working With Disks.") You also may see icons for applications you buy or create yourself.

Table 3-3

Icon	Meaning
	A general-purpose folder. You can create folders of this type.
	A folder that is on another computer on the network. You can open it by clicking, even though it is on another computer. (In most cases, you will not have access to every folder on the other computer.)
	A computer's root folder. The computer's name is displayed with the icon. Your home folder.
	Someone else's home folder, which you might see if you are working on a network or sharing your computer with other people.
	The /net folder, which contains folders on other computers that belong to the network.

Table 3-3 (Continued)

Icon	Meaning
	A file in Rich Text Format (often called an RTF file), which contains text with font and formatting properties, such as bold or italic. An RTF file that contains one or more graphic images.
	A file that contains only plain text--text with no font or formatting properties.
	A file that contains a graphic image in encapsulated PostScript format, often called an EPS file.
	A file with a graphic image in tag image file format, often called a TIFF file. An application that does not have its own icon.
	A file or folder that has been compressed. See "Compressing and Decompressing a File or Folder" on page 6-16.
	A broken link to a file or folder (see Chapter 6, "Organizing Your Work," for information on links).
	An application that cannot be run--for example, because it is not configured to run on your type of computer. In the dock, it might be an application that was moved, renamed, or that no longer exists.

A folder is dimmed when you do not have permission to open it. If you try to open it, no contents are displayed even if it has some.

Browsing Files and Folders

Browsing is a way to move quickly through the files and folders in your file system. When you choose Browser, the current view becomes a browser, which lists the contents of each folder in the icon path, as shown in Figure 3-10. The contents are listed by name in the column below the icon.

* To see the contents of several folders at once, choose View from the Dock menu and then choose Browser from the View menu.

* To open a folder, select its name in the browser.

* To open a file, double-click on its name in the browser.

Figure 3-10

When you select a folder in a browser, the contents of the folder are displayed in the column to the right (see Figure 3-11).

Figure 3-11

You can also open files and folders from the shelf and icon path, just as you can when you are working with other views.

Listing Files and Folders

* To change to the listing view, choose View from the Workspace menu and then choose Listing from the View menu.

* To open a file or folder, double-click on the icon next to its name.

You can list the contents of the current folder to show the size, history, and permissions for files and folders. When you choose Listing, the view changes to show this information (see Figure 3-12).

Figure 3-12

In the listing view, the icon next to a name indicates whether it is a file, folder, or application:

Marks a folder

Marks an application

Marks any other file

You can also open a file or folder from the shelf or icon path, just as you can when working with other views.

To find out the size of a folder, you have to use the Inspector command. See "Getting Information about a File or Folder" in Chapter 7.

What You See in the Listing View

When you display the contents of a folder in the listing view, the columns next to each file or folder name provide the following information (see Figure 3-13 on page 3-17):

Size The size, in bytes, for files. In a plain text file, for instance, each character occupies one byte.

Last Changed The date and time (based on a 24-hour clock) that the file or folder was created, or that changes were last made to it. Older files list the year instead of the time.

Permissions The read (r), write (w), and execute (x) permissions, successively, for the person who owns the file or folder, a group of people who may have special access it, and anyone else who has access to the file system. A listing of r - x for the group, for example, means the group has read and execute permissions but not write permission.

Owner The user name of the person who owns the file or folder.

Group The group of users who have the group permissions.

For more information on permissions, see "Changing Permissions for a File or Folder" on page 7-9.

Figure 3-13

Stocking the Shelf

You can stock your shelf with folders or files you use frequently. Just drag them from the icon path as shown in Figure 3-14 on page 3-18.

* To add a folder or file to the shelf, select the folder or file. Then drag it from the icon path to an empty space on the shelf.

* To remove a folder or file from the shelf, drag it out of the File Viewer into the workspace.

Figure 3-14

Drag a file or folder into the workspace to remove it from the shelf (see Figure 3-15 on page 3-19).

Figure 3-15

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Caution - When you drag a file or folder to add it to the shelf or remove it, do not release the mouse button while the icon you are dragging is over another folder. If you do, you might accidentally copy or move the file or folder you are dragging.

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You can make more room on your shelf by resizing the File Viewer so it is wider.

You can adjust the number of rows on your shelf. See "Personalizing Your File Viewer" on page 3-32.

Opening Folders and Files by Typing

You can put your mouse aside and select and open folders and files from the keyboard, as shown in Figure 3-16 and Figure 3-17 on page 3-21.

* To move along the current branch of the file system, press the left or right arrow key.

* To move through the contents of a folder in the browser or listing view, press the up or down arrow key.

* To select a specific file or folder in the current folder, type the first few characters of its name.

* To open the selected file or folder, press Return.

Figure 3-16

If you make a mistake or change your mind while typing a file or folder name, pause for a moment to start over.

With the browser or listing view, you can use the up and down arrow keys to move through the contents of a folder, as shown in Figure 3-17.

Figure 3-17

You can locate any file or folder by typing its path name. As soon as you type a slash (/) or tilde character (~) to begin the path name, the Finder opens. See "Options for Searching" on page 3-31.

Selecting Several Files and Folders

You can select several files and folders in the current folder and then perform some operation with all of them (see Figure 3-18). For example, you can open several files at the same time by selecting them and double-clicking on the selection icon (see Figure 3-19 on page 3-23).

* Drag around (or over) the files and folders you want to select.

* Hold down the Shift key and select each file or folder you want to add to the selection or remove from it.

* In the browser or listing view, hold down the Alt key and click to select a range between the current selection and where you click.

Figure 3-18

Figure 3-19

You can also hold down the Shift key while dragging around several icons to add all of them to your selection.

You can drag and use the Shift key to make multiple selections in the browser or listing view too (see Figure 3-20 on page 3-24).

Figure 3-20

Or you can use the Alt key to select a range of files and folders, as shown in Figure 3-21 on page 3-25.

Figure 3-21

In either the browser or listing view, you can hold down the Shift key while you click a selected file or folder, or while you drag over several, to remove files or folders from the selection.

To find out which is your keyboard's Alt key, see "Keyboard Basics" on page 9-5.

Opening a Folder in Its Own Window

You can open a folder in its own window (see Figure 3-22 on page 3-26), for example, to be able to see the folder's contents while opening other folders in the File Viewer.

1. Select the folder you want to open.

2. Choose File from the Dock menu.

3. Choose Open as Folder from the File menu.

Figure 3-22

This window behaves like the File Viewer, except that it shows only the contents of the selected folder. In it, you can open files and folders, drag them to the shelf, and do anything else you do in the File Viewer.

File Packages--Files That Are Really Folders

A file package is a special kind of folder whose contents are not normally shown in the File Viewer or any other folder window. Instead, file packages look and behave like regular files. Double-clicking on a file package, for example, starts up an application or shows the contents of a file in a window.

File packages keep together information that should not be separated. When you add a graphic image to an Edit document, for example, Edit puts the graphic in its own file and stores it in a file package along with a file containing the document's text. Most applications are also file packages. They consist of a file containing the actual application and other files that the application uses, such as sounds.

You rarely need to see the contents of a file package, and you shouldn't normally change its contents. But to look inside one--for example, to copy something from it--select it in the File Viewer and choose Open as Folder from the File menu as shown in Figure 3-23 on page 3-28.

You can tell that a file is really a file package if:

• The Open as Folder command is not dimmed when the file is selected. When you select a regular file, this command is dimmed.
• When you inspect the file with the Inspector command, the file is treated as a folder. See "Getting Information About a File or Folder" on page 7-1.
• The file is an RTF file with an .rtfd extension.
• The file is an application with an .app extension.

Figure 3-23

Finding Files and Folders

You can search for a file or folder (see Figure 3-24 on page 3-29) based on any part of its name. You can also search for a file based on a string of text that is in the file. You tell the Finder where to search by designating a target. You can drag any folder from the File Viewer to the Finder's shelf and use it as a target.

1. Choose Tools from the Dock menu.

2. Choose Finder from the Tools menu.

3. Select a target from the Finder's shelf.

4. Use the pop-up list to indicate whether you are searching for a file name or a text string inside a file.

5. Type in the name or text string for which you want to search.

6. Click on the Find button or press the Return key.

Figure 3-24

You can search for a single file or folder by name--regardless of the target--by typing its entire path name in the Finder, such as /home/starr/publicity/Press_Releases or ~starr/creative. When found, the file or folder is selected in the File Viewer.

Shortcuts to Typing Path Names

Here are a few shortcuts you can use to enter a path name in the Finder.

• You can designate your home folder with a tilde character (~). To identify a path that continues past your home folder, just continue the path name. Typing ~/EB_draft.rtf, for example, is a shortcut for /home/starr/EB_draft.rtf. To specify someone else's home folder, type ~ followed by the name of that person's home folder, as in ~poupon.
• You can type a few characters of a name in a path name and press the Esc key to fill in the rest of the name. To type /home/starr, for example, type /h and press Esc, then type /s and press Esc. If more than one name matches what you have typed so far, the Finder lists all possible matches each time you press Esc.

During a search, the Find button changes to a stop sign that you can click on to interrupt the search.

You can select a file or folder in the Finder and use the Inspector command to inspect it (see Chapter 7, "Inspecting Files and Folders"). You can also search for an address book by content.

To narrow down your search, you can select from the files and folders you find, as shown in Figure 3-25, and then search on the selection.

Figure 3-25

When you search by name, you can double-click on a file or folder listed in the Finder to select it in the File Viewer--even while the search is still in progress. When you search by content, double-clicking on a file listed in the Finder opens the file and selects the text you are searching for. In either mode, you can also select a file in the Finder and then double-click on its icon to open it.

Options for Searching

You can find any file or folder while working in the File Viewer by typing its full path name. As soon as you type a slash (/) or tilde character (~), the Finder opens and shows your typing. Complete the path name and press Return. The file or folder is selected in the File Viewer and the Finder closes.

You can also press Esc in the File Viewer to type the path name of the current selection in the Finder.

If you want the Finder to list a file or folder without selecting it in the File Viewer--for example, so you can drag it to the Finder's shelf to use as a target--type the path name and press Esc instead of Return.

You can Shift-click an item on the shelf to add it to your target. If you forget what is in a target that consists of a multiple selection, press the Esc key to list the selection's contents.

When searching by name, you can use an asterisk (*) as a wildcard. For example, to find all TIFF files within a target, type *.tiff.

To search for names that contain a ~ or *, enclose your text in quotation marks, as in "~oldfile".

You can select more than one file or folder in the Finder the same as with browser or listing view in the File Viewer. See "Selecting Several Files and Folders" on page 3-22. You can use the Preferences command to search for one or more keywords in files. See "Workspace Manager Commands" on page A-10.

Personalizing Your File Viewer

You can adjust spacing of icons or browser columns displayed in the File Viewer. The Icon View option lets you adjust the spacing in the icon view, as shown in Figure 3-26.

1. Choose Info from the Workspace menu.

2. Choose Preferences from the Info menu.

3. Choose the Icon View, Browser, or Shelf option from the pop-up list at the top of the Workspace Manager Preferences panel.

4. Make settings in the panel to adjust spacing between icons or the width of browser columns.

Figure 3-26

With the Browser option, you can adjust the width of columns in the browser view, as shown in Figure 3-27 on page 3-33.

Figure 3-27

With the Shelf option, you can adjust spacing between icons on the shelf, as shown in Figure 3-28 on page 3-34.

Figure 3-28

You can also add rows to the shelf. When you click on the Resizable Shelf box, a resize knob appears at the bottom center of the shelf, as shown in Figure 3-29 on page 3-35.

Figure 3-29

You can click on the Use Default Setting button in the Preferences panel to return to the default OpenStep settings.

Network Perspective

Since OpenStep runs on computers that are connected in networks, understanding the basics of networking will help you get the most out of OpenStep. It is the network that makes it possible to exchange electronic mail with other people and share their files, all within seconds and without ever leaving your own desk.

A network can consist of two computers or two thousand. Some of them will have people like you working at them. Others, known as servers, will contain files and folders shared by everyone on the network.

You access servers and the files they contain through the /net folder in your root folder. Files and folders accessed through other paths, such as /usr/openstep, are usually on the hard disk in your own computer.

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Note - Your home folder is typically on a server, and therefore accessible from any computer in the network. This means you can log into any computer on the network with your user name and password, and find yourself in your own workspace, with access to the files in your home folder.

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Working with files and folders on a server is no different than working with files and folders on your own computer. But while everyone can access the folders in /net, only you can access the other folders in your root folder.