Re: Creator code and file extension
Re: Creator code and file extension
- Subject: Re: Creator code and file extension
- From: "M. Uli Kusterer" <email@hidden>
- Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2003 15:19:48 +0200
At 23:41 Uhr -0500 08.10.2003, Charles Srstka wrote:
Type/creator codes seem to be deprecated. Binding files to custom
applications is still available though, just through a different
mechanism, and it can be set in the Get Info panel, under "Open
With:".
There's a huge difference between binding files to custom
applications using "Open With" and using a creator code:
Imagine you have two applications that create PICT files. One
creates bitmapped PICTs, the other actually creates vector data. You
want to edit all vector PICTs with the application they were created
with, and all bitmap PICTs with the bitmap drawing application you
used to create them.
With creators, they will be assigned to the app that created it by
default, which means you lose no data. Without them, you could end up
(worst case) in a situation where the Finder opens all PICTs in the
bitmap drawing application, and you'd have to go to each vector PICT
file and manually change its application to the vector app.
With creators, the Finder "knows" what app created a document (or at
least which app last saved it, since some apps assign changed files
their creator). This allows you to do cool things, like open all
PICTs created using Graphicconverter in Photoshop by default, while
still using Freehand to edit vector PICTs it created itself.
There are also advantages to having both type codes and file
suffixes. E.g. traditionally HTML files had the type 'TEXT' and the
suffix '.html'. Which means, every stupid text editor simply
registered for type 'TEXT' and the Finder had a way of detecting even
text files that had no suffix, while binary files weren't opened in
text editors.
You can see that I'm strongly in favor of metadata. I don't care
whether it's kept in HFS+ node entries or in a box full of starving
crazed weasels, but metadata like "creator" and "type" are very
useful, and I do hope Apple extend this and don't stop using it. :-)
--
Cheers,
M. Uli Kusterer
------------------------------------------------------------
"The Witnesses of TeachText are everywhere..."
http://www.zathras.de
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