From: achrist@easystreet.com
Subject: Re: How to find directory where the program is?
Date: Fri, 26 Apr 2002 13:41:36 -0700
Date: 2002-04-26T13:41:36-07:00 [thread overview]
Message-ID: <3CC9BB80.7ADF4C8D@easystreet.com> (raw)
In-Reply-To: u1yd22ztq.fsf@gsfc.nasa.gov
Stephen Leake wrote:
>
> Most OS's have "environment variables". The hard part is getting the
> installer to set the appropriate environment variable.
>
Problem if the installer runs on machine A and then user tries to
execute the program from machine 2. Much worse is the possibility
that sometime during the lifetime of the installed program, the
computer will be messed with by someone who removes the environment
variable to clean up the environment or tidy up the startup script
that sets the variables. The environment is not a database; if a
computer has lots of software installed and lots of environment
settings, this is both an efficiency issue and a management problem.
A user-friendly program will not simply crash if the required
environment is missing. My preferred approach is like the method
of Hansel and Gretel in the deep woods -- drop lots of breadcrumbs.
If you can't find your way based on the command line, look in the
current directory; if the current directory is no help, look in the
environment (or the registry); if the environment doesn't help, look
along the PATH; if the path is no help, look in the program's
directory.
This gives some opportunity for confusion, but it also allows a
hierarchical set of defaults and overrides of various options. In
particular, it also llows running/testing of multiple versions of
the same program on the same machine with different settings that
maybe don't interfere with each other.
Al
next prev parent reply other threads:[~2002-04-26 20:41 UTC|newest]
Thread overview: 54+ messages / expand[flat|nested] mbox.gz Atom feed top
2002-04-23 18:28 How to find directory where the program is? Preben Randhol
2002-04-23 19:10 ` Florian Weimer
2002-04-23 19:37 ` Randy Brukardt
2002-04-23 20:53 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-23 21:04 ` Joachim Schr�er
2002-04-24 8:35 ` Thierry Lelegard
2002-04-24 8:43 ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
2002-04-24 10:33 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-24 11:43 ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
2002-04-24 14:44 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-24 15:38 ` Hyman Rosen
2002-04-24 17:44 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-24 23:08 ` Nick Roberts
2002-04-25 7:28 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-25 14:18 ` Marin David Condic
2002-04-26 16:24 ` Stephen Leake
2002-04-26 20:41 ` achrist [this message]
2002-04-26 21:31 ` Larry Kilgallen
2002-04-29 15:38 ` Marin David Condic
2002-04-25 17:10 ` Sergey Koshcheyev
2002-04-25 21:11 ` Nick Roberts
2002-04-25 23:28 ` Sergey Koshcheyev
2002-04-26 5:57 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-26 16:22 ` Stephen Leake
2002-04-26 17:13 ` Anders Gidenstam
2002-04-26 12:18 ` Jacob Sparre Andersen
2002-04-26 12:23 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-26 12:48 ` David C. Hoos
2002-04-26 14:13 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-27 8:18 ` Eric G. Miller
2002-04-26 13:09 ` Marin David Condic
2002-04-27 14:39 ` Larry Kilgallen
2002-04-27 21:12 ` Nick Roberts
2002-04-29 15:52 ` Marin David Condic
2002-04-24 17:44 ` Egil Harald Hoevik
-- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
2002-04-23 19:24 Beard, Frank [Contractor]
2002-04-23 19:56 Beard, Frank [Contractor]
2002-04-23 22:41 ` Larry Kilgallen
2002-04-23 23:28 Beard, Frank [Contractor]
2002-04-24 0:49 ` Larry Kilgallen
2002-04-24 2:31 ` achrist
2002-04-24 10:29 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-24 15:28 ` Darren New
2002-04-24 17:43 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-24 18:33 ` Randy Brukardt
2002-04-24 21:00 ` Wes Groleau
2002-04-25 19:26 ` Randy Brukardt
2002-04-25 2:37 ` Steve Doiel
2002-04-25 7:26 ` Preben Randhol
2002-04-24 9:44 Grein, Christoph
2002-04-25 10:35 ` Thierry Lelegard
2002-04-25 19:30 ` Philippe Waroquiers
2002-04-25 22:57 ` Larry Kilgallen
2002-04-25 16:43 Beard, Frank [Contractor]
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