OmniGraffle vs Mail.app

On or about 2/18/06 4:35 AM, thus spake "johnbaxterlistsmac.com"
<johnbaxterlistsmac.com>:

> Mail.app has a problem with the default location for saving attachments.
>
> I first saw it when I received an OmniGraffle (4.x Pro) document from
> my boss (sent via Apple Mail.app).
>
> I clicked Save, found a good spot, and saved.
>
> When I received an update, I clicked Save, and the default location
> was *inside* the prior OmniGraffle document (these documents are
> directories with a couple of PDF files and an icon and a data.plist
> file).

Called a "bundle". Many Mac OS X documents, and most Mac OS X applications,
are bundles - they are folders "disguised" as files.

> Has anyone else seen this in other contexts than OmniGraffle
> attachements in Mail.app?

Yes. It isn't supposed to happen, but once in a while the file system will
mess up and dive into a bundle in the Save dialog, and when you save into it
by mistake, your stuff effectively vanishes (because you can't normally see
into a bundle). The only solution is caution: look where you are saving. I
almost always save onto the desktop because it is one click away (command-D)
no matter what the default may be.

m.

--
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On 2/18/06 at 9:51 AM, matttidbits.com (Matt Neuburg) wrote:

>>Has anyone else seen this in other contexts than OmniGraffle
>>attachements in Mail.app?

>Yes. It isn't supposed to happen, but once in a while the file
>system will mess up and dive into a bundle in the Save dialog, and
>when you save into it by mistake, your stuff effectively vanishes
>(because you can't normally see into a bundle).

I am not convinced it is the system "messing" up. I use Path Finder in preference to Finder. And if I select an item from one of Path Finder's windows and use the contextual menu to copy that item to another location, I am always able to navigate into bundles within the save dialog. This indicates to me the behavior depends on how the application is coded rather than a problem with the system itself.

On or about 2/18/06 10:56 PM, thus spake "Bill Rowe"
<bitreaderearthlink.net>:

> On 2/18/06 at 9:51 AM, matttidbits.com (Matt Neuburg) wrote:
>
>>> Has anyone else seen this in other contexts than OmniGraffle
>>> attachements in Mail.app?
>
>> Yes. It isn't supposed to happen, but once in a while the file
>> system will mess up and dive into a bundle in the Save dialog, and
>> when you save into it by mistake, your stuff effectively vanishes
>> (because you can't normally see into a bundle).
>
> I am not convinced it is the system "messing" up. I use Path Finder in
> preference to Finder. And if I select an item from one of Path Finder's
> windows and use the contextual menu to copy that item to another location, I
> am always able to navigate into bundles within the save dialog. This indicates
> to me the behavior depends on how the application is coded rather than a
> problem with the system itself.

Open and Save dialog behavior is provided by the system. An application can
ask to dive into bundles or not, so Path Finder could be doing this on
purpose. But whatever the cause in this or any other particular case, the
system does mess up on this. The bundle mechanism (that is, the mechanism
whereby the system, in this or that context, decides that something is a
bundle) is itself fragile. Do a search in the newsgroup archives and you'll
find lots of examples of people wailing that "All my applications turned
into folders" or similar. I see it all too often myself. m.

--
matt neuburg, phd = matttidbits.com, http://www.tidbits.com/matt/
pantes anthropoi tou eidenai oregontai phusei
AppleScript: the Definitive Guide - Second Edition!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0596102119
Take Control of Word 2004, Tiger, and more -
http://www.takecontrolbooks.com/tiger-customizing.html
Subscribe to TidBITS! It's free and smart. http://www.tidbits.com/