Installing OpenDoc(OD Cookbook)

Inside Macintosh: OpenDoc Cookbook /: Chapter 1 - Development Environment

Installing OpenDoc
This section describes installation of OpenDoc on the Mac OS.

Installer
OpenDoc ships with an installer script and installer application to simplify the installation procedure. You need only drag the installer script onto the installer application for it to put all of OpenDoc's components in their correct locations on your hard disk.

Editors Folders
The OpenDoc installer application creates several folders when OpenDoc is being installed. You should put part editor and part viewer shared library files into the Editors folder, which the installer puts into the System Folder. Editors folders may also be located at the root of any mounted volume. This allows you to install part editors on a volume other that the startup volume. It also allows editors to reside on shared volumes or even on floppy disks. OpenDoc also scans subfolders in any of these recognized Editors folders for editors.

Resource Cache
To speed up launching, OpenDoc stores the name-mapping ('nmap') resources of all editors in an Editors folder in a single cache file. The cache file is invisible and is located in the Editors folder. The cache is invalidated and regenerated when the modification date of any folder that contains editors changes. When this happens OpenDoc displays a small dialog box reading Updating OpenDoc editors database.
Use of this cache has no effect on users, but it shaves several seconds from document launch times. While you are developing part editors, however, you must realize that simply modifying an editor library in the Editors folder (for example, editing its 'nmap' resources or recompiling the editor or its resources) does not cause OpenDoc to rescan the editor and load the new 'nmap' resource because modifying a file in a directory does not change the directory's modification date. To ensure that OpenDoc reads the changed 'nmap' resource, move the editor out of the directory and back in.

Aliases
Aliases to files and folders are permitted in the Editors folder. However, aliases to files or folders on other volumes are not permitted. In fact, OpenDoc moves these illegal aliases to the trash. Such aliases should be put in the Editors folder on the aliases' destination volume. All editors logically contained in a single Editors folder must be on a single volume.

Apple Guide Help Files
Providing Apple Guide support for an editor requires implementing a help file to be installed along with the editor shared library file. Apple Guide help files must be installed in the same folder as the editor itself. In addition, the editor shared library must include an 'nmap' resource that specifies the name of the help file, linking it to the class identifier of the part editor.

The Stationery Folder
The Stationery folder is created by the OpenDoc installer at the root level of the startup volume. When you create stationery (by dropping an editor shared library on the OpenDoc application), OpenDoc places the stationery file in the Stationery folder.