The concept for this cdev arose out of a particular inconvenience inherent in otherwise wonderful utilities like HD Runner and On Cue. The problem with these programs is that although you can conveniently launch an application from just about anywhere, there's no way to set the folder you want the application to use when you do an "Open..." or "Save..." (except by launching it with an attached document that resides in that folder, then closing that document and opening the one you want - a major kludge). You get the convenience of quick launching, but then have to go dredging through your entire folder hierarchy anyway so you can open or save a file. Not a pretty picture.
One look at most peoples' computing habits reveals a need to associate particular folders with certain applications, since individuals generally use certain combinations on a regular basis. For example, when programming a project like this one, I want all my programming tools to default to the folder where I'm doing my development. Also, I always download and unstuff new toys from bboards in the same folder, so I want my terminal emulator and Disk Doubler to default to that folder. Basically, one needs something that sets a "default directory" (ahem, "folder") for each application. DFaultD lets you do just that.
DFaultD also provides other "folder management" features. Primarily, it gives you a pop-up menu in your file dialogs. This menu lets you switch to the default folder of the current application or DA, switch to one of the last ten folders you've used, or switch to one of a number of folders which you've permanently added to the menu. It also lets you switch between volumes rather than repeatedly banging on the "Drive" button, and saves the last folder you used on each drive, rather than always switching to the top level of the folder hierarchy on each disk. If you're running System 7, the "Drive" button has been taken away altogether, making this feature even more useful, in my opinion. I've also added a "New Folder" item to the folder menu because I got tired of not being able to create folders when unstuffing downloaded stuff.
I realize that some of these features duplicate those of Boomerang and Super Boomerang, but I felt that they were consistent with the function of DFaultD, and I don't use Boomerang for a number of reasons. Ah well, enough digression. On to the explanation…
