In RISC OS and the ROX Desktop, an application directory is a grouping of software code, help files and resources that together comprise a complete software package but are presented to the user as a single file. They also form the basis of the Zero Install application distribution system and are similar to the NEXTSTEP, GNUstep & Mac OS X concept of bundles. Their heritage lies in the system for automatically launching software stored on floppy disk on Acorn's earlier 8bit micros such as the BBC Micro.
Joining various files in this manner allows tools for manipulating applications to be merged with tools for manipulating the file system.
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In order to support user interaction with application directories, several files have special status.
Application binariesLaunching an application directory causes the included file AppRun (ROX Desktop) or !Run (RISC OS) to be launched. On RISC OS this is generally an Obey file (a RISC OS command script) which allocates memory and loads OS extension modules and shared libraries before executing the application binary. Under the ROX Desktop, it is not uncommon for it to be a shell script that will launch the correct system binary if available or compile a suitable binary from source otherwise.
Help files & iconsBoth RISC OS and the ROX Desktop allow the user to view help files associated with an application directory without launching the application. RISC OS relies on a file in the directory named !Help which is launched as if the user double-clicked on it when help is requested (and can be any format the system understands, but plain text and !Draw formats are common), while the ROX Desktop looks for HTML format help files in a Help directory.
Similarly, custom icons for the Application Directory may be contained within it - either .DirIcon (in PNG format) or AppIcon.xpm under the ROX Desktop, or !Sprites and optionally !Sprites22 under RISC OS.
!BootRISC OS application directories may contain a file named !Boot which is executed by the OS when the bundle is first discovered by the OS, allowing an application to do tasks such as register supported filetypes, or load different icons such as ASprites (icons with an alpha channel for RISC OS Select) or 5Sprites (icons with a RISC OS 5 appearance). !Boot files are the most popular propagation vector for such RISC OS viruses as exist (such as the well-known Extend virus). This feature is not duplicated by the ROX Desktop.
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- This page was last modified by Admin. Previous modification to this article was done on 07:01, 26 Oct 2006 by Wikipedia user Jimfbleak. Based on work by Wikipedia user(s) Mr Printer, Paul E Nolan, Andrewduffell, Smiler jerg, Blotwell and ThomasHarte & Anonymous user(s) of Wikipedia. Click here to view authors profile Pub date - 2009-05-15 10:42:43 Related resources:
- New Facebook Application Directory Goes Live
- Wed, 20 May 2009 16:12:44 GMT - Along with the new application pages which were rolled out this morning, Facebook has also pushed the new application directory live. The new directory provides a much needed improvement over the previous version. I've spent ...
- Facebook’s Redesigned Application Directory Goes Live
- Wed, 20 May 2009 16:36:22 GMT - Also interesting is the “Recent Activity from Friends” area you now see on the homepage of the apps directory. This is essentially a filter of the updates you see on your homepage, but with just application-related activity, ...
