Portability

Dixiedog · Post by **Dixiedog** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 1:44 pm

Does anyone have a suggestion on how best to move Bookends among computers? The problem here is that my preferences set things like acronyms that should be left in capital letters in a bibliography and particular document types created from usused types. A custom format changes from time to time as I perfect it for my organization, or as I add a document type. Thus, maintaining consistency among my computers and with my secretary is a bit of a hassle. Currently, I put the custom format and the .plist file, as well as Bookends, on a memory stick. I then install them on the other machiens. Is there something simpler?

niklas · Post by **niklas** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 3:57 pm

I am doing something similar. I move all my work between two computers almost daily. I use my iPod to move the data back and forth and get a free backup in the process.

Generally I move my whole home folder to the iPod when I am about to leave the computer, but I use a synchronizing software so it only moves changed files. So it ususlly takes just a few seconds. At the new computer I just move my working folder and a few other files and folders that I need from the iPod.

I use a great software called PsyncX, which is free and can be found at: http://sourceforge.net/projects/psyncx
It has a nice GUI, but I mostly use the command line version that is also installed by the package. I have created a couple of shell scripts with all the commands that I need and made them executable, so that I can just double-click on them when I am about to leave or when I sit down at my computer, and that's all. No need to worry about what to move more than once.

With a memory stick you may have to be a bit more restrictive with what you move of course. If you would just want to move the Bookend stuff you could use the following commands (ditto is included on the computer).

To memory stick:

Code: Select all

ditto --rsrc /Users/username/Documents/BookendsDB  /Volumes/memorystick/Backup/Documents/
#Moves the Bookends database to your memorystick

ditto --rsrc /Users/username/Library/Preferences/Bookends*  /Volumes/memorystick/Backup/Library/Preferences/
#Moves your preferences.

psync -d  0 0 '/Users/niklas/Documents/Bookends' '/Volumes/memorystick/Backup/hemma/username/Documents/Bookends'
#Synchronizes your PDF's and whatever else you may have in that folder.

To move onto your computer:

Code: Select all

ditto --rsrc /Volumes/memorystick/Backup/Documents/BookendsDB /Users/username/Documents/
#Moves the database from the memorystick

ditto --rsrc /Volumes/memorystick/Backup/Library/Preferences/Bookends* /Users/username/Library/Preferences/
#Moves your preferences.

psync -d  0 0 '/Volumes/memorystick/Backup/Documents/Bookends' '/Users/username/Documents/Bookends'
#Synchronizes your PDF's and whatever else you may have in that folder.

Obviously you will have to change the filenames etc to what is suitable.

Put these lines in two files. Begin each file with:

Code: Select all

#! /bin/sh

mounted=$(df | grep "/Volumes/memorystick")

if [ ! "$mounted" ]; then
echo "memorystick not mounted!";

else

Again, change "memorystick" to what ever you call it
...and end the files with:

Code: Select all

fi
exit

Then save your files to your desktop (in plain text) as "filename.command", tell them to open with Terminal (via get info), and finally: open a terminal window and type: chmod +x ~/Desktop/filename.command and hit enter.

Now, you should have a pair of files that you can just double-click on each time you want to mova data back and forth to your stick...

prop · Post by **prop** » Thu Mar 10, 2005 9:21 pm

Thanks - great post! Off to create my shell scripts...

niklas · Post by **niklas** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 4:18 am

Oh, I forgot, you may have to create the underlying folders on your memorystick before you run the script the first time, I don't think ditto and psync does that automatically.
In the example above, that would be:

Backup/Documents/
and
Backup/Library/Preferences/

Within the specified folder (the Bookends folder), psync will create new folders if needed.

Niklas

ozean · Post by **ozean** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 6:34 am

In your sample scripts you did not include commands for the custom stuff in /Applications/Bookends Folder - since pkdavis wants to transport his custom format changes this needs to be copied too.

This is one of the very few grudges regarding OS X standards that I have with Bookends:
it should really place customized info in the default places, i.e. /Library/Application Support and ~/Library/Application Support - that way it would be much easier to back this up, and it would also make it impossible to loose this extremely important information by accidentally overwriting the Bookends Folder during an upgrade.

Things that should reside in Application Support:
All three "Customâ€¦" folders, the database that is to be served by the bookends server, and the default.html file for the Bookends server.

Another benefit would be that you could control who has access to which customized (and sometimes experimental) formats / import filters.

niklas · Post by **niklas** » Fri Mar 11, 2005 7:10 am

ozean wrote: This is one of the very few grudges regarding OS X standards that I have with Bookends:
it should really place customized info in the default places, i.e. /Library/Application Support and ~/Library/Application Support - that way it would be much easier to back this up, and it would also make it impossible to loose this extremely important information by accidentally overwriting the Bookends Folder during an upgrade.

I agree completely, these things belong in the Application Support Folder(s). It can also create permission issues when you are not logged into the computer as administrator. You shouldn't have to write to the /Applications folder at all to use a program. For what it's worth, Endnote does this the same way too (doesn't make it any better though!).

Anyway, a workaround, that I believe will work, is to manually move these folders into a more sensible place, within your user space (the ~/Documents/Bookends folder perhaps?), and then put aliases with identical names in their original locations. Haven't tried it with Bookends, but it worked with Endnote.

Niklas

Post by **Jon** » Sat Mar 12, 2005 2:32 pm

I think I will change the folder locations in a future upgrade. Attachments are already in the ~/Documents/Bookends/Attachments folder. The Custom folders will probably go in ~/Application/Support (you will have to move your data there manually when updating, probably).

Jon
Sonny Software

ozean · Post by **ozean** » Sat Mar 12, 2005 7:24 pm

Yay! That will be a great improvement. The way it is handled now, I always experience a subtle fear of loosing my customized stuff when updating Bookendsâ€¦

It will be a relief to freely trash the Bookends folder like I do with other apps when I update them. Away with the old dusty app, here comes a shiny new version!

Post by **Jon** » Mon Mar 14, 2005 7:49 am

Question: do the folks who want custom folders stored in Application Default care if it is in

~/Library/Application Support

or

HD/Library/Application Support

That is, is one preferable?

Jon
Sonny Software

ozean · Post by **ozean** » Mon Mar 14, 2005 9:17 am

Is HD/Library/Application Support writable by non-admin users? If not it would probably be better (less customer support troubles

) if you would default to ~/Library/Application Support.

If people want to make the customized stuff available to all users, they can move the respective filters and other things to HD/Library/Application Support.

It would probably be a good idea to mention this possibility in the User Guideâ€¦

niklas · Post by **niklas** » Mon Mar 14, 2005 11:05 am

ozean wrote:Is HD/Library/Application Support writable by non-admin users? If not it would probably be better (less customer support troubles ) if you would default to ~/Library/Application Support.

If people want to make the customized stuff available to all users, they can move the respective filters and other things to HD/Library/Application Support.

It would probably be a good idea to mention this possibility in the User Guideâ€¦

I second this.
By default ~/Library/Application Support would be better, /Library/Application Support would really only make sense if you have multiple users that need to share these things. Wouldn't hurt to have that as an option but I definitely don't think it should be the default.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Mar 15, 2005 6:33 pm

Jon wrote:Question: do the folks who want custom folders stored in Application Default care if it is in

~/Library/Application Support

or

HD/Library/Application Support

That is, is one preferable?

Jon
Sonny Software

My preference is definitely for the ~/Library/Application Support folder....among other issues, it makes backing up the home directory a proper archive of my files rather than forcing me to remember where various customized bits are strewn.

Just my 2Â¢.

Best,
darin

Post by **Jon** » Tue Mar 15, 2005 6:38 pm

Thanks for all the feedback. The deed is done -- Bookends 8.0.2 will place Custom Folders in

~/Library/Application Support/Bookends/

Existing 8.x owners should move any existing custom files to the correct folders when they upgrade. New files they make in 8.0.2 will go to the right place automatically.

Jon
Sonny Software