Re: preferences api

[Rogelio Serrano]

On 2004-08-16 15:41:59 +0800 Richard Frith-Macdonald <richard@brainstorm.co.uk> 
wrote:

> 
> On 16 Aug 2004, at 08:08, Rogelio M.Serrano Jr. wrote:
> 
>>> I'm not sure what you mean by this ... programs don't have home directories
>>> under unix ... users do.
>>> Programs are run by/as particular users.
>> 
>> Well the user associated with the daemon needs to have a home directory. 
>> And if we use NSUserDefaults that means the setting for the programs will 
>> be placed in the users home directory. If we run my NetcconfigD as nobody 
>> then there must be a valid user named nobody.
> 
> In the sense that there must be a directory containing the defaults file(s) 
> from which the information can be read,
> yes there must be a valid user.  I think, on most systems, if the home 
> directory for a user is not specified in the password file, the root 
> directory is used, and the defaults database for the user would therefore be 
> placed in /GNUstep.
> Of course, since the user has no write access, the defaults directory could 
> not be created automatically and you would have to create it manually as 
> root, then change its ownership.
> On many systems the 'nobody' account is specially set up to have a home 
> directory specified, but for the directory to be non-existent.  In that case, 
> the system GNUsteprc would need to be used to direct the defaults system to 
> read the user defaults from an alternative location (and the GNUstep system 
> would need to be set up just for use by that account).
> However, running programs as a non-existent user is really working hard at 
> trying to break the defaults system!
> 
> 

:-)

Im going to use the Library/Preferences/ in whatever Domain the daemon was 
installed in. Maybe use the code from NSUserDefaults. Something like 
CFpreferences. Maybe turn it into a layer NSUserDefaults can use.