Re: GNUstep and session management

[Lars Sonchocky-Helldorf]

I thought the topic takes the right direction but now it itches me to  
chime in ...


Am Montag, 10.10.05 um 16:30 Uhr schrieb Markus Hitter:

> Am 10.10.2005 um 14:09 schrieb Richard Frith-Macdonald:
>
> > I guess the idea of a user default is best then ... if GWorkspace is  
> > used as an X-windows session manager, you could use a command-line  
> > argument to tell it to terminate applications when it is quit.
>
> If any of the apps refuses to quit, GWorkspace should refuse to quit  
> as well. Anything else doesn't make sense, IMHO.

Let's compare to how it is done on Mac OS X:

* a log out request doesn't destroy anything

- If you choose to log out and still have Apps running every app that  
doesn't have unsaved changes is shut down
- Any app receives some kind of notification to shut down (don't know  
what notification that is technically since it also affects Carbon  
apps), whereon those apps usually display a Dialog asking whether to  
save the unsaved documents or not or even to cancel that quitting.
- If the user chooses to cancel (e.g. not to save and not to not save  
the changes) the log out procedure is aborted and a Dialog saying "the  
app XYZ has aborted the logout process. To try again shut down "XYZ"  
and choose to log out again." (this was a roundabout translation of the  
german dialog. I did not check what it actually is like in english).

* Session management is better done by loginwindow.app than the  
workspace manager

- You can quit the Mac OS X equivalent of the Workspace Manager (the  
infamous "Finder") if you have some special defaults set (don't ask me  
which, I use TinkerTool to enable those "secret" defaults). This is  
interesting if you want to run your Mac in some kiosk mode or if you  
don't want the Finder to become foreground if you hit the desktop  
during some heavy gaming action or whatever.
- It is also good to be able to kill the Finder (without having "Quit  
Finder" enabled) if the darn thing hung itself without the danger of  
loosing your session doing so.
- The log out menu item is part of the system wide Apple menu (the menu  
with the little apple on top which is not part of any application (from  
a perception of the user interface point of view) IMHO there is no such  
thing in OPENSTEP/GNUstep. To get an idea see:

http://developer.apple.com/documentation/UserExperience/Conceptual/ 
OSXHIGuidelines/XHIGMenus/chapter_16_section_4.html

IHMO it appears logical to me that loginwindow.app does the session  
management. Since I used it to start the session it should also be  
responsible for managing or terminating it. Btw. if you kill  
loginwindow.app you're logged out the hard way immediately


> Markus

just my 3.912 Pfennigs (== 0.02 €)

Lars