Re: Translators (Re: State of the X clipboard, and perhaps a solution)

[Thorsten Wilms <t_w_ freenet de>]

On Fri, Apr 23, 2004 at 09:00:03AM -0500, Jerry Haltom wrote:
> > Well, I know this might be abit far out, but ...
> >
> > How about implementing a translator framework, a bit like known
> > from BeOS? Every application would provide modules to the
> > system that allow its internal data representations to be
> > transformed to other formats. These modules could be run
> > independently from the apps, so that a module could be used
> > to hold the clipboard content after an application is closed
> > (realy closed!).
> >
> > Such a framework would also allow much greater import/export
> > capabilities.
>
> I have the tendency to think this is a non starter in the FOSS area.
> There is no way we can get EVERYBODY (and it would take everybody, for
> it to be a consistent copy/paste experience) to write separate external
> copy/paste modules.
                                                                                                         
Interaction with non-translator apps would be no different from
current state. Only that clipboard content would be lost without
implementation of this system. Just like it will happen with your
'keep apps holding clipboard running in background' idea. As if
everybody would suddenly integrate the changes needed to let his
app play nicely with this (keeping full apps like openoffice or
gimp in memory because of clipboard is not acceptable).

And on a totaly general level: Sure, for true consistency everybody
has to be on board. That never happens, so true consistency is not
achievable -> let's not even try it ... ;-)
                                                                                                         
                                                                                                         
Oh, and I would prefer a small set of apps with clipboard done right
in every aspect to a huge pile of apps with broken clipboard (same
for translators). So a completely new standard would be fine with me,
even when it's only for core gnome apps (I'm sure it would be picked
up by others soon enough).
                                                                                                         
                                                                                                         
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Thorsten Wilms