Finder File Flags
Like the Amiga, the Macintosh uses flags or settings for individual files, however these flags are totally different to the Amiga's standard set, and less accessible. So I will go through all of them,and explain what each one does. An asterisk (*) next to the title means that this particular flag can be switched on or off at will, without doing any damage to the file in question. Most of these should not to be tinkered with, as they may cause untold damage. Experiment with a copy of the file if you must change something. The description tells you what happens when you activate it...
On Desk; System 6 users only. Means that the file is on the desktop.
Invisible; Means it will not be displayed in the Finder or in Open/Save dialogue boxes. Usually programs or the System creates these invisibles because they are important, and it doesn't want the user to bin or alter it.
Bundle; The icon for this item, is stored in it's resource fork. This applies mainly to all programs and most of it's data/library files.
Stationery; Makes this document into a stationery file, which can be opened and it's contents loaded into an untitled window, rather like a template.
Always Switch Launch; System 6 users only. It switches to the System file to the disk where the application is located.
Shared; The program can now be shared over a network.
Inited; The Finder recognises it as a special kind of file (eg. a Control Panel) and assigns it to a location on the disk or desktop, ie. if dragged over the top of the System Folder, it'll know which folder it goes in.
Alias; Marks this as a standard Alias file (do not tick if it is a data file, it might destroy all data in it).
No Inits; This will prevent a system Extension from loading at boot-up.
Name Locked; The file & it's filename cannot be changed.
Custom Icon; Indicates that this file has it's own custom icon.
Type & Creator Codes
A Type code tells you what file type it is, for example; a GIFf Type is an image file, a WRD6 Type is a MS Word6 document, and an APPL Type is always used for executable programs.
This is the most critical half of these two codes, because if it displays ????, then there is no way to tell what type of file it is. Unless you have a shareware program called Type/Creator Database, this lists all known file Types.
The Creator code tells the MacOS which program this file or document belongs to. This makes it possible for you to automatically load-up the application when you double click on an icon. That is, if you have the program on your hard disk. Look in the Jargon section for more info on the Desktop file.
A typical file with it's Finder flags shown, see picture 13.1.
Data & Resource Forks, the Building Blocks of Mac Files
What the heck are these, you may say? These are the two building blocks that make a Mac file or program - they are similar to the Amiga's [filename].info and [filename] files. The [filename] equals the Data fork, and [filename].info equals the Resource fork, in principle.
Basically the Data fork holds all data, ie. pictures, text and other data, while the Resource fork holds vital Finder and application information, ie. icon image, Finder flags, all program code, and accompanying program graphics.
