[MacPerl] Can I use MacPerl to create relative aliases?

[Rich Morin <rdm@cfcl.com>]

I have a set of directories, files, and relative symbolic links on a
Unix file system.  I want to create an HFS file system containing the
same materials, including the links.  (Because the HFS file system
will be copied onto removable media, the links NEED to be "relative".)

My previous forays into this area lead me to believe that the Mac OS
"alias", as created by the Cmd-M key sequence, is an absolute reference,
tied to the device ID of the disk drive.  If I make a copy of a tree
containing this sort of alias, the aliases point back to the original
device, which is NOT what I want.  (Actually, I made several thousand
copies of just such a disc, to my extreme discomfort. :-)

So, I really have two questions:

  *  Does the Mac have a "relative" alias?  Specifically, does the
     Mac have an alias that, when copied as part of a sub-tree, will
     continue to reference the same relative file name (i.e., one
     that is now in the copied set of files)?

  *  How can I create this sort of alias from MacPerl?

Thanks, Rich

Rich Morin, Canta Forda Computer Laboratory | Prime Time Freeware - quality
  UNIX consulting, training, and writing    | freeware at affordable prices
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