[MacPerl] File Dialog Folder

[Robert Pyle <rpyle@tiac.net>]

I have a script (droplet) that reads a file, transforms it into something
else, and wants to write the transformed file back into the same folder
under a different name.  I chdir to that folder, check to see if an
existing file has the same name as the file that I wish to write, and, if
so, open a file dialog to give me the opportunity to overwrite or change
the name, as I wish.

As indicated in MPPE, p. 184, the folder in which the dialog box opens is
determined by the "General Controls" control panel.  If I set this to
"Folder that is set by the application", it is the folder in which the
input file resides, which is what I want in this case, but not for most of
my activities, where I prefer "Last folder used in the application".

Is there any way I can force the file dialog to open a folder of my
choosing, independent of the control panel setting, or is this behavior
"hard-wired" too deep within the MacOS?

And while I'm asking questions, where is the limitation on how many files
can be simultaneously dropped on a droplet?  If I drop too many (somewhere
in the vicinity of 30), the droplet simply doesn't run.  Is the number of
files the limitation, or the total number of characters in the file names
(which presumably include complete paths)?  If I give more memory to the
droplet (I think MacPerl itself has plenty), will that help?

Thanks (especially to Matthias for giving us this wonderful tool, and to
Vicki and Chris for MPPE).

Bob Pyle, Cambridge, MA





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