[asdf-devel] :logical-hostname

[Robert Goldman]

On 3/30/10 Mar 30 -1:48 PM, james anderson wrote:
> 
> On 2010-03-30, at 20:36 , Juan Jose Garcia-Ripoll wrote:
> 
>>
>> I think I know roughly what Juanjo means here.  In particular:
>>
>> 1.  I don't like to have my systems use the ASDF API internally.  E.g.,
>> I will set up variables with pathnames, or use logical pathnames in my
>> ASDF system definition files, so that my actual code doesn't have to use
>> something like asdf:system-definition-pathname.
>>
>> 2.  I have worked with people who don't use ASDF.  If I observe
>> strictures like the ones I lay out in point 1, then those people can
>> write a simple load file that somehow initializes the logical pathnames
>> and loads the code (how to do that is /their/ problem!) and then they
>> can use my code just as I do.  If I used calls like
>> asdf:system-definition-pathname, that would not be possible.
>>
>> So I think Juanjo's objectives here (or at least my interpretation of
>> his objectives!) are reasonable.
>>
>> You got it right. I would extend the argument but I have to leave.
>> Perhaps tomorrow.
> 
> ?
> one can do that now. without any changes to asdf and without any purity
> tests.
> so, he must be thinking of something in addition.
> 

Can you explain how to do this?

I typically have an ugly mess in my .asd files where I get
*load-truename*, and then fuss with it to extract the directory
pathname, etc.  Juanjo's :logical-hostname ASDF extension seems very
handy to me.  My alternative involves a lot of repeated boilerplate
code, and it's surprisingly fussy to extract that directory pathname....

best,
r