How to make your users hate you

Today I wanted to edit a file on my server. I tend to use Fetch so I fired it up, navigated to my WordPress directory, selected a .php file and clicked on the edit icon. Now I usually use BBEdit so boy was I surprised when it opened in “Ready Lisp”. Wow! I don’t use “Ready Lisp”

I looked through Fetch for an option to set the default editor and could not fine it. I remember that there is sone “funny” non-obvious method to set the editor. Finally I transferred the file to my computer and looked at the Finder Info on the file. Sure enough there is was, Apple had decided that “Ready Lisp” was the default editor for .php files. Huh? OK, in Apple’s infinite wisdom it had set “Ready Lisp” to be the default application for .php files as best as I can figure just because I had installed “Ready Lisp” and tried it once. Bad Apple!

But, just because Apple does something stupid that should not make Fetch do something stupid. Right? Shouldn’t Fetch be able to establish its own file editor associations. It used to be able to but someone at Fetch thought better. Better?

The concept of “Least Surprise” was certainly violated here.

About zaph

Long term Mac/iOS & Cocoa developer.
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One Response to How to make your users hate you

  1. Jim Matthews says:

    You can set the editor for .php files in Fetch by selecting one, clicking the Get Info button, and selecting an editor from the “Edit files like this with:” menu. We tried to make it just like the way you specify a preferred editor in the Finder.

    Jim Matthews
    Fetch Softworks

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