[R-SIG-Mac] Case distinction on a Mac.

[Prof Brian Ripley]

I am wondering if case-insensitive file systems are really such a 
problem.  Because they are the norm on Windows, R is set up to cope 
with them and I chose to have my Macs set up with the stanadard file 
systems so I'm more likely to see problems if they occur.

The only time I have ever seen an issue was the no-segfault.R tests 
creating a file PACKAGES and stopping a directory Packages being 
created.

As I understand it Rolf was unaware that he had a case-insensitive 
file system and so was surprised.  That's very understandable, and 
I've seen it with some new Mac users here -- but they seem to get used 
to it.

The problems I encounter are the other way around: users assuming 
everything is case-insensitive and e.g. documenting 'R CMD install' 
and 'R CMD CHECK' .I had assumed these were Windows users, but I now 
realise that there may be Mac users who habitually ignore case.

On Fri, 20 Feb 2009, Rolf Turner wrote:

>
> On 20/02/2009, at 2:51 PM, David Winsemius wrote:
>
>> Rolf;
>> 
>> I think you should check whether reformatting is really necessary. My 
>> understanding is that Disk Utility will allow repartitioning and one can 
>> choose a disk format at the time that a new partition is created.
>
> Not clear to me what you're saying here.  Are you suggesting that I (could) 
> partition my
> hard drive into a chunk containing the current file system and a new chunk 
> (with
> nothing --- yet --- written on it)?  And that I could choose a disk format 
> for
> the new chunk such that the file system would be case-sensitive there?
>
> But then I'd get case sensitivity only when working with files stored in the 
> new
> chunk, is it not so?
>
> Sounds dangerous to me, anyhow!
>
> I don't have much of an understanding of file systems and partitioning, I'm 
> afraid.
>
> 	cheers,
>
> 		Rolf
>
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-- 
Brian D. Ripley,                  ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk
Professor of Applied Statistics,  http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/
University of Oxford,             Tel:  +44 1865 272861 (self)
1 South Parks Road,                     +44 1865 272866 (PA)
Oxford OX1 3TG, UK                Fax:  +44 1865 272595