Using Dropbox with BBedit?

[Barry Parr]

I'm using BBedit on several different systems and I'd like my changes
to my Preferences and Clippings to follow me. I'm already using
Dropbox.

Is it possible to store my preferences, clippings, or any other shared
setup information in dropbox, rather than my Mac's library folder?

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[David Kelly]

On Fri, Apr 23, 2010 at 10:58:22AM -0700, Barry Parr wrote:
> I'm using BBedit on several different systems and I'd like my changes
> to my Preferences and Clippings to follow me. I'm already using
> Dropbox.
>
> Is it possible to store my preferences, clippings, or any other shared
> setup information in dropbox, rather than my Mac's library folder?

If any of that is stored in the resource fork then Dropbox won't.

Safari used to put the interesting parts of a .webloc file in the
resource fork, which was a head scratcher because about half the
.webloc files I had worked, half did not.

--
David Kelly N4HHE, dke...@HiWAAY.net
========================================================================
Whom computers would destroy, they must first drive mad.

[LuKreme]

On 23-Apr-2010, at 11:58, Barry Parr wrote:
>
> I'm using BBedit on several different systems and I'd like my changes
> to my Preferences and Clippings to follow me. I'm already using
> Dropbox.
>
> Is it possible to store my preferences, clippings, or any other shared
> setup information in dropbox, rather than my Mac's library folder?

Not sure if this will work, but you can try it. It *should* work, though I have certainly seen apps that don't respect soft-links. Don't think I've ever had a problem with hard links.

Move your preference files that you want synced to dropbox.

On each machine where you want the prefs synced, delete the prefs from that machine and make a link to the file in your dropbox folder.

(I'd use a hard link)

something like this:

ln ~/Dropbox/BBEdit/com.barebones.bbedit.plist ~/Library/Preferences/
ln ~/Dropbox/BBEdit/Clippings/CSS.css ~/Library/Application\ Support/BBEdit/Clippings/CSS.css

The reason I would use hard links is that even if for some reason the files get deleted off DropBox, you would still have the most recently synced files on each machine, even if they could not get online and restore the files via dropbox.

However, since you can't hardlink directories, this means a lot more links.

If you don't foresee this being a problem, then a regular soft link is a lot easier

ln -s ~/Dropbox/BBEdit/com.barebones.bbedit.plist ~/Library/Preferences/
ln -s ~/Dropbox/BBEdit/com.barebones.bbedit.PreferenceData ~/Library/Preferences/
ln -s ~/Dropbox/BBEdit/BBEdit ~/Library/Application\ Support/

(this works because the DropBox folder is on the same volume as your $HOME)

--
''If I were willing to change my morals for convenience or financial gain, we
wouldn't be arguing, because I'd already *be* a Republican.'' -- Wil Shipley

[Patrick Woolsey]

Barry Parr <barr...@gmail.com> sez:

>I'm using BBedit on several different systems and I'd like my changes
>to my Preferences and Clippings to follow me. I'm already using
>Dropbox.
>
>Is it possible to store my preferences, clippings, or any other shared
>setup information in dropbox, rather than my Mac's library folder?

Yes; you can move BBEdit's app support folder:

~/Library/Application Support/BBEdit/

(or subfolders thereof) elsewhere on your machine's hard drive, e.g. into
your Dropbox folder, and place an alias to it in the default location.


(Although you could also relocate & share the prefs file, I recommend
against this since your prefs contain not only option settings but info
specific to the current machine such as window sizes, file & folder
locations, etc., which may not be valid elsewhere.)


Regards,

Patrick Woolsey
==
Bare Bones Software, Inc. <http://www.barebones.com>
P.O. Box 1048, Bedford, MA 01730-1048

[Derik DeLong]

On Fri, Apr 23, 2010 at 2:12 PM, David Kelly <dke...@hiwaay.net> wrote:
> If any of that is stored in the resource fork then Dropbox won't.

Off-topic but the current Dropbox betas should handle that if you're
using the current beta.