This is how it always has been, so not particular to TD 6.2.
In preferences we have these options:
The help on this screen states this:
If you put all stuff (resources, libs and apd's) into one folder, there is no issue.Searching group
This group specifies where Unify SQLWindows looks for libraries, pictures, and icons. Note that this setting controls only searches that occur in the design-time environment, not at runtime. This setting also does not affect the search for DLL files mentioned in the External Functions section of the outline.
Separate each path in the list with a semicolon as in a DOS PATH environment variable. For example:
C:\INCLUDES;C:\PROJECT1
Use Global Search Path. If checked, Unify SQLWindows looks for files first in the specified Application Path and then in the specified Global Path. If not checked, Unify SQLWindows looks only in the Application Path.
Unify SQLWindows stores the Application Path in the application.
But what when you put these files into separate folders?
Libraries:
Libraries can only be found when the folder is specified in the preferences within TD (global path or app path will do).
Even when you have setup the SYSTEM PATH (of Windows) to have an entry for the libraries folder, TD will not find it.
Resources:
Bitmaps, icons etc can be found when the folder is specified in the preferences within TD (global path or app path will do).
ALSO, when the SYSTEM PATH (Windows) has an entry for the resources folder and the path is not specified in TD, the resources can be found.
Dynalibs (apd):
Dynalibs can not be found, even when the folder is specified in the TD preferences.
They can only be found when the folder is in the SYSTEM PATH (Windows).
So, it is clear that it is not consistent. Why are resource locations different compared to library locations?
And why does the TD preferences have no effect on dynalibs?
Also very very inefficient is that App path in TD is not saved in the application source as a readable text. It is encoded in a HEX block which prevents us to do mass updates on all sources when trying to change the app folder location. We now need CDK to do this.
This makes it more difficult to setup developer workstations where multiple projects are being developed which have their own folder locations.
For instance, we use SVN and the default project architecture or trunks, tags and branches and they can be setup anywhere on the development system. It is now very inefficient to switch from one project to another.
You have to take care of the SYSTEM PATH and the application path setting in TD which will result in errors and more work.
So I ask for an extra option in TD, so it will not break the existing directory searching.
I would like to see an option : Use Windows PATH.
This will tell TD IDE to use the Windows PATH environment variable to search for all files which can be setup in the sources:
libraries,resources, dynalibs etc etc.
Having this, we developers can use a set of batch files which setup the needed folders in the PATH variable and then start TD IDE.
Each project can have it's own batchfiles, pointing to different folders and even start different TD versions.
Please consider this, it would make the daily work "more fun", like the TD setup SplashScreen is telling us.
