OS X and Libs Folder?

Targets macOS
1

Hi,
when you compile an OS X app which uses a Libs folder - does this folder end up inside the app, (so to speak), - or - is it the same as on Windows, when you have a separate app and Libs folder?

I have never seen an OS X app which also needs a Libs folder in the same directory?

Thanks.

2

OSX creates a BUNDLE (myprogram.app) all resources are inside that bundle… there is no LIBS folder external to the bundle

And via Finder that BUNDLE looks and acts like a single file.

The paradigms between OSX and Windows are not the same…

You can look inside a BUNDLE by right-clicking on it and selecing SHOW PACKAGE CONTENTS

BUT IF YOU DO… BEWARE… DO NOT ALTER ANYTHING… or the application will become corrupt (as in it fails its checksum test)

3

[quote=84976:@Richard Summers]Hi,
when you compile an OS X app which uses a Libs folder - does this folder end up inside the app, (so to speak), - or - is it the same as on Windows, when you have a separate app and Libs folder?

I have never seen an OS X app which also needs a Libs folder in the same directory?
[/quote]

Yes and no. Mac OS X Applications are “bundles”, which in turn are folders that the OS treats differently. These bundles (you can open them by right-clicking a .bundle or .app) are something inherited from NeXT and is part of the “domain” philosophy that debuted in it, where there are multiple levels of domain where stuff can be stored and looked up. An .app is a bundle that contains not only the actual binary executable, but also the images, libraries and other resources the application may need.

As in Windows and Linux, you need a number of resources for your application. OS X makes this all hidden so the user hasn’t got to worry about it. This is not limited to libraries but also to all manner of resources (images, HTML help files, sounds and fonts, etc.)

Also: You don’t have a “Libs” folder like you would in other platforms. The native way to do this is done by the compiler automatically, creating a “Resources” folder within the .app bundle.

Bundles, by the way, are a marvelous concept that I’m sad hasn’t moved to other platforms already. It’s a spectacularly efficient way to shield users from the inherent intricacies of modern operating systems. An app is a bundle but also are some plug-ins for applications and even some file formats (rtfd from TextEdit, iWork files, all of iPhotos photo library, etc.)

4

Thank you both very much - that was a combined, thorough explanation!

THANK YOU