Stop using INIT to identify a fresh container #263
Description
Currently we use the INIT file to identify a fresh container, i.e. a container opened for the first time. If INIT exists, we open the help index in VS Code and delete INIT, so that the help is not opened automatically in future (see L31-L36 of welcome_msg.sh).
A problem with this is that INIT is tracked by git and it's easy to commit a change that deletes the INIT file. So we need to find a better way.
One possibility is to change the logic so that the help index is opened as long as svn and build don't exist, i.e. the user has not yet followed the instructions to build R from source.
Or maybe the help index is opened as long as no other files are already open? That way it gives a starting point if the user does not have work in progress. Nots sure how we can do this programmatically, but worth looking into.