Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!husc6!rice!lost.Rice.EDU!cathyf
From: cathyf@lost.Rice.EDU (Catherine A. Foulston)
Newsgroups: news.software.b
Subject: Re: Review of NN, a Usenet news reader
Keywords: newsrc, nn, rn, xrn
Message-ID: <391@brazos.Rice.edu>
Date: 28 Jul 89 06:22:40 GMT
References: <2804@mace.cc.purdue.edu> <2794@mace.cc.purdue.edu> <404@laas.laas.fr> <2803@mace.cc.purdue.edu> <327@ncis.tis.llnl.gov>
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Reply-To: cathyf@rice.edu
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Organization: Rice University, Houston, Texas
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> 
> 
> >> But only one .newsrc can only apply to one machine right?  The numbers in it
> >> aren't transferable around machines are they?  (Neither are nn's ither) Why
> >> would you need to read news on all the different machines?  I've got a dozen
> >> plus accounts on different machines, and only read from one.  [...]
> 
> >Not true on networks with NNTP servers and clients.  The article
> >numbers are consistent across all clients using the same NNTP server,
> >and on the server itself if it permits local news reading.  The same
> >[...]
> 
> >In distributed environments people often read news on more than one
> >machine, depending on where they are sitting or what they might be
> >[...]
> 
> Thanks for informing me of this feature of systems.  The systems that I use
> are not set up on networks like NNTP, so I really don't know much about that.
> I can see the problems you can encounter in that type of situation.  In such
> an environment, is it necessary to use different news readers? (the readers are
> stored on each client, and may or may not have what you regularly use?)  Or
> are the newsreaders run off the server?  If they're run off the server, I'd
> see no problem as you wouldn't need to switch news programs.

Well, sometimes it isn't *necessary* to use different newsreaders, but it may
be extremely desirable.  Most students here can get a workstation most of
the time, but sometimes they have to use regular terminals. (Imagine a full
terminal room at semester's end.)  If I can get a workstation I like to
use xrn.  If I can't, I'll use a terminal - and of course xrn is Right Out.
It would be a real pain if xrn used a different .newsrc format from rn 
(or nn, or whatever one wanted to use on a terminal).  And even a program
to convert between the two, as you suggested later in your posting, would
be a bit painful.  Okay, I *could* use rn in an xterm, but I don't always
want to.  xrn has its advantages too.

Yes, I know this *particular* argument does not apply to, say, rn vs. nn,
but we could go on forever coming up with reasons why you would/wouldn't
switch newsreaders.  My point is that it's hard to predict such things in
advance, given the wide variety of architectures/systems/networks/transport
mechanisms, etc. that are used with usenet news.  So I think it would be
helpful to have all newsreaders use the same format when possible.  I'm
staying out of the discussion of what that format should be.  Please note
that this is NOT a flame on nn.  (It's not intended to be a flame on anybody
or anything, for that matter.)  I haven't tried nn, and its format may
indeed be better.  Maybe I should hack all my other newsreaders to use nn's
format! (1/2 :-) , 1/2 serious) 

cathy :)

Cathy Foulston -- cathyf@rice.edu -- {backbone}!rice!cathyf
Disclaimer:  I'm a student - I don't even KNOW Rice University's opinion.