Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!crdgw1!brspyr1!tim
From: tim@brspyr1.BRS.Com (Tim Northrup)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: Lets see what versions of news people are running
Message-ID: <6422@brspyr1.BRS.Com>
Date: 16 Oct 89 23:57:22 GMT
References: <69987@uunet.UU.NET> <7397@xenna.Xylogics.COM>
Organization: BRS Information Technologies, Latham NY
Lines: 39


On the idea of how to report versions:

	How about a "versions" file in the news/lib directory.
	This could be sent out the same way as a sendsys request
	sends the sys file.  Have the makefile for news update
	a set line in the file (or add it if it doesn't find its
	entry in the file).  The makefile could update on
	each compile based on the contents of patchlevel.h.

	In this way, versions of virtually anything could be
	contained there, and any site specific comments could
	be added.

	My initial thought is to use something simple.  For
	example, use a fixed name for the package as the
	first element per line, followed by the version, patch
	level, compilation date, etc.  Here is what it might look
	like (with some arbitrary comments):

		# Versions file for site brspyr1.BRS.Com
		# Contact tim@brspyr1.BRS.Com for more info
		Bnews	2.11	PL17	1/22/89
		nn	3.6	PL5	10/1/89

	This would allow news readers, map unpackers, etc. to all
	be recorded and reported.

	It ain't bullet-proof, but I thought it might be worth
	discussing.

							-- Tim


-- 
Tim Northrup      		  +------------------------------------------+
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