Xref: utzoo alt.config:2619 news.groups:22813 news.software.b:5337
Path: utzoo!utstat!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!jarthur!usc!apple!portal!motcad!jtc
From: jtc@motcad.portal.com (J.T. Conklin)
Newsgroups: alt.config,news.groups,news.software.b
Subject: Re: ALT.GAMES.GALACTIC-BLOODSHED IS MISNAMED
Message-ID: <1990Aug5.191819.7367@motcad.portal.com>
Date: 5 Aug 90 19:18:19 GMT
References: <985@barsoom.nhh.no>
Distribution: alt
Organization: CADnet Inc., San Ramon CA
Lines: 71

In article <985@barsoom.nhh.no> tih@barsoom.nhh.no (Tom Ivar Helbekkmo) writes:
>OK, I should have said that it's impossible for *Posix-compliant*
>System V machines to carry the newsgroup in question.  Sys V has 14
>significant characters, and Posix demands that too long filenames not
>be trunctated, but that an error be flagged instead.

I believe that POSIX itself allows the system to go either way, but
the U.S. Government's FIPS requires the error rather than truncation.

>Yes, there's a
>patch to SCO Unix to remove its Posix compliancy in this respect.  No,
>I don't want to apply it.  I'd rather that the (never before violated)
>14 character limit be accepted in the case of alt.games.g-b.

I don't blame Tom for not wanting to turn off POSIX/FIPS complience ---
its not even an option for some vendor's platforms, but I disagree with
you about renaming alt.games.galactic-bloodshed.  Let us instead take
the time to fix "broken" news software.  It wouldn't be too difficult,
and would be of great benifit to a lot of news users and administrators.

The following outlines one possible implementation.  It dosn't really
solve the problem, as newsgroup name segments must still be distinct
within the first 14 characters, but it is a simple fix that solves
the immediate difficulties.

  #ifdef _POSIX_SOURCE
  /*
   * global variables used for newsgroup name to pathname
   * conversion on POSIX/FIPS complient systems.
   */
  long name_max;
  long no_trunc;
  #endif

  ...

  #ifdef _POSIX_SOURCE
  /*
   * Put this in the initialization or setup section
   * of news programs.
   */
  name_max = pathconf(SPOOLDIR, _PC_LINK_MAX);
  no_trunc = pathconf(SPOOLDIR, _PC_NO_TRUNC);
  #endif

  ...

  #ifdef _POSIX_SOURCE
  /*
   * Put this code in the pathname building code.
   */
  if(!no_trunc) {
	truncate each newsgroup name segment to "name_max"
        characters while building pathname.
  } else {
  #endif
	build pathname the way we always have.
  #ifdef _POSIX_SOURCE
  }
  #endif


Whether or not a simple truncation scheme or a more complex method is
used, surely fixing the news software is a more responsible approach
than limiting newsgroup name segments to 14 characters on all systems.

	--jtc

-- 
J.T. Conklin	CADnet Inc, San Ramon California
		jtc@motcad.portal.com, ...!portal!motcad!jtc