Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!convex!piziali
From: piziali@convex.com (Andy Piziali)
Newsgroups: comp.mail.elm
Subject: filter(1) disables biff (was "bell on new mail")
Summary: filter(1) program doesn't notify inetd(8) of new mail.
Keywords: filter, biff, inetd, comsat
Message-ID: <107204@convex.convex.com>
Date: 15 Oct 90 23:07:01 GMT
References: <1990Oct15.175056.19427@dg-rtp.dg.com>
Sender: news@convex.com
Organization: Convex Computer Corporation; Richardson, TX
Lines: 16

I discovered today that the elm filter program does not notify inetd(8) of mail
it delivers to /usr/spool/mail.  Inetd(8) tells comsat(8) about the new mail
and, if the user has set biff set to "y" (/dev/tty* owner execute bit set),
comsat(8) writes the bell and mail header to the tty.

In order to use the elm filter program, all incoming mail must be forwarded to
it using the ~/.forward file.  Filter(1) writes all mail messages, not
otherwise processed, to /usr/spool/mail but doesn't notify inetd(8) it has done
so.  Therefore, comsat(8) doesn't know the mail arrived and the bell and
message header are not written to the tty.

Are there any work-arounds for this filter(1) side effect?  Syd, is there an
easy fix to filter(1) we could install?

I am running elm on a Berkeley 4.2 derived operating system, ConvexOS, on a
CONVEX C-240.