Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!att!att!linac!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!julius.cs.uiuc.edu!psuvax1!ukma!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!ncoast!davewt
From: davewt@NCoast.ORG (David Wright)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.tech
Subject: Re: REXX command standards
Summary: I want a "power out" standard message
Keywords: ARexx UPS
Message-ID: <1990Nov18.022623.1303@NCoast.ORG>
Date: 18 Nov 90 02:26:23 GMT
References: <2229@lpami.wimsey.bc.ca>
Organization: North Coast Public Access *NIX, Cleveland, OH
Lines: 37


	I have a small utility I've been working on for my own use, but I
might be usefull to other people as well. If there WAS an agreed upon ARexx
command list, it would be even more usefull to other people.

	What I've been working on is a small program that knows how to talk
to various types of UPS systems (battery backup systems or standby power
systems), and will notify a list of programs when line power goes out or
when battery power is at a critical level. This way you can have programs that
stay running all the time exit properly, and close all the files they have open
so you don't get a corrupted file system when the battery power finally goes
out.

	The problem with doing this is that there is no good way to tella
program to shutdown properly (just sending a break signal might cause
the program to exit without flushing buffers etc.). If there were a standard
set of commands that programs that would have need of this
(network controllers, BBS systems, ray tracers, etc.), it would make your
machine much safer.

	If only the following were supported, this would work well:

LinePowerOut - Utility power is out
LinePowerBack - Utility power is back online
BattPowLow - Battery power is low, and the program should exit immediately.

A program could see the line power our message, and choose to remain running
if someone was using the program, but would exit and save data if the
battery power went out. That way, should the power only go out for a few
minutes, it would receive the line power back message, and could keep on
running as if the power never went out at all.

	Would anyone be interested in putting support for something like
this in their code besides me?


			Dave