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From: gwc@root.co.uk (Geoff Clare)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.admin
Subject: Re: What action updates a file's ACCESS time?
Keywords: file access time
Message-ID: <2548@root44.co.uk>
Date: 27 Nov 90 13:37:09 GMT
References: <331@twg.bc.ca> <141@raysnec.UUCP>
Organization: UniSoft Ltd., London, England
Lines: 20

In <141@raysnec.UUCP> shwake@raysnec.UUCP (Ray Shwake) writes:

>bill@twg.bc.ca (Bill Irwin) writes:

>>1) vi the file and quit without saving (access time updated)
>>2) TAR archive some files to tape (updated)

>	In both cases, your program opened the file for reading, thus
>	the access time was updated.

Minor nit-pick: opening the file is not itself sufficient to update the
access time.  You do actually have to read some data from the file.
E.g.
	ls < file

will not update the access time of "file" because "ls" does not read
anything.
-- 
Geoff Clare <gwc@root.co.uk>  (Dumb American mailers: ...!uunet!root.co.uk!gwc)
UniSoft Limited, Hayne Street, London EC1A 9HH, England.   Tel: +44-71-315-6600