Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!protocol!kenw
From: kenw@protocol.COM (Ken West)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.open-look
Subject: Re: Mailtool weirdness
Message-ID: <1991Apr19.182311.20823@protocol.com>
Date: 19 Apr 91 18:23:11 GMT
Sender: usenet@protocol.com
Reply-To: kenw@protocol.COM (Ken West)
Organization: Protocol Systems, Inc.
Lines: 53
Originator: kenw@doc



(Note: I'm posting this because mail doesn't seem to go through. )

> From uunet!owner-openlook Wed Apr 17 03:06:35 1991
> To: openlook
> Path: unify!csusac!ucdavis!csus.edu!wuarchive!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!caen!news.cs.indiana.edu!widener!netnews.upenn.edu!msuinfo!news
> Newsgroups: comp.windows.open-look
> Subject: Mailtool weirdness
> Sender: uunet!msuinfo.cl.msu.edu!news
> Organization: Michigan State University
> Lines: 15
> 
> 
> When I try to open a mail file, and Mail File: is set to mbox, I get:
> 
> 	Cannot access file
>	'tty': Ambiguous./mbox
>	No such file or directory
> 
> notifier.  Does anybody know what's going on?
> 
> 
> --
> Alan Cabrera				internet:  adc@tardis.cl.msu.edu
> Michigan State University		phone:     (517) 353-3027
> 514a Computer Center			fax:       (517) 353-9847
> East Lansing, MI 48824			bitnet:    CABRERA@MSU

The bug, believe it or not is in your SUN supplied .cshrc file (first place I'd look,
right????).

The line -

if ( `tty` == "/dev/console" && $TERM == "sun" && ${?mychoice} == 0 ) then

should be changed to (Note quotes around `tty` ) -
 
if ( "`tty`" == "/dev/console" && $TERM == "sun" && ${?mychoice} == 0 ) then
     ^     ^

The reson for this is that mail is trying to run a csh program with no attached
tty.  This causes the `tty` call to return "no tty" which drives csh nuts.  Adding
the quotes causes the compare to work even when `tty` return multiple words.

----------

				Ken West
				Protocol Systems, Incorporated
				14924 N.W. Greenbrier Parkway
				Beaverton, Oregon 97006
				(503) 645-2500
				...uunet!protocol!kenw