Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!samsung!olivea!jerry
From: jerry@olivey.ATC.Olivetti.Com (Jerry Aguirre)
Newsgroups: news.software.b
Subject: Re: Max article number reached?
Keywords: cnews
Message-ID: <50711@olivea.atc.olivetti.com>
Date: 26 Apr 91 19:28:29 GMT
References: <1991Apr25.122242.1179@ioe.lon.ac.uk> <1991Apr25.215042.25734@world.std.com> <1991Apr26.182609.23026@uai.com>
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Organization: Olivetti ATC; Cupertino, CA
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In article <1991Apr26.182609.23026@uai.com> mrl@uai.com (Mark R. Ludwig) writes:
>The version of NEWSBIN/expire/upact I have (circa December, 1990)
>explicitly rewrites the third field of NEWSCTL/active with 5
>digits...if this hasn't been changed yet...$$

The third field is not updated "in place" as the second field is.
Besides I think you will find that it writes it with a minimum of 5
digits, more if needed.  The update of the minart field involves
re-writing the entire active file so it can expand the field when it is
needed.

On the other hand I don't know why the minart could not be updated in
place just as the second field is.  That would eliminate the need to
lock out news processing while doing the update.