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From: bms@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Bruce Schlobohm)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.perl
Subject: perl 4.0 with dbz and news history files
Message-ID: <2156@mitisft.Convergent.COM>
Date: 15 Jun 91 00:24:31 GMT
Organization: Unisys Unix Systems Group, San Jose, CA
Lines: 22

I recently switched over to running Bnews 2.11.19 with dbm history file,
(from the non-dbm method).  I chose to use the dbz library instead of
dbm for it's space savings.  However, soon thereafter I had the need
to write a perl script which would parse a list of messageids, and look
up the files in the spool directory.  I started with Tom Christiansen's
xpost program, but couldn't get it to work... kept getting "no article".

I recompiled the news programs with the real dbm (consequently now have 
a large history.pag file), and xpost works just fine.  I was then able
to get my perl script to work and all is well.

I like the smallness of the dbz files however.

Is there a way that I can use perl (compiled with ndbm) on dbz files,
and still use the dbmopen() and associative array?
What am I missing?

If it matters this is on an SVR3.2 derivitive on a Convergent box.

-- 
Bruce Schlobohm
bms@Convergent.COM -or- {pyramid,sri-unix,pacbell}!ctnews!bms