Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site bbncca.ARPA
Path: utzoo!linus!bbncca!msimpson
From: msimpson@bbncca.ARPA (Mike Simpson)
Newsgroups: net.flame,net.net-people
Subject: Re: New Topic -- Paths to Users
Message-ID: <825@bbncca.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 5-Jul-84 12:09:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: bbncca.825
Posted: Thu Jul  5 12:09:27 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 6-Jul-84 00:34:13 EDT
References: <308@tpvax.fluke.UUCP>
Organization: Bolt, Beranek and Newman, Cambridge, Ma.
Lines: 53

***
5 July 1984.

Gary Benson (fluke!inc) has let go with a flood of invective
that I cannot let go unchallenged, even in net.flame.  (Gary's
comments are preceded by '      >>'.)

        >> What kind of jerk is it who posts articles asking for paths
        >> to places? 

Probably well-meaning people who don't get (or haven't heard of)
'net.net-people'. (Please use it.)

	>> Haven't you pitiful troglodytes heard that there is a
	>> USENET map of the WHOLE WORLD posted regularly?

Yes, Gary.  And despite the best efforts of Mark Horton and Karen
Summers-Horton (kudos to them both), there are occasional gaps.

	>> Don't you know that unix has a command called "path"
	>> to assist you in determining the shortest path from
	>> your machine to the one you want to post to?

If you have a vanilla UNIX that has such a 'path' command, I'll
eat my keyboard.  The  'path' command on my machine searches
directories to find a command.

	>> For those who are forever requesting path
	>> information, why don't you get up off your lazy butt
	>> and print out a copy of the map for the region you
	>> want to communicate(?) with?

Not a bad idea, on the face of it.  You could have noted,
however, that the maps reside in newsgroup 'net.news.map'.
Simply flaming isn't going to help some poor neophyte.

	>> And for the nerds who print 8 lines of garbage
	>> showing me the direct path into your account, I
	>> can't help but wonder what sort of inflated ego
	>> you must have that you think it necessary to proclaim
	>> in minutest detail the path from every machine in
	>> the known universe into your personal account.

Probably more a desire to insure good communications -- lines do
occasionally go down for no good reason, you know.
Sounds like  you're unnecessarily picking on your fellow Evergreen Stater Jeff
Meyer, a/k/a moriarty@washington and fluke!moriarty.
-- 
		        -- your obedient servant,
			   Mike Simpson, BBN
			   msimpson@bbn-unix (ARPA)
			   {decvax,ima,linus,wjh12}!bbncca!msimpson (Usenet)
			   617-497-2819 (Ma Bell)