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From: friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Newsgroups: net.decus,net.unix,net.usenix
Subject: Re: Favorite operating systems query (UNIX vs VMS flaming!!!)
Message-ID: <1320@psivax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 7-Jul-86 18:28:09 EDT
Article-I.D.: psivax.1320
Posted: Mon Jul  7 18:28:09 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 9-Jul-86 02:48:40 EDT
References: <486@batcomputer.TN.CORNELL.EDU> <1000@ttrdc.UUCP> <873@rti-sel.UUCP>
Reply-To: friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Organization: Pacesetter Systems Inc., Sylmar, CA
Lines: 23
Xref: watmath net.decus:388 net.unix:8546 net.usenix:639

In article <873@rti-sel.UUCP> rcb@rti-sel.UUCP (Random) writes:
>
>>Most Unix programs will print out a line or so of "usage" diagnostics if you
>>invoke them with bogus arguments.  Do VMS programs do this?
>>
>
>No. VMS programs will not let you invoke them with bogus arguments. Since
>the arguments are parsed by DCL before the program is invoked, if you give
>too many parameters or an unknown switch DCL will reject it with an error
>message that points out the specific problem.

	Oh, *great*:-) How does the DCL parse the arguments for a user
written application program?? I can't see how it can do this without
some rather messy interface requirements.  This really sounds like a
way to make user-written programs second class citizens on the system.
I think the individual program is better qualified to analyse its own
arguments, whay is really needed is a *standard* for this, like getopts(3)!
-- 

				Sarima (Stanley Friesen)

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