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Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watnot!watmath!clyde!rutgers!husc6!seismo!mcnc!gatech!mcdchg!heiby
From: heiby@mcdchg.UUCP
Newsgroups: news.software.b
Subject: Re: senduuname (was: patch #5 for 2.11 news src)
Message-ID: <238@mcdchg.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 13-Mar-87 14:38:19 EST
Article-I.D.: mcdchg.238
Posted: Fri Mar 13 14:38:19 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 14-Mar-87 11:46:55 EST
References: <43143@beno.seismo.CSS.GOV> <5864@amdahl.UUCP> <575@hao.UCAR.EDU> <2190@ptsfa.UUCP> <43150@beno.seismo.CSS.GOV>
Sender: usenet@mcdchg.UUCP
Reply-To: heiby@mcdchg.UUCP (Ron Heiby)
Organization: Motorola Microcomputer, Schaumburg, IL
Lines: 33
Summary: Senduuname to send map entry is non-standard-conforming.

In article <43150@beno.seismo.CSS.GOV> rick@seismo.CSS.GOV (Rick Adams) writes:
>The correct thing to do would be to add a new control message to
>do a new task, Not mutate an old one to do what you want.

I agree with the principle, but didn't believe this to be an instance.
Then, I looked up what standard.mn says about the senduuname control
message.  (Does standard.mn get edited when the software stops supporting
part of it?)  The standard says that the list of hostnames is to be returned
one per line.  This means that the script that I've been using as UUPROG
is "non-standard".

--------------------
	echo "Here is our public UUCP map entry.\n-----"
	cat /usr/mot/heiby/mcdchg.map
--------------------

I would favor the creation of a "sendmapentry" control message, which
would do essentially what the above script does.  In many areas, a large
number of the map files could be collected semi-automatically by the
map maintainer, just by specifying the appropriate "Distribution", like
"nj", "ca", or "att".  I know that I keep my "mcdchg.map" file completely
up-to-date as connection information changes, but only send it off when
there has been what I consider to be a significant change and I think it
will be kinda stable for a while.  Having the control message automatically
grab the current version when it was time for an update, would be real nice.

I have been procrastinating on installing patch #5, as I liked the senduuname
stuff, but since re-reading the standard, I've found that I was not conforming
in the first place.  I'll be upgrading to the new patch level right away.
-- 
Ron Heiby, mcdchg!heiby		Moderator: mod.newprod & mod.os.unix
Motorola Microcomputer Division (MCD), Schaumburg, IL
"Save your energy.  Save yourselves.  Avoid the planet 'cuae2' at all costs!"