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From: DHASKIN@CLARKU.BITNET.UUCP
Newsgroups: mod.computers.vax
Subject: RE: Inadequacies of VMS mail
Message-ID: <8704041223.AA14875@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>
Date: Fri, 3-Apr-87 14:48:00 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.8704041223.AA14875
Posted: Fri Apr  3 14:48:00 1987
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Alan Sutter (ALAN@FANDM.BITNET) asks:

> When you do a PRINT in VMS mail, it sends the current message you are
> looking at out to the printer.  What it doen't do is put a flag page on the
> front of it, even if the print queue is set up for DEFAULT=FLAG.  Is there
> anyway to fix it so that I get a flag page? Half page mail messages without
> a flag page have a tendancy to get left with printout that printed before
> it on that printer and then get sent to the wrong office.

It's not only annoying, it's dangerous.  Our administrative and academic
users share system printers, and more than once a printed mail message
from an undergraduate has gone happily along to an administrative office.
Which isn't that bad, except when the undergrad's mail message is, uh,
shall we say mildly offensive?  Not good.

> The problem is that MAIL doesn't seem to honor this symbol definition,
> which isn't too suprising.  What does MAIL use to initiate the print, and
> is there any good way to get a hook in there to do a redirection to some
> queue other than SYS$PRINT?

Again, MAIL is pretty stupid.  I'd like it to default to SYS$PRINT unless
something like MAIL$PRINT is defined, or you could do
MAIL/PRINTER=<queuename>.

DEC, are you listening?

In reality, I suggest anyone who has problems with items like this to
SPR them to DEC.  Squeaky wheel and all that, what?


% Denis W. Haskin                             Manager, Technical Services %
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