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From: mouse@mcgill-vision.UUCP (der Mouse)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: Suppressing the message of the day.
Message-ID: <785@mcgill-vision.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 31-May-87 02:57:09 EDT
Article-I.D.: mcgill-v.785
Posted: Sun May 31 02:57:09 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 11-Jun-87 02:54:27 EDT
References: <7422@brl-adm.ARPA> <1116@sigi.Colorado.EDU>
Organization: McGill University, Montreal
Lines: 39
Keywords: cute, :-)

In article <1116@sigi.Colorado.EDU>, forys@sigi.Colorado.EDU (Jeff Forys) writes:
> In article <7422@brl-adm.ARPA> rbj@icst-cmr.arpa (Root Boy Jim) writes:
>> Many sites have commented this out because it is a stupid time
>> waster.
[ nb. "this" refers to the boot-time strings on /vmunix to change the
  first line of /etc/motd ]

We commented it out, not because it was a time-waster (though it is - I
just ran it, and it took 36 cpu seconds, according to `time'), but
because /etc/motd should be the message of the day.  There is no need
to announce

4.3 BSD UNIX #81: Fri May 22 22:21:06 EDT 1987

to anyone who logs in.  "4.3 BSD UNIX" - the getty prompt has already
told them that.  "#81" - who cares about the generation count on the
UNIX.  Those who care know where to look.  "Fri May 22 22:21:06 EDT
1987" - even less do people care *when* the UNIX was generated!

If we want something in the motd, we'll put it there, thank you very
much.

> Does a `strings /vmunix' on a reboot waste *that* much time?

Yes.  Three minutes, wrist watch time, to reboot now (that's to
fastboot; a reboot with fsck takes fifteen to twenty minutes).  An
extra half-minute to put an completely uninformative message in
/etc/motd is a waste of time.

>> Or perhaps it is useful to know when the system is rebooted.
> Hmm, I've always used uptime(1) to determine [that].

And what if your local sysadmin changes /etc/motd?  Does this mean you
think the system just rebooted?  Gee, that was a quick reboot - I
didn't notice any interruption....it even left me logged in....

					der Mouse

				(mouse@mcgill-vision.uucp)