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From: snoopy@doghouse.gwd.tek.com (Snoopy)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: symbolic links are a botch
Message-ID: <8689@tekecs.TEK.COM>
Date: Fri, 12-Jun-87 14:43:50 EDT
Article-I.D.: tekecs.8689
Posted: Fri Jun 12 14:43:50 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 20-Jun-87 18:35:59 EDT
References: <2629@ulysses.homer.nj.att.com> <390@murphy.UUCP> <898@rtech.UUCP>
Sender: nobody@tekecs.TEK.COM
Reply-To: snoopy@doghouse.gwd.tek.com (Snoopy)
Organization: The Daisy Hill Puppy Farm
Lines: 29

In article <898@rtech.UUCP> jas@rtech.UUCP (Jim Shankland) writes:
>Minor point relating to this discussion:  it's not symbolic links
>per se that are a botch, it's allowing links (symbolic or not)
>to directories.

But, *not* allowing symlinks to directories would be a botch!
Everyone repeat after me:

	"Everything is a file."

Symlinks to directories (like RCS directories on remote machines)
are extremely useful.  Symlinks to 'special' files (like tape drives
on remote machines) are very useful.  I almost never make symlinks to
'regular' files.

Yes, the "cd .." and "pwd" stuff can get a bit confusing when you're
lost in a twisty mazy of symbolic links, all different.  How about
adding options to cd and pwd (and whatever) to specify going up rather
than back?  [yeah, I know, Yet Another Option :-( ]  Sometimes it would
be handy to get pwd to tell you both paths.

As far as permissions of symlinks go, it would be nice to be able to
change them so that they can be made to blend in and not show up
when doing, say, a "find -perm".  Even if they continue to not
mean anything.

Snoopy
tektronix!doghouse.gwd!snoopy
snoopy@doghouse.gwd.tek.com