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Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!rutgers!mcnc!xanth!kent
From: kent@xanth.UUCP (Kent Paul Dolan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: recursing out of control!
Message-ID: <2707@xanth.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 9-Oct-87 17:50:41 EDT
Article-I.D.: xanth.2707
Posted: Fri Oct  9 17:50:41 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 12-Oct-87 05:36:56 EDT
Reply-To: kent@xanth.UUCP (Kent Paul Dolan)
Organization: Old Dominion University, Norfolk Va.
Lines: 43
Keywords: oops! gotcha!


New (to me) Amiga gotcha:

Made a new disk with format.

Copied a bunch of stuff onto it with kermit, say files A, B, C, D, E, F

Decided it would look better all in one directory.

Made a new directory, say G.

Decided a copy and delete would be faster than 6 renames.

	1> Copy : G all
                    ^^^  oops!

Copy copies A to G/A.
Copy creates new directory G/G.
Copy copies G/A to G/G/A.
Copy creates new directory G/G/G.
Copy copies G/G/A to G/G/G/A.
Copy creates new directory G/G/G/G.
Copy copies G/G/G/A to G/G/G/G/A.
.
.
.
Panicked operator hits control-C.

Luckily,

	1> delete G all

cleans up the mess in one try.

Remind you of the meta-genies out of Hofstader's _Goedel, Escher, Bach,
an Eternal Golden Braid_?  ;-)

(Keep the flames, that's how you spell Godel when your typefont
doesn't include an umlauted "o". ;-)

Wasn't anybody's fault but mine; thought you'd enjoy a laugh (and a
lesson) at my expense.

Kent, the man from xanth.