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From: PAP4@AI.AI.MIT.EDU ("Philip A. Prindeville")
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc
Subject: Berzerkeley sockets
Message-ID: <282759.871109.PAP4@AI.AI.MIT.EDU>
Date: Mon, 9-Nov-87 21:15:33 EST
Article-I.D.: AI.282759.871109.PAP4
Posted: Mon Nov  9 21:15:33 1987
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    Date: Sun, 08 Nov 87 23:33:03 est
    From: dzoey@terminus.umd.edu

    Billy, 

    I agree with you about the socket interface not being the catchall
    networking ... it's not the best, but it is (or should be) consistant.

I agree.  Speed is somewhat important here, and designing a new interface
would take time and create holy wars.

As for socket options, I will be glad to feedback on any suggestions for the
minimal set, or propose one when I have more time.  I assume we will be going
with 4.3 and not 4.2?  One request: leave the linger parameter to SOL_LINGER
as a long (or int).  You can't believe how many programs broke when ported
to Ultrix (where is is an structure, two longs: a flag and a second counter)...

Does PCIP even support IP options?  I know KA9Q does...

    The largest problem I've had with sockets has been in dealing with
    protocol specific information.  For instance, I find the socket interface 
    awfully clunky when dealing with IP options and urgent TCP data 
    could be handled a little more gracefully.  But, for no nonsense data
    transfers, send and recv work fine.

Urgent data is a bit of a problem, because it requires a signal() (or
sigvec()) facility.  This is non-trivial under DOS.  Also, it would be nice if
sockets were MS-DOS file handles, and could be inherited by forked/spawned
processes, like inetd and rexecd do...  As for select(), it really is quite
handy.  It is effectively the only way to implement telnet (sans upcalls),
unless you use ioctl/FIONBIO, which is another can of worms...

    I am curious as to what other "standard" networking interfaces look like.
    How does Sys5 handle the network with their streams concept?  What other
    networking interfaces are around?

Streams is even uglier.  You probably don't want to mess with it...

    What do people want in a network interface?

Too much, but you give them what you can...


-Philip