Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!amdahl!pyramid!prls!philabs!ttidca!clark
From: clark@ttidca.TTI.COM (Ralph Clark)
Newsgroups: comp.binaries.ibm.pc
Subject: Thanks, I'd rather do it myself
Message-ID: <2237@ttidca.TTI.COM>
Date: 6 Apr 88 02:49:08 GMT
Organization: Citicorp/TTI, Santa Monica
Lines: 51
Keywords: self extracting arc

Here is a simple program to convert a self-extracting archive back into
a regular you-can-run-arc--t-on-it-before-you-spend-an-hour-downloading-it
archive. Inquiry to three local gurus failed to produce a simple one-line
shell command alternative. It will undoubtedly fail if you ask it to delete
a googolplex of bytes from the head of a file.

9758 has been posted as the length of the extraction program - no doubt
future or previous versions will vary. It is correct for skyplot.exe.

Usage : lobotomy -9758 <skyplot.exe >skyplot.arc  (uudecoded first!)

(not tested with any other example.)

--------------------------cut here------------------------------------------
/*      lobotomy.c
*
*       a tool to strip a specified number of bytes from the front of a file
*       while copying stdin to stdout.
*/
#include <stdio.h>

main(argc,argv)
int argc;
char *argv[];
{
    int c,i,nbytes;

    if ((argc != 2)
    || (*argv[1] != '-')
    || ((nbytes = atoi(&argv[1][1])) <= 0))
	printf(
    "Usage : %s -n, where n bytes are to be skipped from stdin to stdout",
	argv[0]);

    for (i = 0; i < nbytes; i++)
	if ((c == getchar()) == EOF)
	    exit(0);

    while ((c = getchar()) != EOF)
	putchar(c);

    exit (0);
}
----------------------------cut here--------------------------------------

Disclaimer: not responsible for damage caused by using this program to
remove any useful bytes from your files.
-- 
R. Clark (clark@TTI.COM)
Citicorp(+)TTI
3100 Ocean Park Blvd.   (213) 452-9191, x2965
Santa Monica, CA  90405 {csun|philabs|psivax|trwrb}!ttidca!clark