Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!mailrus!uflorida!novavax!proxftl!twwells!comparc
From: comparc@twwells.uucp (comp.archives)
Newsgroups: comp.archives
Subject: Re: comp.archives, I don't geddit.
Message-ID: <177@twwells.uucp>
Date: 15 Nov 88 06:50:53 GMT
References: <8811130058.AA06806@helios.ee.lbl.gov>
Reply-To: comparc@twwells.UUCP (comp.archives)
Organization: None, Ft. Lauderdale
Lines: 46
Approved: bill@twwells.uucp (T. William Wells)

In article <8811130058.AA06806@helios.ee.lbl.gov> jef@helios.ee.lbl.gov (Jef Poskanzer) writes:
: This seems like a great idea, but unless I'm missing something you are
: making all interested parties maintain their own copies of the database.
: This seems silly.  Why not just maintain it yourself and post the current
: version every month with a one-month expiration date?

As for the last question: the answer is volume. The amount of data in
the database could get really humongous.  I really don't want the net
to be flooded with data.

So, what I am doing is posting data that can be used to maintain a
database; eventually, there will be a program that can maintain the
database automatically from the postings. Once the program exists,
anyone who wants to can create a database from the postings.

As an example of how this might be done, one could add to the news
"sys" file something like:

comparc:comp.archives::comparcupd /usr/home/comparc/db

[That's the line that goes in mine, as soon as the program gets
written.]

Eventually, I will be setting up a mail based server to access my
copy of the database. I will post the programs that access it, so
that anyone who wants to can set up themselves as a server.

One of the things that I will post periodically is a list of archive
sites that make the comp.archives database available.

Does that clarify things?

:                                                        I know there's no
: way I'm going to bother doing anything with all those DB ADD etc. postings.
: If I can't get the information instantly with one simple command (either
: a grep or some db extraction command provided through comp.archives),
: then forget it.

We're working on it. It'll be out Real Soon Now.

---
Bill
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