Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ficc!peter
From: peter@ficc.uu.net (Peter da Silva)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: xon/xoff, signals, hangup
Message-ID: <2269@ficc.uu.net>
Date: 18 Nov 88 21:34:24 GMT
References: <260@eda.com> <773@wsccs.UUCP> <14526@mimsy.UUCP> <460@auspex.UUCP> <14595@mimsy.UUCP>
Organization: SCADA
Lines: 16

The basic problem here is that a process is only ever waiting on one
event at a time. This is so fundamental to UNIX that you don't ever
think about it... but there's really no reason why it has to be that
way.

Changing this would require a major change in how the kernel works, but
it'd be worth it in the long term. Realtime would become dead easy, for
example...

Here's an idea that would get you around this problem: when you send a signal
to a process, force a wakeup on whatever that process is waiting on. That
should make it pay attention to the signal and go on to die.
-- 
Peter da Silva  `-_-'  Ferranti International Controls Corporation
"Have you hugged  U  your wolf today?"     uunet.uu.net!ficc!peter
Disclaimer: My typos are my own damn business.   peter@ficc.uu.net