Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!auspex!guy
From: guy@auspex.auspex.com (Guy Harris)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: Re: Ugly File Name (Correction)
Message-ID: <1659@auspex.auspex.com>
Date: 20 May 89 05:21:47 GMT
References: <3330@orca.WV.TEK.COM> <720007@hpcljws.HP.COM>
Reply-To: guy@auspex.auspex.com (Guy Harris)
Organization: Auspex Systems, Santa Clara
Lines: 21

>   rm - -whatever
>
>is rumored to work some places, but I've never used a system where it
>did (or at least was documented to).

Must've never used BSD (other than perhaps ancient versions) then; I
think it's been documented since 4.1BSD.  It's definitely documented in
4.3-tahoe:

   SYNOPSIS
	rm [ -f ] [ -r ] [ -i ] [ - ] file ...

	...

   DESCRIPTION

	...

	The null option `-' indicates that all the arguments following it
	are to be treated as file names.  This allows the specification
	of file names starting with a minus.