Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!uunet!snorkelwacker!mit-eddie!andante!ulysses!dptg!mtune!jcm
From: jcm@mtune.ATT.COM (John McMillan)
Newsgroups: unix-pc.general
Subject: Re: Tip (and Question) regarding crontab sysadministration
Message-ID: <294@mtune.ATT.COM>
Date: 5 Feb 90 22:26:32 GMT
References: <26611@cup.portal.com>
Organization: AT&T BL Middletown/Lincroft NJ USA
Lines: 25

In article <26611@cup.portal.com> thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes:
:
>However, I'm still puzzled why ALL the default examples I've seen in crontabs
>on many systems mix both the "%" and "-c" usage in the same file.  Is there
>any real reason for invoking (otherwise similar) scripts using one method or
>the other?
:
	"%" is the equivalent of a NL.  Everything after the 1st is
	fed as standard input to the shell invoked by the SU command.

	I would imagine there ARE obscure differences in certain
	circumstances.  More obviously, I read the documentation
	as suggesting multiple "%" would result in multiple lines.
	(No, I'm not taking the time to test this.)

	Often the CRON file[s] on systems are built by many
	scripts.  When a script-writer adds her part, she doesn't
	necessarily have the context -- ie., others' contributions
	-- before her.  This is really no different from the variety
	of tools in other languages or other parts of the Shells:

	"A trite consistance is the hobgoblin of little minds."
	Enjoy diversity!-)

john mcmillan -- att!mtunb!jcm -- muttering for self, not THEM