Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uunet!wuarchive!psuvax1!psuvm!CALSTATE!1GTLEJS From: 1GTLEJS@CALSTATE.BITNET (Ed Skochinski) Newsgroups: bit.listserv.nodmgt-l Subject: pathalias as a network supported standard Message-ID: Date: 9 Feb 90 17:00:47 GMT Sender: Node Management Discussion Reply-To: Node Management Discussion Lines: 20 Approved: NETNEWS@PSUVM Gateway Comments: cc: postmast@calstate.BITNET I feel compelled to argue for a lowest common denominator: Pascal. The uncommon architecture which makes CYBERs perform so well is what gives rise to the lack of an adequate C compiler for NOS. In general, C likes 8-bit, byte-addressable, VonNeumman architectures, preferably speaking ASCII. Pascal does not depend on national characters, and makes no assumptions about architecture. Pascal is far better defined for the international, multi-vendor environment. Please, could the BITNET pathalias be implemented in ISO standard Pascal? I usually argue for the lowest common denominator---it's just that the CYBERs rarely fall into this category. I don't think that this list is the place to debate the nature of C and the flukes of NOS; C under NOS is a problem, and Pascal is more widely available. If you feel compelled to flame me, send your commentary to me personally, and if I get sufficient time, I'll argue my case. Ed Skochinski Operating Systems Support The California State University