Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!decwrl!shelby!unix!hplabs!hp-ses!hpcuhb!hpcllla!hpclisp!hpcljws!jws
From: jws@hpcljws.HP.COM (John Stafford)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: no command history with ksh as root?
Message-ID: <720012@hpcljws.HP.COM>
Date: 9 Feb 90 20:10:14 GMT
References: <497@siswat.UUCP>
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Calif. Language Lab
Lines: 4

The reason ksh wants HISTFILE set for root is that it is deemed impolite
to automatically write the history file for a root user.  That root user
might be trying to repair a file system and writing history to that file
system would be unfriendly.