Subj : perl files for fidonet
To   : Maurice Kinal
From : Russ Johnson
Date : Fri Jul 06 2001 04:18 pm

>Which *can* be appended to.  In fact I can append the exact same file over and
>over to a tape using tar if I feel like it.  tar will append to files.  As far
> a gzip goes I don't use compression on tapes but for transfers gzip is a good
> thing as well as on text files on disk.  (see zgrep if you need a good cause
> for text file compression)

It looks like the archive would have to be disassembled, then files added back. 
Not to difficult with a script, but it might cause havoc if you try to pick up 
an archive while it's apart. It looks like there are a lot more chances for 
failure using this method.

While tar can be appended to, it uses no compression. That's why people gzip 
the tar before transferring. A tar file is for the most part several files 
catted together into a single file.

> Nope, it shouldn't lose anything.  It might due to circumstances beyond tar's
>control but tar itself is a faithful, trusty tool for this purpose, as well as
> other archiving duties.  It is a very good tool to have hanging around and
> loves to be exploited.  I say let us not disappoint it.

That depends. Do you want to pick up uncompressed mail bundles?

Russ

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