Subj : Re: processing..
To   : Dan Cross
From : Nick Andre
Date : Fri Jan 31 2020 01:25:49

On 31 Jan 20  16:02:10, Dan Cross said the following to Nick Andre:

DC> Pardon?  What, precisely, do you mean by "the difference between DOS and
DC> Linux when it comes to how files are treated"?

In a call by MakeNL to return the first matching file matching a wildcard, the
result can be different under Linux than it is in DOS.

DC> Perhaps a more accurate statement is that Fidonet software clearly wasn't
DC> designed to support Unix-style systems.  Indeed, in that world, Fidonet was

There is significantly more tried-and-tested-true Fidonet software written for
DOS and Windows than there is for Linux. When I say Fidonet software on
Linux is hokey-pokey, I mean it. The options on Linux are slim or appear
just cumbersome, half-assed or as per below:

DC> great.  But that hardly means that one couldn't build a robust environment
DC> under a Unix-like system given sufficient technical know-how.

Yes, very true. If someone wants to take on the challenge of building a Fido
hub or nodelist-production system on Linux, who am I to criticise.

But I'll try. 8-)

For many years until July 2018, sometimes Zone 1 RC segments would process
correctly, sometimes not. The story we were always told was BBBS this, BBBS
that, Linux this, Linux that. This is not a crackpot opinion, this is fact.

The second is that for many years, my BBS software did not include the 
MSGID/REPLY kludge. Just like TBBS/Flame and many other BBS programs of the 
80's and 90's did not carry that kludge set. And for the 90's and actually 
well into the 2000's, nobody made any stink about it. Until some tosser 
program called Hpt came out which did not correctly handle messages without 
the kludge set. Then I had Linux Sysops nail me to the cross over something 
that was never an issue but suddenly "is" an issue.... because Linux.

The third is for two solid decades I've dealt with Linux Sysops who proclaim
DOS sucks, Windows sucks. As passionate and intelligent as they were, they 
just could seem to never be able to get things "right" on Linux with their BBS
or system. Always posting test messages, always discussing configuration,
always experimenting, tinkering. Rarely getting things to "just work".

Usually they ended up vanishing off the face of the earth months down the
road... but I'm still here since '94 on largely the same DOS setup and as 
mentioned, Windows for multi-tasking.

At work I manage several Linux VPS's that work perfectly fine with excellent
uptime. I do have a strong IT background. Linux has its purpose. Just not for
running a Fido ZC system in my opinion... and not for an Elist system.

Nick

--- Renegade vY2Ka2
 * Origin: Joey, do you like movies about gladiators? (1:229/426)

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