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From: tp@ndm20
Newsgroups: net.news
Subject: Re: Stanford now gatewaying fa.*?
Message-ID: <4000010@ndm20>
Date: Fri, 1-Nov-85 07:23:00 EST
Article-I.D.: ndm20.4000010
Posted: Fri Nov  1 07:23:00 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 10-Nov-85 07:59:58 EST
References: <5208@amdcad.UUCP>
Lines: 42
Nf-ID: #R:amdcad.UUCP:-520800:ndm20:4000010:000:2288
Nf-From: ndm20!tp    Nov  1 06:23:00 1985


I'd rather see the fa.* groups until Erik Fair fixes the names.  As I
said in an article on net.news.groups,  I get  all mod.computers.* in
one group and all mod.protocols.* in another.   This will  be true of
all  non-4.2  sites  running notes  (correct me  if I'm  wrong).  The
problem  is that  the entire  name of  the group  is the  name of one
directory to hold that notesfile,  and on  many systems  that name is
limited to 14 characters.  Notes does not  use the  one directory per
name component scheme the way news does.  So I have mod.computers.vax
(since  it  got  here  first),  which  contains  mod.computers.*  and
mod.protocols.tcp-ip  which   contains  mod.protocols.*   I  have  no
indication other than content which group a given message belongs to.

I don't care if  the name  is longer  than 14  characters, but PLEASE
make it UNIQUE in the first 14 characters.  This shouldn't  be at all
difficult.  I support the idea  of the  mod.* groups  instead of fa.*
(even though I can't make use of it myself, not having had the chance
to install Rich Salz' notes mod to  properly handle  posting to mod.*
groups).

Any flames about my choice of news interface/version of unix would be
most inappropriate.  The point  is that  people use  these systems (a
LOT  of people,  see mod.newslists,  and many  have no  choice in the
matter) and they should be supported.  I  don't think  Erik is trying
to screw all SysV/SysIII/V7 users just because he  works for Berkely,
and I can see how the combination of notes/non-4.2 would not occur to
someone running news/4.2, but PLEASE correct the situation as soon as
possible.  (Luckily I have no  down stream  sites, so  the problem is
confined  to  my  site.   But we  have been  toying with  the idea of
getting a redundant feed to increase  news reliability  in this area.
If that  occurs, then  all this  stuff will  get cross  posted on the
whole net the way it occurs on my site.  I'll bet it  gets fixed fast
when  mod.protocols.kermit  starts  echoing  a  week  or  so later in
mod.protocols.tcp-ip.  That is where my system gets the articles.)  

Thanks,
Terry Poot
Nathan D. Maier Consulting Engineers
(214)739-4741
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