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From: wilkinsn@SPCA.BBN.COM (Ronald Wilkinson)
Newsgroups: mod.computers.vax
Subject: Re:  Parsing command line exactly as typed
Message-ID: <8612041141.AA18067@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>
Date: Wed, 3-Dec-86 11:36:37 EST
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.8612041141.AA18067
Posted: Wed Dec  3 11:36:37 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 4-Dec-86 09:20:09 EST
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In the transition from VMS version 2 to VMS version 3, I believe, most of the
character string symbol assignment examples in the "Guide to Using DCL and
Command Procedures" manual were switched from using := to =.  That gave me and
apparently others the strong suspicion that := was being phased out.  Other
changes that occurred in the documentation at that time really were done as
part of a phase out, such as the switch from SYS$SYSDISK to SYS$SYSDEVICE and
SYS$SYSROOT.  I still wonder if DEC was considering phasing out := and decided
not to because := was already very widespread and for certain purposes more
convenient, or whether DEC always intended the two operators to co-exist.

Ronald Wilkinson
BBN Software Products Corp.
10 Fawcett Street
Cambridge, MA 02230

ARPA: wilkinsn@spca.bbn.com  (note no "o" in login name)
phone: (617) 497-8105