Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!pacbell!ames!killer!vector!rpp386!jfh
From: jfh@rpp386.Dallas.TX.US (The Beach Bum)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: more unix jokes - /dev/null
Message-ID: <7104@rpp386.Dallas.TX.US>
Date: 25 Sep 88 21:23:33 GMT
References: <8488@smoke.ARPA> <26090@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> <1049@sybase.sybase.com> <1414@star.cs.vu.nl>  gwyn@brl.arpa (Doug Gwyn (VLD/VMB) ) writes:
>In article <1247@imagine.PAWL.RPI.EDU> kyriazis@turing.cs.rpi.edu (George Kyriazis) writes:
>>	command | vax
>
>No, the pipe will constipate since the "vax" command (equivalent to :)
>does not read its input.

No, the command will abort with SIGPIPE.  the vax command will exit,
leaving no reader on the pipe.  the first time command goes to write
to its stdout, a SIGPIPE will result.  (one may presume command will
eventually write, otherwise what was there to send to /dev/null?)
-- 
John F. Haugh II (jfh@rpp386.Dallas.TX.US)                   HASA, "S" Division

      "Why waste negative entropy on comments, when you could use the same
                   entropy to create bugs instead?" -- Steve Elias