Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!mandrill!hal!ncoast!allbery From: allbery@ncoast.UUCP Newsgroups: comp.cog-eng,comp.unix.xenix,comp.unix.wizards Subject: Re: Request for human interface design anecdotes (and a cure?) Message-ID: <6304@ncoast.UUCP> Date: Mon, 30-Nov-87 22:11:14 EST Article-I.D.: ncoast.6304 Posted: Mon Nov 30 22:11:14 1987 Date-Received: Fri, 4-Dec-87 01:20:36 EST References: <3103@psuvax1.psu.edu> <1987Nov21.014754.19660@sq.uucp> <392@xyzzy.UUCP> Reply-To: allbery@ncoast.UUCP (Brandon Allbery) Followup-To: comp.cog-eng Organization: Cleveland Public Access UN*X, Cleveland, Oh Lines: 30 Xref: utgpu comp.cog-eng:330 comp.unix.xenix:1070 comp.unix.wizards:5320 As quoted from <392@xyzzy.UUCP> by goudreau@xyzzy.UUCP (Bob Goudreau): +--------------- | In article <1987Nov21.014754.19660@sq.uucp> msb@sq.UUCP (Mark Brader) writes: | >If I type "rm *", it is because I want to remove all the files. No, not | >all *my* files. All *the* files that I still have write permission on, | | I'm sorry if that's what you want, because that's not what your system | is going to do. I quote from the rm(1) entry in the 7th Edition | Programmer's Manual: | | "Removal of a file requires write permission in its directory, | but neither read nor write permission on the file itself." +--------------- True enough -- at the level of unlink(). But if you'll unalias (or un- function, if you're a System V type) rm for a moment and try to "rm" a file which is write-protected without using the "-f" flag, you'll see: bsd% rm foo foo 444 mode _ $ rm foo #system V foo: 444 mode ? _ The biggest problem with this is that it's rather difficult to edit a C program that's been "rm"-proofed in this manner.... -- Brandon S. Allbery necntc!ncoast!allbery@harvard.harvard.edu {hoptoad,harvard!necntc,cbosgd,sun!mandrill!hal,uunet!hnsurg3}!ncoast!allbery Moderator of comp.sources.misc