thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) (07/22/89)
Both Karl Botts and Robert Granvin bring up good points. And, yes, the issue of uudemon.day deleting files IS getting tedious. HOWEVER: I've been reading this newsgroup for 2 years and have archived nearly everything, and not once before has the matter of files disappearing at 4AM daily been brought up (to my recollection.) My original posting served to alert people to that fact of Unix life, and I received over 20 emails thanking me for the posting. From my displays at the West Coast Computer Faire, discussions in the local UNIXPC SIG of the AT&T Users' Group, and from other chance meetings of fellow UNIXPC'ers, it's clear to me that MOST owners/users of UNIXPC systems are simply not aware of such things being done TO them (by the crontab scripts and whatever else.) If one had the $$$ for a formal UNIX education, I'm sure the $2,000/week classes that one attended informed YOU of these "problems." But the main reason I bought my UNIXPC (in 1987) was to teach myself UNIX for LESS than the cost of a single class, and have the hardware as an added benefit. I've used over 50 different computer systems in the 25+ years I've been involved with computing, and can pick up on a "new" system quickly; I now consider myself moderately proficient with UNIX, and learn more daily by teaching/helping others with their systems. The UNIX credo of "build upon the work of others" is something I practice and teach. A forum such as this one is one in which we all help each other. The tone of yet another posting suggested "cut out the crap" and deal with only the technical issues. I disagree. New readers are always entering this forum. My $.02 ... Thad Floryan [ thad@cup.portal.com (OR) ..!sun!portal!cup.portal.com!thad ]
bob@rush.cts.com (Bob Ames) (08/03/89)
In article <19560@cup.portal.com> thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes: >Both Karl Botts and Robert Granvin bring up good points. And, yes, the issue >of uudemon.day deleting files IS getting tedious. > >HOWEVER: I've been reading this newsgroup for 2 years and have archived >nearly everything, and not once before has the matter of files disappearing >at 4AM daily been brought up (to my recollection.) David Solan (kdavid@gizzmo.UUCP) posted on this subject about 1 year ago. He also goes into this at length in "Objective Utilities", a software package for the UNIX PC which includes nice things like Unremove, Blinkoff, utilities to optimize file placement on hard drives, lots of documentation on Unix PC filesystem bugs, etc. I think Objective Utilities sells for around $125.00. If you`ve ever deleted a file and immediately wished it would return, type Unremove! "I don`t work for Objective Programming (201-866-6900), I`m just a satisfied customer." Bob Bob Ames The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, NORML "Pot is the world's best source of complete protein, alcohol fuel, and paper, is the best fire de-erosion seed, and is america's largest cash crop." - USDA bob@rush.cts.com or ncr-sd!rush!bob@nosc.mil or rutgers!ucsd!ncr-sd!rush!bob 619-741-UN2X "We each pay a fabulous price for our visions of paradise," Rush
cks@ziebmef.uucp (Chris Siebenmann) (08/18/89)
thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan) writes (in a really ancient article I should have replied to long ago): | From my displays at the West Coast Computer Faire, discussions in the local | UNIXPC SIG of the AT&T Users' Group, and from other chance meetings of fellow | UNIXPC'ers, it's clear to me that MOST owners/users of UNIXPC systems are | simply not aware of such things being done TO them (by the crontab scripts and | whatever else.) Congratulations; you've just learned another lesson of Unix system administraion. One should *always* look at the automated scripts that ye spiffy Unix system wants to run; from crontab, on startup, in /etc/profile, in /etc/inittab. One usually finds out some quite interesting and often important information, and one avoids nasty surprises (like that fsck -y that's probably *still* in people's /etc/rc; send email for a copy of my article about why this is a Real Bad Idea and how to fix it). [For example, take a look at /etc/cleanup.wk -- it shows you how to get smgr to empty out /usr/adm/cronlog, for example (and it removes week-old core files for you, and other functions).] -- "Would that Aza Chorn had teleported Bates elsewhere and not removed so charming and preposterous a folly from our skyline ... but then he could not have known, not being raised around these parts." Chris Siebenmann uunet!{utgpu!moore,attcan!telly}!ziebmef!cks cks@ziebmef.UUCP or .....!utgpu!{,ontmoh!,ncrcan!brambo!}cks