MikeO'Dell@BRL-VGR.ARPA,mo@lbl-csam (01/16/84)
(1) Chris is right that such functionality is useful, but (2) There is much Ethernet hardware out there which cannot perform this function (vendor(s) shall remain nameless for the moment). The real issue, if there is one, is whether it is correct to assume most hardware has listen-while-talk problems and do the loopback in the generic ethernet code, or make it the responsibility of individual hardware drivers. At first glance, common sense would dictate the latter, but there are more issues than meet the eye. I am not claiming the current solution is correct, only that the alternative requires careful evaluation (of code) before embracing it. -Mike