[net.news] SERIOUS crocks and bugs in news 2.10 which I dont have fixes for yet.

laura@utcsstat.UUCP (07/08/83)

News 2.10 has some bugs I have just run across. I am going to track
them down, but it will probably take some time. In the meantime, be
warned.

I logged in about 10 minutes ago and read mail. I got mail from
utzoo!uucp acknowledging my submission to net.test. This is bad news. I
think that net.test is a useless group that should be renamed to
net.this-is-important-i-need-to-send-an-article-to-1000-sites.  The day
I post something to net.test is the day that hell freezes over. If I
ever need to test anything I post to to.site where "site" is the name
of the site whose connection I am testing or ont.test if I need a big
test.  There is no reason to post to everyone on the net. I don't.

So I go over to utcsstat's /usr/spool/news/net/test and find:

	From laura Wed Dec 31 19:00:00 1969
	Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utcsstat.UUCP
	Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utcsstat.UUCP
	Path: utcsstat!laura
	From: laura@utcsstat.UUCP
	Newsgroups: net.test
	Subject: This came in the mail...
	Message-ID: <743@utcssta.UUCP>
	Date: Tue, 5-Jul-83 02:38:07 EDT
	Article-I.D.: utcssta.743
	Posted: Tue Jul  5 02:38:07 1983
	Date-Received: Thu, 7-Jul-83 00:25:59 EDT
	Organization: U. of Toronto, Canada
	Lines: 26


	     From uucp Mon Jun 27 03:14:39 1983
	     >From uucp Mon Jun 27 00:28:19 1983 remote from utzoo
	     >From mhb5b!gsp Sun Jun 26 20:13:22 1983 remote from watmath
	     Date: Sun Jun 26 18:48:20 1983
	     To: utzoo!utcsstat!laura utzoo!david
	     Subject: UNIX|STAT
	     References: <716@utcsstat.UUCP>

	     I think I've sent a couple of versions of my UNIX|STAT programs to
	     people at UofT.  I'm going to be in Toronto for more than USENIX
	     (I'm originally from Montreal and visit those who fled PQ).  Could
	     you ask around and find out if there would be any interest in some
	     discussion, demonstration, whatever of UNIX|STAT?  I like to get
	     feedback from sites when I'm in a town.  I'll be staying up around UT
	     where my friends live so a short walk would be my investment.
		Gary Perlman    BTL MH 5D-105   (201) 582-3624
		ulysses!gsp

	I wasn't one of the people he sent a copy of UNIX|STAT to, but I could probably
	find out who did get it. Anybody interested? Send mail to me and I will
	summarise to him.
	Laura Creighton

This is an article I sent out on the local group `general' here on this
machine.  I read it there 2 days ago. Note the times on the article --
I posted it on this site on June the 5th and it was received on this
very site *2 days* later on June the 7th.  
Where was it for these two days? I don't know...

I give you my word, everybody, I NEVER REPOSTED IT TO NET.TEST! Why
should I? It is purely of local interest. Okay, so I read news and
discover that it is a new article in net.test. I decide to cancel it
now, and worry about how it got there later. I try to. What happens?

inews: Not contributor: laura and laura@utcsstat.UUCP (Laura Creighton)

Okay. laura and laura@utcsstat are the same person, but I can't cancel this
article which I didn't send. If I don't cancel it before linus makes
another call to zoo, all of you folks in the States are going to get to
see this article.

I am not root on this machine. However, Geoff Collyer, who is sitting 6
feet away, is. I go to him, inturrupt what he is doing, and say:

	"Geoff, kind sir, there is a crock article in net.test which I
	did not send. Please su to root and nuke it; otherwise all my
	friends in the States will assume that I have lost my mind and
	all others will rightfully wish doom and destruction on my head
	for wasting valuable net resources. This will be quite
	embarrassing to me since I am involved in a debate on that
	issue in net.news right now. It is already too late for the
	Ontario sites and poor Brad Templeton must think that I
	have gone off the deep end since only yesterday I sent him mail
	about how we should band together and see if we can get
	net.test creamed (this time) which is about the only useful thing
	I could see coming out of the 'net resources' debate in
	net.news. "

Geoff is a nice person. He stops what he is doing and right away tries
to nuke article 499 in net.test as root. HE CAN'T DO THIS EITHER
because he didn't originate the article. If the super-user cant kill
crock articles which have originated by mistake on his own site then
something is truly foul.

I am mad as hell about this. I will find this bug(s) and post it when I
do. Until then BE WARNED.

Laura Creighton
utcsstat!laura