[comp.os.os9] blarslib: unix portability library for OSK

blarson@blars (12/18/90)

A beta-test copy of blarslib is now available for ftp from
smilodon.cs.wisc.edu.  Blarslib is a library of unix-compatability
routines designed to aid porting unix software to osk.  Much of the
software I'll be puting there will require blarslib to compile and
load.  Blarslib does not interfere with standard OSK include files or
directories, so existing software will have no problems and upgrading
OSK should be relitivly painless.  (The TOP library does not do this.)

The thing blarslib needs most desparatly is better documentation, but
most of it can be figured out from unix documentation, osk
documentation, and the source.

Most of the stuff I will put there is minor utilities, but C-news and
rn will make it there eventually.

I'm currently uploading compressed tar files.  Would ar or shar files
be prefered?  I already put a shar file with tar in the there, but my
latest port of compress requires blarslib which is a bit big to put in
a shar file IMHO.

-- 
blarson@usc.edu
		C news and rn for os9/68k!
-- 
Bob Larson (blars)	blarson@usc.edu			usc!blarson
	Hiding differences does not make them go away.  Accepting
	differences makes them unimportant.

ralf@ppcnet.ppc.sub.org (Ralf Sauther) (12/19/90)

blarson@blars writes:

>A beta-test copy of blarslib is now available for ftp from
>smilodon.cs.wisc.edu.  Blarslib is a library of unix-compatability
>routines designed to aid porting unix software to osk.  Much of the
Well... why don't you distribute this package via news ? Especially in
germany is it hard to get any soft via ftp, cause there are only a
small amount of internet-sites (and badly none for public :-( So, how about
posting it ? Or how about a new group named "comp.sources.osk" ? :-))

>The thing blarslib needs most desparatly is better documentation, but
>most of it can be figured out from unix documentation, osk
>documentation, and the source.
Documentation is always hard to write.. We know that also from TOP :-)

>Most of the stuff I will put there is minor utilities, but C-news and
>rn will make it there eventually.
Hmm, rn... NN running quite well (6.3.10) and is easier to handle
as rn :-)


Gruss Ralf
--
     Ralf Sauther   | ...doitcr!smurf!ppcnet!ralf | ralf@ppcnet.ppc.sub.org
                    | +49 7274 76825 (voice only) |

blarson@blars (12/22/90)

In article <9XiNrD@ppcnet.ppc.sub.org> ralf@ppcnet.ppc.sub.org (Ralf Sauther) writes:
>blarson@blars writes:
>>A beta-test copy of blarslib is now available for ftp from
>>smilodon.cs.wisc.edu.
>Well... why don't you distribute this package via news ?

I don't consider it a finished package.  Sites with Internet access
are more likely to be able to get mail to me reliably, so are prefered
beta testers.  I realy don't think the number of people wanting it
that don't have Internet access justifies the expense of posting it to
usenet every time I make a change.

> Especially in germany is it hard to get any soft via ftp,

There is a general purpouse ftp-mail server available.
(bitftp@pucc.princeton.edu if memory serves, I've never used it.)

>Or how about a new group named "comp.sources.osk" ? :-))

I'd vote for it, why don't you initiate the group creation procedure?
(call for discussion.)

>Documentation is always hard to write.. We know that also from TOP :-)

You didn't know it before?

>Hmm, rn... NN running quite well (6.3.10) and is easier to handle
>as rn :-)

rn seems like a nice enough newsreader to me.  I havn't had sufficient
incentive to try anything else lately.  (both nn and trn require
auxilery databases.)

-- 
blarson@usc.edu
		C news and rn for os9/68k!
-- 
Bob Larson (blars)	blarson@usc.edu			usc!blarson
	Hiding differences does not make them go away.  Accepting
	differences makes them unimportant.

blarson@blars (12/22/90)

Oops, I forgot to mention in my previous posting that uunet customers
should contact them about their ftp-uucp gateway, and if you want an
account on my system so you can kermit it send me private mail.

-- 
blarson@usc.edu
		C news and rn for os9/68k!
-- 
Bob Larson (blars)	blarson@usc.edu			usc!blarson
	Hiding differences does not make them go away.  Accepting
	differences makes them unimportant.

halkoD@batman.moravian.EDU (David Halko) (01/08/91)

Someone suggested a new news group called

comp.sources.osk

now, this is one of the best ideas I have heard in a VERY long time.
UI have been waiting for one of those things to pop up in the near future!

we now have anonymous FTP sights,
we now have a mailing list (for OS9)
we now have several user groups where OS9 is discussed regularly

NOW we could use a sources news group.... it has been VERY VERY VERY
neglected.... how could we get one added???

David J. Halko

blarson@blars (01/26/91)

In article <2478@batman.moravian.EDU> halkoD@batman.moravian.EDU (David Halko) writes:
>Someone suggested a new news group called
>
>comp.sources.osk
>
>now, this is one of the best ideas I have heard in a VERY long time.
>
>NOW we could use a sources news group.... how could we get one added???

If you want to create a new newsgroup, read the group creation article
posted to news.announce.newusers monthly.  The first step is posting a
call for discussion to news.announce.newsgroups crossposted to other
groups as appropriate (comp.os.os9 and comp.sources.d in this case).

I would vote for it, but I also doubt it would get the 100 vote margin
needed for creation.

I post os9 sources of sufficient utility/expected demand to
comp.sources.misc.  Several years ago, the calculated breakeven point
between usenet posting and email distribution was at about 100 users.
(For less than 100, the amount of money spent for long-distance email
was less than that spent in long-distance newsfeeds.  The expence is
concentrated on fewer sites with email.)  I don't think there is that
much demand for a BETA-TEST version of blarslib, which may be updated a
number of times before I give up on it or consider it finished.

With bitftp@pucc.princeton.edu, any site with reliably email to the
Internet can retrive files that were previously only available via
FTP.  The people who complain about this seem to be those that are
charged for email but not for usenet.  (Local postings may be able to
help locate people who also want the same thing and are willing to
split the cost.) I pay the same for email and usenet, and don't like
such people using the MORE EXPENSIVE (but to different people)
broadcast as a substitute for email.  (Currently, I pay very little
for either.  I plan on getting a more reliable and more expensive mail
connection as soon as I get uucp working reliably.)

-- 
blarson@usc.edu
		C news and rn for os9/68k!
-- 
Bob Larson (blars)	blarson@usc.edu			usc!blarson
	Hiding differences does not make them go away.
	Accepting differences makes them unimportant.