[comp.sys.ibm.pc.rt] Bugs in /bin/csh in AIX version 2.2.1

richmond@astroplasma.berkeley.edu (Michael Richmond) (02/01/91)

  We have run into a number of bugs with /bin/csh on our RTs after upgrading
them to AIX version 2.2.1.  Specifically, the csh variable expressions 
$< and $#argv give us trouble, as these transcripts show:

       % set a=$<
       Missing name for redirect.
       % cat > foo
       #!/bin/csh
       echo $#argv
       ^D
       % chmod +x foo
       % foo
       Variable syntax.
       %

  I have suspicions about other csh expressions failing, also.  We have the
version 2.2.1 manuals for AIX, and they say that these csh expressions 
SHOULD work.

  Can anyone tell me if, indeed, the 2.2.1 /bin/csh is royally screwed up?
Here's the 'ls' output for our /bin/csh, in case it helps to identify it:

    % ls -l /bin/csh
     204 -r-xr-xr-x  1 bin      bin        100820 Mar 29 1990  /bin/csh

Is there some documentation for the new 'features?'  Can we be safe by
switching our programming to the Bourne shell?  Thanks for any help
you can give me.

--                                          Michael Richmond
"This is the heart that broke my finger."   richmond@bait.berkeley.edu

karish@mindcraft.com (Chuck Karish) (02/01/91)

In article <1991Jan31.192649.6510@agate.berkeley.edu>
richmond@astroplasma.berkeley.edu (Michael Richmond) writes:
>  We have run into a number of bugs with /bin/csh on our RTs after upgrading
>them to AIX version 2.2.1...
> [ ... ]
>Can we be safe by
>switching our programming to the Bourne shell?

Safer, anyway.  UNIX vendors have to be fairly conservative about what
they do to the Bourne shell, because they use sh scripts to boot their
systems, build their kernels, install their software, etc.

I program in the subset of sh that's understood by BSD sh.  My scripts
run on dozens of different systems without modification, including all
three flavors of AIX.
-- 

	Chuck Karish		karish@mindcraft.com
	Mindcraft, Inc.		(415) 323-9000