[comp.unix.sysv386] Shell says... is not an identifier

tony@oha.UUCP (Tony Olekshy) (10/13/90)

In message <1990Oct9.001704.18149@hades.ausonics.oz.au>,
greyham@hades.ausonics.oz.au (Greyham Stoney) writes:
>
> the shell bombs out during startup with the error message:
> 
> 70/2:00:00,280/2:00:00: is not an identifier

The shell says this when you say, for example:

		x="a-b";
		$x="c-d";	# instead of x="c-d"

because the second line is converted into "a-b"="c-d" and "a-d" is not
an identifier.  Look closely at all places where TZ may have been wrongly
entered as $TZ on the left of =.

--
Yours etc., Tony Olekshy.       Internet: tony%oha@CS.UAlberta.CA
				  BITNET: tony%oha.uucp@UALTAMTS.BITNET
				    uucp: alberta!oha!tony

cpcahil@virtech.uucp (Conor P. Cahill) (10/13/90)

In article <453@oha.UUCP> tony@oha.UUCP (Tony Olekshy) writes:
>
>Look closely at all places where TZ may have been wrongly
>entered as $TZ on the left of =.

Guys, the problem is not that someone is setting the variable incorrectly.
It is that if the TZ variable is set in /etc/TIMEZONE (where it is supposed
to be set) then when init passes this to the shell it wreaks havoc.

Before I get zillions of messages from people that say "I set TZ in 
my /etc/TIMEZONE file with no problems" I will add:

	This (the problem) is only the case when you use some of the
	extended TZ features, not for a simple TZ=EST5EDT type of TZ.

-- 
Conor P. Cahill            (703)430-9247        Virtual Technologies, Inc.,
uunet!virtech!cpcahil                           46030 Manekin Plaza, Suite 160
                                                Sterling, VA 22170