xbbs features as request

[Brandon S. Allbery]

As quoted from <3837 at uwspan.UUCP> by root at uwspan.UUCP (Sue Peru Sr.):
+---------------
| | 18) The following file protocols are available for downloading:
| |     sliding windows/standard kermit, zmodem, ymodem, batch-ymodem, crc-xmodem,
| |     checksum-xmodem, ascii, SEAlink, and type.
| | 19) The following file protocols are available for uploading:
| |     (Same as downloading except for "type")
| 
| All the file transfer protocols are external programs - you must have them
| on your system to be able to use them.
| 
| | 20) List the contents of an archive file ( .arc, .tar, or .tar.Z )
| 
| This requires that you have a working copy of ARC on your system...
+---------------

If arc, tar, kermit, Xmodem, SeaLINK, zoo, Zmodem, CIS B, etc. were all
bundled into a single XBBS (or, for that matter, UNaXcess) binary, you would
end up with a singleuser Unix/Xenix system.  DOS gets away with it because
it's only one process anyway.  But most people who run Unix/Xenix BBSes
would like to use the multiuser capabilities of *nix -- and humongous,
monolithic programs don't allow that.  (Okay, you can use a paging 386
system.  So now it's multiuser molasses.)

Also:  what if Arc were compiled into XBBS and some sysop wanted to support
Zoo archives?  Hmmm?  External programs can be announced to the BBS via
ASCII control files:  edit and voila!  New feature added WITHOUT recompiling.

It's a design decision.  Some of us prefer flexibility.

+---------------
| | 21) File directory summary
| 
| Simply a "ls -l directory > file ; cat file > modemport ; rm file" sequence
+---------------

Can you say "portable"?  BSD has portable directory routines.  System V does,
too:  but calls them by a different name.  EARLY System V and previous AT&T
releases (and Xenix 2/3, etc.) don't have them at all.  UNaXcess will break
when used under V.5 with a non-AT&T filesystem -- which may yet happen,
courtesy the file system switch.

I hate to say this, AT&T:  but "struct direNt" was a DUMB idea.
Incompatibility still reigns supreme.  AAAAARGH!!!!!
-- 
	      Brandon S. Allbery, moderator of comp.sources.misc
	{well!hoptoad,uunet!marque,cbosgd,sun!mandrill}!ncoast!allbery
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