lprm bug empties files

[utzoo!decvax!genrad!wjh12!clp]

I'm afraid that it is worse than that....

I've always wondered why both the Bell and the Berkeley lpr systems were
 so bad. For example:

 (a) The lprm bug causes any file that was linked (for protection of files
     you don't want copied) by lpr to be zeroed; that's right, the ORIGINAL
     FILE WILL BE ZEROED. The only solution is to have lpr always copy the
     files to be printed so that lprm will "work". But, it's even worse:

 (b) Lprm is too stupid to realize that if more than one file was printed,
     you may want to remove only one of those files. When you give a file-
     name to be removed, it will zero the whole dfAXXXXX file as well! Too
     bad you didn't mean to remove them all... it doesn't even remove all
     the C files after it has done this, it only removes the first! Not
     only is it wrong, but it is wrong AND inconsistent about it.

A good lpr system in not that hard! I wonder why no one has done one?
 (I have heard of MDQS as a general queuer; does anyone have a good lpr
 system that sends signals or acts intelligently about partial removes?).

							    Charles L. Perkins
						    ...decvax!genrad!wjh12!clp