Adopey.154
net.math
utcsrgv!utzoo!decvax!duke!mcnc!unc!dopey.smb
Sun Mar 14 10:55:32 1982
Re: log0 query
The problem that Pavel Curtis ran into occurred because news and mail
don't know enough about each other's conventions. The article in question
came from ARPAnet host KESTREL, user KING. It was shunted onto netnews
at SRI-UNIX; from there, it was relayed to UCB-C70, a Berkeley ARPA host.
One of two things happened there; I can't tell which. The first possibility
is that SRI-UNIX sent the item to Berkeley via the ARPAnet, but didn't
hack the return address properly, i.e., using a '@' instead of a '!'. The
other, and I think more likely, has to do with the mail address parser at
UCB-C70. A string 'a!b@c' is ambiguous if priorities for '!' and '@' are
equal. It could mean user 'b@c' at host 'a' -- the usual meaning out
here in uucp-land. Or it could mean user 'a!b' at host 'c' -- proper for
ARPAnauts. As I recall the tables in the distributed 4.1BSD delivermail,
this latter interpretation is preferred; thus, UCB-C70 did the right thing.
Now -- the correct reply address is ucbvax!KING@KESTREL. But that doesn't
solve the real problem, which is what to about such screwy addresses.
Suggestions, anyone?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
gopher://quux.org/ conversion by John Goerzen <
[email protected]>
of
http://communication.ucsd.edu/A-News/
This Usenet Oldnews Archive
article may be copied and distributed freely, provided:
1. There is no money collected for the text(s) of the articles.
2. The following notice remains appended to each copy:
The Usenet Oldnews Archive: Compilation Copyright (C) 1981, 1996
Bruce Jones, Henry Spencer, David Wiseman.
