2014-04-26 10:52:28 -04:00
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Unix brain damage
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2014-04-26 11:54:15 -04:00
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n. Something that has to be done to break a network program (typically a
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mailer) on a non-Unix system so that it will interoperate with Unix systems.
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The hack may qualify as Unix brain damage if the program conforms to
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published standards and the Unix program in question does not. Unix brain
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damage happens because it is much easier for other (minority) systems to
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change their ways to match non-conforming behavior than it is to change all
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the hundreds of thousands of Unix systems out there. An example of Unix
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brain damage is a kluge in a mail server to recognize bare line feed (the
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Unix newline) as an equivalent form to the Internet standard newline, which
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is a carriage return followed by a line feed. Such things can make even a
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hardened jock weep.
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