From: "George D. Greenwade" <bed_gdg@SHSU.edu>
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex
Subject: RE: archie and the archives (was Re: where mathtime.sty)
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 1992 17:08:17 CST
Organization: Info-Tex<==>Comp.Text.Tex Gateway
X-Gateway-Source-Info: Mailing List

In <1992Nov21.144034.3102@news.th-darmstadt.de> (comp.text.tex, Sat, 21 Nov
1992 14:40:34 GMT), schrod@iti.informatik.th-darmstadt.de (Joachim Schrod)
posted:
> In article <00963D76.6273F440.1186@SHSU.edu>, "George D. Greenwade"
> <bed_gdg@SHSU.edu> writes:
> >
> > I hesitate to speak for Don or Aston on this, but I see this question about
> > our archives about three times a week and SHSU has the same problem these
> > sites have.  Specifically, YMIR.CLAREMONT.EDU, Niord.SHSU.edu, and
> > tex.ac.uk are VMS machines, which archie doesn't work with (archie is just
> > about totally focused on Unix machines).  I understand that some new
> > version of archie (which, unfortunately, I understand to be proprietary
> > instead of in the pd, as it is currently) is in the works which has the
> > ability to properly poll non-Unix platforms (which is about all archie
> > presently handles).
> 
> To quote Peter Deutsch:
> 
>     archie 3.0 is definitely available and now shipping.
> 
> and [about VMS directory listing parsers]:
> 
>     There is such a parser for the current release and thus VMS host
>     support will appear as the existing servers convert to the new code.
> 
> Concerning the commercial status of the new archie server -- even the
> original archie source was never pd. Consider the following written
> by George Ferguson (the author of xarchie):
> 
>     If you feel that Alan and Peter have done the net a great disfavour by
>     charging for the new releases of Archie servers, perhaps you could
>     elaborate. I personally accept what they did as being necessary to
>     sustain the development of the service(s). I also don't think that
>     they're in it to bilk the net out of something, or to make a fortune
>     on the backs of others. I think their contributions to IETF and such
>     activities reflects a genuine concern for and interest in sustained
>     growth of the Internet community. The fact that they also have to eat
>     and pay rent without the benefit of graduate stipends or a job that
>     allows them to work on their own projects is simply a fact of life.
> 
> These quotes are from a recent discussion in comp.archives.admin which
> every administrator of a larger ftp archive should read to keep
> up-to-date with news like `the new archie is ready.'
> 
> --
> Joachim
> 
> Btw: Darmstadt (ie, archie.th-darmstadt.de) paid for the sources. They
>      are worth it.

GREAT!!  Please add our archives to your listing and propogate this request
to all other archie sites as they upgrade (or pass along the info to
achieve this so I can do it).  I never said that I was for or against the
now proprietary status of the new archie as I understand cost-benefit
analysis quite well (recall, in real life, I am an economist).  In fact,
given the array of new net-related products, I wish them well.

With respect to the new release, which you have paid for, I sincerely hope
other sites also pony up and can include us as soon as feasibly possible as
it'll be nice to finally have the ability to look for VMS sites with archie.

Finally, with respect to comp.archives.admin (and news in general), I don't
know if we can be classified as a `larger ftp archive' or not (nor if my
not following it from day to day makes me a bad administrator -- I hope
not).  From my perspective, though, I do not have a reliable news feed; if
I get the privilege of reading news, it is because the overworked public
server at Columbia has space on it for me to get in.  The link between
SHSU's lists and news is attributable to the heroic efforts of Mark
Berryman at SAIC, who handles all of the mess with news->mail and
mail->news via his site to and from various control addresses he and I
maintain.  If anyone is willing to let us have NNTP access so news were
more available, I would appreciate hearing from them.  Alternately, if
anyone knows of mail access to comp.archives.admin, I would like to know
about that alternative, as well.

Regards and glad to know we might actually be on archie soon,   George
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
George D. Greenwade, Ph.D.                            Bitnet:  BED_GDG@SHSU
Department of Economics and Business Analysis         THEnet: SHSU::BED_GDG
College of Business Administration                    Voice: (409) 294-1266
P. O. Box 2118                                        FAX:   (409) 294-3612
Sam Houston State University              Internet:        bed_gdg@SHSU.edu
Huntsville, TX 77341                      bed_gdg%SHSU.decnet@relay.the.net
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
From: domi@marlis.grenoble.hp.com (Dominique DUMONT)
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 15:47:11 GMT
Subject: Re: MZ0 (docstrip package)
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, GND