From: lydick@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Speaker-to-Minerals)
Newsgroups: alt.callahans
Subject: Re: Is there a Doctor in the house?
Date: 7 Nov 1992 03:52:03 GMT
Organization: HST Wide Field/Planetary Camera
Distribution: world
Reply-To: lydick@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU
NNTP-Posting-Host: sol1.gps.caltech.edu

In article <JBrandt-041192220333@fp1-dialin-1.uoregon.edu>, JBrandt@aaa.uoregon.edu (Jay Brandt (Jason)) writes:
>He looks down and opens his cyberdeck. "Let me check my deck a moment." A
>few taps on the keyboard, and a sheet of paper exits smoothly from a slot
>on one edge of the deck. "Here, this is from Shadowcat. She says her e-mail
>to you bounced, both by the newsreader and by our e-mail program, with a
>message that 'dunk' was an unknown user. I suspect that there is an error
>in your return e-mail address, which we have as
>dunk@carson.u.washington.edu."

StM looks, once again, confused.  "But Jason, you've got a cyberdeck.  You

ought to know how to use it.  All I've got is a terminal and modem.  Here's how
I'd check out B'Naal's address using them:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
$ TELNET/PORT=25 CARSON.U.WASHINGTON.EDU
Trying... 
Connected to CARSON.U.WASHINGTON.EDU, a SEQUENT-S2000 running DYNIX/PTX.
220 carson.u.washington.edu Sendmail 5.65/UW-NDC Revision: 2.22  ready at Fri, 6
 Nov 92 19:17:02 -0800
VRFY dunk
250 <dunk@max.u.washington.edu>
QUIT
221 carson.u.washington.edu closing connection

Connection closed by Foreign Host
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OK, so dunk's mail address points to a forwarding address.  Let's follow it:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
$ TELNET/PORT=25 MAX.U.WASHINGTON.EDU
Trying... 
Connected to MAX.U.WASHINGTON.EDU, a VAX-6000-530 running VMS.
VRFY dunk
220 MAX.U.WASHINGTON.EDU -- Server SMTP (PMDF V3.1)
251 Local forwarding address <dunk@MAX.U.WASHINGTON.EDU>
QUIT
221 Bye received. Goodbye.

Connection closed by Foreign Host
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So we see that it looks like B'Naal has good taste in operating systems, but
there's something a bit strange about what PMDF thinks of his address.  What
does it mean by "Local forwarding address"?  Well, we try another machine
running PMDF where we know we can get mail to work properly, and where we can
fool around with an account to try to figure things out:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Campus Computing Organization (HAMLET) VAX/VMS V5.5-1

Username: CARL
Password: 
                      Welcome to Hamlet, VAX/VMS V5.5-1
(HAMLET) $ MAIL
MAIL> SHOW FORWARD
You have not set a forwarding address.

MAIL> EXIT
(HAMLET) $ TELNET/PORT=25 HAMLET
Trying... 
Connected to HAMLET.CALTECH.EDU, a VAXSERVER-4000 running VMS.
                                        
220 hamlet.caltech.edu -- Server SMTP (PMDF#3007  V4.1)
VRFY carl
250 Local user <carl@hamlet.caltech.edu>
QUIT
221 Bye received. Goodbye.

Connection closed by Foreign Host
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So if you have no mail forwarding set, you're called a "Local user" by PMDF.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(HAMLET) $ MAIL
MAIL> SET FORWARD IN%"""CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU"""

MAIL> EXIT
(HAMLET) $ TELNET/PORT=25 hamlet
Trying... 
Connected to HAMLET.CALTECH.EDU, a VAXSERVER-4000 running VMS.

220 hamlet.caltech.edu -- Server SMTP (PMDF#3007  V4.1)
VRFY carl
250 Local forwarding address <carl@hamlet.caltech.edu>
QUIT
221 Bye received. Goodbye.

Connection closed by Foreign Host
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So if you DO have a forwarding address set in MAIL, THAT's what PMDF means by
"Local forwarding address."

Based on this evidence, in my professional opinion, B'Naal has probably set an
invalid forwarding address on MAX.U.WASHINGTON.EDU.
Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA