From: lindner@danzig.micro.umn.edu (Paul Lindner)
Subject: Re: More bugs gopher1.1b1 (beta programmers as well as code)
Organization: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 00:17:31 GMT

In <mtm.722068331@CAMIS> mtm@CAMIS.Stanford.EDU (Mike Macgirvin) writes:

>lindner@mudhoney.micro.umn.edu (Paul Lindner) writes:

>	With all due respect, Paul, I sure hope you're wearing
>something flame-retardent.... we all respect the work you've done,
>but we all wish it worked better.

>	Why are you using a string library anyway? You're not storing
>strings with embedded nulls that I can see...

I wrote my STR string library because I don't beleive in hard coded
limits.  When the WAIS stuff came along, (with it's big long selector
strings) I decided to do things the "right" way, put all my string
stuff into a package and in only one place.

I'm also doing this for other stuff.  Code maintainance is driving me
batty, perhaps it is time give the whole thing a rewrite...  Right now
most of my effort seems to be in rewriting code I've already written.
Most of the patches I receive require some noodling before I can
really use them, either because they're too system dependent or too
gross. 

>	Oh well, I should probably mention that it's getting very
>difficult to justify why I'm spending such a high percentage of my
>time troubleshooting one application which is only used by a small
>handful of people currently. I have several thousand applications and
>hundreds of other people that require my attention.

Don't think I know how you feel, I only do the gopher server part
time, the rest of the time it's handholding and phone support for
60,000 people.  (Yes I do answer the phone on occasion, when you
612-MA-MICRO you might just get yours truly to help you)

>	It would be a whole lot nicer if we only were dealing the
>"five-hundred year" bugs (see Scientific American this month). But
>with gopher, it's more along the lines of "fifteen-minute bugs". Oh,
>and consider what would happen if the fate of the world and your life
>were dependant on the reliability of the code you create, and write
>all your functions with that in mind. I can't believe that dumping
>core is part of the curricula of even the hippie programming
>schools...

I never said that the beta releases were for the weak of heart...  I
wanted everyone to see what I had up my sleeve, after receiving 20
fixes to the ftp temp file bug I thought I should let people see
what's going on.  I really appreciate all the help I get!!  Thanks
everyone!  Unfortunately, the need of features means that I can't test
everyone elses code and all the interacting problems associated with
it. 

Hmm, show me a trace of your corefile and I'll take a look at it.  As
H. Ross sez, I'm all ears.

I want the code to be the best it can be.  I think we (myself and the
rest of the internet) have made many improvements over the course of
time.  When I go back and look at the first release of gopher I'm
amazed.   To think that one person could do that part time.

Without the help and assistance of the net at large, gopher wouldn't
be the product that it is today.

I thank all of you, the users, the admins, everyone..
--
 | Paul Lindner | lindner@boombox.micro.umn.edu   | Slipping into madness
 |              | Computer & Information Services | is good for the sake
 | Gophermaster | University of Minnesota         | of comparision.
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Newsgroups: comp.infosystems.gopher