Date: Sun, 01 Aug 1999 01:44:26 -0500 From: Jon Hamilton <hamilton@pobox.com> To: Doug <Doug@gorean.org> Cc: Sheldon Hearn <sheldonh@uunet.co.za>, Matthew Dillon <dillon@apollo.backplane.com>, hackers@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Mentioning RFC numbers in /etc/services Message-ID: <19990801064426.12D5C155@woodstock.monkey.net> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Sat, 31 Jul 1999 23:29:24 PDT." <37A3E944.7F28E91B@gorean.org>
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In message <37A3E944.7F28E91B@gorean.org>, Doug wrote: } Jon Hamilton wrote: } } > No. ipfw deals with /etc/services only at startup time (any other behavior } on } > its part would be ridiculous). } } That's not entirely true, there are other situations (like adding a rul } e, } etc.) but your point is well taken. And no, I can't provide specific } examples, my point is really much simpler than that. } } > I think you're overestimating the cost by a considerable amount. I'm } > not saying that the cost is zero, but I am saying that it's close enough } > that the value of having the information *right there* outweighs the cost. } } Anyone interested in the information will stay interested long enough t } o } look it up in a man page. Even if the cost to the system is very very } small, I think that adding it to the file is silly when it could just as } easily be added to a man page. It's not "just as easy" for the person looking for the information; it doesn't *get* any easier than having it right there alongside the place you're going to use it. Just because in principle someone can go look up the information somewhere else, doesn't mean that it's not easier and more friendly to [also?] have the information right there in the file. } Of course, there are other benefits to having it in a man page too. The } primary one being that changes/updates to the comments don't require a } change to the file, and would be picked up automatically during a make } world. That is true, but then again this data doesn't change that often. -- Jon Hamilton hamilton@pobox.com To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-hackers" in the body of the message
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