Changes in syntax

[Robert Bashe]

Wilfred van Velzen wrote to Robert Bashe on Monday January 21 2013 at 08:24:

WV> usage: binkd [-CcTpqrsvmh] [-P node] [-S name] [-t cmd] config

The "usage" I get is different.

usage: binkd [-Ccipqrsvmh] [-P node] config [socket]

with no explanation of "socket". This is an OS/2 version and may be different
from the one you use.

WV> So the config file name should be the last item on the commandline. It
WV> will probably work if you move the '-p' to the front. At least so it
WV> does with the windows version 1.0a-608 that I am using for the same
WV> thing with the same parameters...

You are probably right, as the lower-case "p" is listed just after the program
call, but strangely enough the method I used earlier worked perfectly for many
years. Maybe just luck, but it would be nice to know what was happening.

Cheers, Bob

[mark lewis]

WV> usage: binkd [-CcTpqrsvmh] [-P node] [-S name] [-t cmd] config

RB> The "usage" I get is different.

RB> usage: binkd [-Ccipqrsvmh] [-P node] config [socket]

RB> with no explanation of "socket". This is an OS/2 version and may be
RB> different from the one you use.

a "socket" is specific to networking...

[quote]
A network socket is an endpoint of an inter-process communication flow across a
computer network. Today, most communication between computers is based on the
Internet Protocol; therefore most network sockets are Internet sockets.

An Internet socket is characterized by a unique combination of the following:

Local socket address: Local IP address and port number

Remote socket address: Only for established TCP sockets. As
discussed in the client-server section below, this is necessary
since a TCP server may serve several clients concurrently. The
server creates one socket for each client, and these sockets
share the same local socket address.

Protocol: A transport protocol (e.g., TCP, UDP, raw IP, or
others). TCP port 53 and UDP port 53 are consequently different,
distinct sockets.

Within the operating system and the application that created a socket, a socket
is referred to by a unique integer number called socket identifier or socket
number. The operating system forwards the payload of incoming IP packets to the
corresponding application by extracting the socket address information from the
IP and transport protocol headers and stripping the headers from the
application data.

In IETF Request for Comments, Internet Standards, in many textbooks, as well as
in this article, the term socket refers to an entity that is uniquely
identified by the socket number. In other textbooks,[1] the socket term refers
to a local socket address, i.e. a "combination of an IP address and a port
number". In the original definition of socket given in RFC 147, as it was
related to the ARPA network in 1971, "the socket is specified as a 32 bit
number with even sockets identifying receiving sockets and odd sockets
identifying sending sockets." Today, however, socket communications are
bidirectional.

On Unix-like and Microsoft Windows based operating systems the netstat command
line tool may be used to list all currently established sockets and related
information.
[/quote]

you can find out more by querying uncle google here...

https://www.google.com/search?q=define%3A+network+socket


)\/(ark

[Robert Bashe]

mark lewis wrote to Robert Bashe on Wednesday January 23 2013 at 22:42:

WV>> usage: binkd [-CcTpqrsvmh] [-P node] [-S name] [-t cmd] config

RB>> The "usage" I get is different.

RB>> usage: binkd [-Ccipqrsvmh] [-P node] config [socket]

RB>> with no explanation of "socket". This is an OS/2 version and may be
RB>> different from the one you use.

ml> a "socket" is specific to networking...

ml> [quote]
ml> A network socket is an endpoint of an inter-process communication flow
ml> across a computer network...

Thanks for your efforts, Mark, but I didn't understand more than a couple of
words. Remember, I'm not a programmer. My degree is in organic chemistry, not
in computer science.

My main question was why my program call ("poll this node") worked with an
earlier version of binkd, but failed with a more recent version.

Probably my original call was incorrect, but was still accepted by the binkd
version I was using, whereas it isn't anymore by the later version.

Cheers, Bob

[mark lewis]

WV>> usage: binkd [-CcTpqrsvmh] [-P node] [-S name] [-t cmd] config

RB>> The "usage" I get is different.

RB>> usage: binkd [-Ccipqrsvmh] [-P node] config [socket]

RB>> with no explanation of "socket". This is an OS/2 version and may be
RB>> different from the one you use.

ml> a "socket" is specific to networking...

ml> [quote]
ml> A network socket is an endpoint of an inter-process communication flow
ml> across a computer network...

RB> Thanks for your efforts, Mark, but I didn't understand more than a
RB> couple of words. Remember, I'm not a programmer. My degree is in
RB> organic chemistry, not in computer science.

yeah, i thought it might still be a bit too deep... sorry... i'll try without
all the fancy words... you have your ports, right? well, to talk to those
ports, you use sockets... this was something that berkley university, at least,
came up with and the original implementation was known as berkley sockets...
now pretty much everything uses them to talk to the network stack...

RB> My main question was why my program call ("poll this node") worked
RB> with an earlier version of binkd, but failed with a more recent
RB> version.

most likely a bug... i just looked inside the binary of my 0.9.2 version to see
what the help screen said and there isn't even one... however, my 0.9.4 version
does have a help screen inside it and it shows [socket] as the last option on
the command line as you show in "usage" line...

RB> Probably my original call was incorrect, but was still accepted by
RB> the binkd version I was using, whereas it isn't anymore by the
RB> later version.

yup...

FWIW: i generally list options in the same way and order they are shows in
usage examples... but doing that doesn't find command line processing bugs that
need to be reported and fixed as has apparently been done in this case... i've
never used the internal poll capabilities as i prefer to run client and server
all the time so i just create the necessary ?LO file when i want to generate a
poll... but if i were to be using the internal poll mechanism, i'd likely be
using a command line like this...

binkd -p -P w:x/y.z /path/to/config.file

)\/(ark

[Robert Bashe]

mark lewis wrote to Robert Bashe on Thursday January 24 2013 at 12:39:

ml> i've never used the internal poll capabilities as i prefer to run
ml> client and server all the time so i just create the necessary ?LO file
ml> when i want to generate a poll...

That's what I've decided to do, too, and it works fine.

ml> but if i were to be using the internal poll mechanism, i'd likely be
ml> using a command line like this...

ml> binkd -p -P w:x/y.z /path/to/config.file

Yes, that was probably the mistake I made, putting the "-p" (lower case) right
at the end.

Cheers, Bob