[Info-vax] DIR/DATE_FORMAT=DELTA ?

[Richard B. Gilbert]

On 1/11/2012 8:29 AM, AEF wrote:
> On Jan 11, 9:07 am, Simon Clubley<clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-
> Earth.UFP>  wrote:
>> On 2012-01-09, Marc Van Dyck<marc.gr.vand... at invalid.skynet.be>  wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>> JF Mezei brought next idea :
>>
>>>> If<delta time>  greater than X, then take some action.
>>
>>>> File not modified for X time, then archive it.
>>>> File not backed up for X time, then do a backup.
>>
>>>> However, since such activities are more likely done in a command
>>>> procedure, and command procedures can use f$file_attributes and then
>>>> F$CVTIME, that functionality is already there.
>>
>>> I was about to say that.
>>
>>> The output of the DIRECTORY command is basically the result of a
>>> F$SEARCH loop.
>>
>>> Asking for times in delta format probably means that this output
>>> would get parsed afterwards for some kind of processing.
>>
>>> This is a bad habit and should not be done unless unavoidable. Over
>>> the years, many lexical functions have been added to DCL in order
>>> to avoid output parsing in most situations. Parsing output files in
>>> DCL brings man back to Unix programming levels, a thing of the past ;-)
>>
>> Of course, in Unix-land, you could just use find to get a list of matching
>> files. :-)
>>
>> DCL has some nice capabilities, but so do Unix style shells. It would be
>> nice to see a CLI which mixed the best of both worlds.
>>
>> (And as a bonus, in a Unix shell, you can also edit your long wrapped
>> command line while you are working on your one-line masterpiece. :-))
>>
>> Simon.
>>
>> --
>> Simon Clubley, clubley at remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP
>> Microsoft: Bringing you 1980s technology to a 21st century world
>
> Well, there is some movement in this area. VMS adopted PIPE. And I now
> see Unix commands using --<english word>, such as --help, --block-
> size=SIZE, and so on.
>
> Cross-breeding!

A lot of Unix features/misfeatures are due, at least in part, to the 
fact that the Model 30 TTY was very unfriendly to typists!  Typing on 
those suckers was WORK!!!!