[Info-vax] Suggestion: Enhance DCL to support proper escape quoting.

[Craig A. Berry]

On 1/20/22 11:37 AM, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
> On 1/20/22 11:26 AM, Arne Vajhøj wrote:
>> On 1/20/2022 10:25 AM, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>>> On 1/20/22 9:19 AM, Arne Vajhøj wrote:


>>>> but Perl
>>>> and Python are not *nix specific.
>>>
>>> Both were originally developed in the Unix environment.  Use in any
>>> other environment is an afterthought.
>>
>> They were developed on Unix but I don't think calling usage on
>> other platforms an afterthought is proper description.

In fact it's an offensive and ignorant description.  It's more or less
like saying Fortran on VMS is an afterthought because it ran on
something else first.

>> When Larry Wall released the first public version of Perl the build
>> configuration included:
>>
>> <quote>
>> /* EUNICE:
>>   *    This symbol, if defined, indicates that the program is being 
>> compiled
>>   *    under the EUNICE package under VMS.  The program will need to 
>> handle
>>   *    things like files that don't go away the first time you unlink 
>> them,
>>   *    due to version numbering.  It will also need to compensate for 
>> lack
>>   *    of a respectable link() command.
>>   */
>> /* VMS:
>>   *    This symbol, if defined, indicates that the program is running 
>> under
>>   *    VMS.  It is currently only set in conjunction with the EUNICE 
>> symbol.
>>   */
>> </quote>
>>
>> so definitely Unix centric but VMS aware.
> 
> EUNICE?  That's Unix running on top of VMS. :-)
> Can it be compiled and run if you set the VMS flag?

I've been involved with maintaining Perl on VMS for over twenty years
and it is certainly not an afterthought.  The EUNICE support came and
went before my time and really has nothing to do with the current port,
which I believe originated in one of the early Perl 5 releases, maybe
about 1997 or so.