At 12:24 PM -0700 5/17/00, I wrote:
...
>If you still need information about past logons, and/or don't want to alter
>your logon UDC to gather information in the future, then the easiest place
>to look (perhaps the only place) is the system log files. You can read the
>log files by running sysdiag->logtool...


This reminded me that I need to check if any of the log file formats have
changed in MPE/iX 6.5 (I maintain a log file tool).

To my great surprise, when I run SYSDIAG on 6.5 I see the following:

   :sysdiag
   *****************************************************************
   ******                                                     ******
   ******               ONLINE DIAGNOSTIC SYSTEM              ******
   ******
   ... [ banner snipped ]...

   *****************************************************************

   The On-line Diagnostic System has been replaced with a product
   called the Support Tools Manager (STM).

   Please enter the "cstm" command to invoke the Command Line Support
   Tools Manager (STM) user interface. To access the help facility
   for "cstm", enter "help" at the "cstm>" prompt. The Support Tools
   Manager also has a Menu based user interface called "mstm".

   :


<RANT>

So I enter the "cstm" command and start twiddling my thumbs. In the time it
took just to get me to a prompt where I could attempt to do something
useful, I could have run the old sysdiag->logtool->types command, gotten my
results, and exited.

This thing is SLOOOOOOW!

So I look for something remotely resembling the old logtool. Nothing. In
fact, everything I previously spent my hard-earned hours learning about in
SYSDIAG is now out the window. It has all been replaced by this wonderful
(sarcasm intended here) new tool. And as an added bonus, it's really slow,
too!

As my friends back in Arkansas used to say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

I've come to expect this kind of kludgy crap in Unix implementations, HP-UX
included, but why do "they" have to inflict this upon MPE?!? One of the
beauties of MPE is that so many of its tools are uniquely tailored to the
platform. Certainly, all the POSIX porting that has been going on in recent
years has contributed enormously to the platform, but something as
important as system diagnostics should be left well enough alone.

I want my SYSDIAG back!

For those of you who rely on the SYSDIAG tools, you may wish to think long
and hard about whether to upgrade to 6.5.

</RANT>


Well, luckily "they" ran out of time and didn't get any of the log file
analysis stuff rolled into cstm ("Confusing System Tools Mess"), and
LOGTOOL now exists as a stand-alone program in PUB.SYS. But beware, it
could also disappear in a future release.


Barry Lake                                 [log in to unmask]
Allegro Consultants, Inc.                  www.allegro.com
(408)252-2330