Re: cpio --preserve-modification-time: files but not directories

[Steven Augart]

Dan:

I believe it was because of this letter you wrote:


$ cpio --version
GNU cpio version 2.5

Sounds like yours.
Then put bug reporting addresses in --help, man, and info!

$ find *|cpio -dmp /tmp/zzz
$ info cpio
`-m, --preserve-modification-time'
     Retain previous file modification times when creating files.

But not directories! So say so in man and info.
Or better yet, kindly implement it.
Either way, must mention how you treat directories too.
Not everybody agrees that directories are just one type of file and
thus can be silently skipped over in the spec.

No, I didn't try `-a, --reset-access-time' but I suspect the worst.
Mention what you do about directories too there.


I personally perceived the letter as angry or rude or at least written 
when the author was feeling annoyed.  I had skipped over it because I 
didn't feel like dealing with it. 

 I don't think anybody on the bug-coreutils list is paid for the work we 
do.  I have been handling bug-coreutils mail for the past couple of weeks 
because I like giving a bit back to the community for all I've received 
from it.  I do it on my personal time; IBM isn't paying me to maintain 
coreutils.  So we're all, or almost all, volunteers. 

The other reason is that cpio isn't part of coreutils. 

 I'd addressed the letter to you privately because I didn't want to broach 
the subject on bug-coreutils.  However, since you added bug-coreutils to 
the CC list in your reply, I felt I could either look flaky (for not 
handling an email conversation that I'm now publicly involved in) or I 
could go ahead and send you the information that I was fishing to see if 
you wanted to have.  (I don't like to give unwanted advice.)

Anyway, that's my 2 cents worth; please ignore it if you think I'm 
misguided.  I'd rather not continue the topic on-list, so I've explicitly 
set the Reply-To for this message to my personal email account.

--Steve Augart





Dan Jacobson <address@hidden>
10/17/2003 09:30 PM
 
        To:     Steven Augart/Watson/Contr/address@hidden
        cc:     address@hidden
        Subject:        Re: cpio --preserve-modification-time: files but 
not directories


>>>>> "S" == Steven Augart <address@hidden> writes:

S> Dan,
S> Have you gotten any replies to your bug report email?

no

S> I assume not.  Certainly I've seen nothing on the list.

S> If you want to know why you can write back to me.

sound like one of those embarrassing elementary answers that I should
have known it the first place.

well, that's what I'm here for, to give the newbie point of view
"i pretend to be a newbie"

therefore whatever answer that one should have known already, should
still be added to the man page

I.e.

S> `-m, --preserve-modification-time'
S>      Retain previous file modification times when creating files.

should discuss "what about directories?" too, no matter how silly it
is to the pros.