Michael,
This is NOT correct!
On Sat, 19 Aug 2000 11:56:47 +0200 (CEST), Michael Polak wrote:
<snip>
>> Roughly, that is, leaving DOS 5.0 (and later??) in its default
>> configuration is asking for trouble because, among other things,
>> it sets the TEMP environment variable to the OS install
>> directory. (BTW -- this is *far* from a new observation. It
>> used to be the first thing I fixed on staff DOS machines, after
>> deleting RECOVER.COM, when I worked at the univeristy computer
>> centre...)
I don't know who this guy is, but DOS doesn't set TEMP at all ... let
alone to an "OS install directory."
If that were true, you wouldn't have been getting the complaints over
the last few years that they can't do this or that, and the response
must always be "Set TEMP=existing_directory_of_choice" in your
autoexec.bat file."
<snip>
> Ok, I was not aware that TEMP=C:\DOS is default Microsoft's setting. I was
> never using clean installation of older versions of DOS - they were always
> modified and optimized a lot, so this never came to my mind. After all,
> Arachne now works as a virus, which deletes MS-DOS and not DR-DOS, which
> is good ;-))
THERE IS NO DEFAULT MS-DOS SETTING FOR TEMP. The user must SET in
autoexec or other batch file or at prompt.
> Ok, I will change the default settings - or rather one more setup screen
> will be added, which will prompt for usage of TEMP directory (using it as
> CACHE - option C:\DOS will be detected), usage of Arrow keys (mouse or
> scrolling) and maybe something simillar, which can confuse new users, who
> are too lazy to read all fine-tuning setup screens...
Michael, why don't you have Arachne check to see if TEMP is even SET?
If Arachne can't simply check for the value of the variable, it is
easy enough to create a file using command set>filename Then
core.exe could scan for temp setting in file?? And if no setting of
TEMP there could be message, and if scan found TEMP=C:/DOS Arachne
could undo that by simply doing command line SET TEMP= and generate
error message to user?
Anyone stupid enough to set TEMP to C:\DOS deserves to get wiped out,
but you could build in a "idiot remover" by scanning to see if
temp=c:\dos and resetting temp=
No software can *ever* be totally idiot proofed.
As to Arachne deleting everything in the TEMP file ... my response is SO
DAMN WHAT!! We're talking DOS, here. All decent DOS programs clean up
behind themselves so temp directory shouldn't contain anything other
than stuff from current program being used.
Now, if people are running out of DOS box in dozeware then that's
another problem entirely. Each program in dozeware seems to dump its
stuff anywhere it decides, so maybe there could be stuff in temp
directory if user didn't exit dozeware. Put into DOCs or FAQ or
whatever that anyone running Arachne in DOS box under dozeware should
make certain all other programs were properly exited before running
Arachne??
l.d.
