Ted MacNEIL wrote:
may not like it, but that's too bad. If it's not documented, because IBM doesn't want you to use it, nor guarantee consistent results/content, that's their right.
Legally it may be their right, but it does not seem prudent. Imagine buying a car, and finding that it doesn't have a gas gauge, and the owner's manual says that there is a way of determining the fuel level, but they won't tell you how, because they might change it in next year's model.
When IBM was first worried about getting systems for the 360 line out the door, there were all sorts of commands that let you set things, but absolutely zero feedback on what the current status was. There were a few scattered display commands, but that was it. Before retiring, I worked at several service bureaus, and faced the constant problems of how to implement management requested changes for things IBM didn't support (typical would be billing and controlling access based on account numbers, not the user id, since one user might be working on multiple projects the customer wants billed separately, but still have ready access to all his/her files). IBM's attitude smacks of Big Brother, where you use your machine the way you're told, without being able to have your needs met.
Gerhard Postpischil Bradford, VT ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
