/| I may be demented \|\|
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
Freddy,
endless loop afficianado.
On 2024-02-29, Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> wrote:
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway'
condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
Freddy,
endless loop afficianado.
If your computer's program counter is in low memory, there are
all sorts of fun ways to create loops, typically by copying
the instruction's own address into the PC. On the Univac 9300
(their answer to the IBM 360/20), this could be done by loading
a register with the address of an STH instruction (it only had
16-bit addressing) that stored the register into the program
counter. You could also use MVC to copy the address of the
instruction from an area in memory to the program counter.
For some addresses, MVN and MVZ would also work, as would
NC, OC, NI, and OI (it didn't have XC or XI, though).
The 9300 also had an Add Immediate instruction, which would
sign-extend the immediate operand and add it to the specified
halfword in memory. If this memory location was the location
of the program counter, adding -4 would back it up to the same
instruction for a one-instruction loop. I came up with a
fun variation on this one; I filled all of memory with copies
of an AI instruction that decremented the program counter by
8, rather than 4, and preceded them by an unconditional branch
to the end. The resulting loop would execute backwards.
Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> writes:
On 2024-02-29, Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> wrote:
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway'
condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
Freddy,
endless loop afficianado.
If your computer's program counter is in low memory, there are
all sorts of fun ways to create loops, typically by copying
the instruction's own address into the PC. On the Univac 9300
(their answer to the IBM 360/20), this could be done by loading
a register with the address of an STH instruction (it only had
16-bit addressing) that stored the register into the program
counter. You could also use MVC to copy the address of the
instruction from an area in memory to the program counter.
For some addresses, MVN and MVZ would also work, as would
NC, OC, NI, and OI (it didn't have XC or XI, though).
The 9300 also had an Add Immediate instruction, which would
sign-extend the immediate operand and add it to the specified
halfword in memory. If this memory location was the location
of the program counter, adding -4 would back it up to the same
instruction for a one-instruction loop. I came up with a
fun variation on this one; I filled all of memory with copies
of an AI instruction that decremented the program counter by
8, rather than 4, and preceded them by an unconditional branch
to the end. The resulting loop would execute backwards.
In the early unix days, we had the fork bomb:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fork_bomb
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
On Mon, 11 Mar 2024 18:32:06 -0000 (UTC)
David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> wrote:
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway'
condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
Wormed his way into the history books.
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >>condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> writes:
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed
'runaway' condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
Robert Tappan Morris?
On 2024-03-12, Julieta Shem <jshem@yaxenu.org> wrote:
David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> writes:
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed
'runaway' condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
Robert Tappan Morris?
An Internet pioneer, you might say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_worm
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
In article <OhSdnbFwDO9vOH34nZ2dnZfqnPednZ2d@earthlink.com>,
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> wrote:
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >>condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
I think the college (now university) I was at thought me "unworthy",
mostly because I feel they (central computing services) hated me,
but that's OK, I hated them, but had to tolerate them to get stuff done...
So after a holiday break when they had upgraded the Pr1me system (a
wretched overloaded and underpowered piece of shite that my Apple II
could better) to have some nicer scripting language (CPL?) I decided
to test the filing system to see how many levels of directory I could >create... I wrote a program to recursively create and descend, as you
do... I also put a bit into it to recursively descend and delete...
So I left it running, then realised I was late for a class or something, >stopped it and promptly forgot about it.
I was told they had to manually go down several 100 levels and delete
the directories by hand and that if I were to do it again it would be
the end of my college life...
When I said why didn't they just write a program to do it, or look at
mine (they had a known history of looking at *all* my code as I was
under constant surveillance) I was just met with blank faces.
So after a holiday break when they had upgraded the Pr1me system (a
wretched overloaded and underpowered piece of shite that my Apple II
could better) to have some nicer scripting language (CPL?) I decided
to test the filing system to see how many levels of directory I could create... I wrote a program to recursively create and descend, as you
do... I also put a bit into it to recursively descend and delete...
The next day I was summoned (again) to the head of computing service to explain why I did it (because I could) and to be told that it caused
their shitty backup service to fail. (Because they were idiots who
couldn't code their way out of a paper bag).
Gordon Henderson <gordon+usenet@drogon.net> writes:
In article <OhSdnbFwDO9vOH34nZ2dnZfqnPednZ2d@earthlink.com>,
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> wrote:
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway'
condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
I think the college (now university) I was at thought me "unworthy",
Given the anecdotes below, they appear to have been correct.
mostly because I feel they (central computing services) hated me,
but that's OK, I hated them, but had to tolerate them to get stuff done... >>
So after a holiday break when they had upgraded the Pr1me system (a
wretched overloaded and underpowered piece of shite that my Apple II
could better) to have some nicer scripting language (CPL?) I decided
to test the filing system to see how many levels of directory I could
create... I wrote a program to recursively create and descend, as you
do... I also put a bit into it to recursively descend and delete...
So I left it running, then realised I was late for a class or something,
stopped it and promptly forgot about it.
So you deliberatly tried to sabotage the system.
I worked for the Computation Center in college and we
had a student like you (who ended up maliciously deleteing
a bunch of files out of spite). He was expelled.
I was told they had to manually go down several 100 levels and delete
the directories by hand and that if I were to do it again it would be
the end of my college life...
Justifiable.
When I said why didn't they just write a program to do it, or look at
mine (they had a known history of looking at *all* my code as I was
under constant surveillance) I was just met with blank faces.
It's not their job to clean up from your messes. They had
much better things to do with their time.
Gordon Henderson <gordon+usenet@drogon.net> writes:
In article <OhSdnbFwDO9vOH34nZ2dnZfqnPednZ2d@earthlink.com>,
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> wrote:
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >>>condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
I think the college (now university) I was at thought me "unworthy",
Given the anecdotes below, they appear to have been correct.
mostly because I feel they (central computing services) hated me,
but that's OK, I hated them, but had to tolerate them to get stuff done...
So after a holiday break when they had upgraded the Pr1me system (a >>wretched overloaded and underpowered piece of shite that my Apple II
could better) to have some nicer scripting language (CPL?) I decided
to test the filing system to see how many levels of directory I could >>create... I wrote a program to recursively create and descend, as you
do... I also put a bit into it to recursively descend and delete...
So I left it running, then realised I was late for a class or something, >>stopped it and promptly forgot about it.
So you deliberatly tried to sabotage the system.
On 2024-03-12, Julieta Shem <jshem@yaxenu.org> wrote:
David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> writes:
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed
'runaway' condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
Robert Tappan Morris?
An Internet pioneer, you might say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_worm
In article <OhSdnbFwDO9vOH34nZ2dnZfqnPednZ2d@earthlink.com>,
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> wrote:
Bob Eager wrote:
( fun story cut )
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed 'runaway' >>condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
I think the college (now university) I was at thought me "unworthy",
mostly because I feel they (central computing services) hated me,
but that's OK, I hated them, but had to tolerate them to get stuff done...
So after a holiday break when they had upgraded the Pr1me system (a
wretched overloaded and underpowered piece of shite that my Apple II
could better) to have some nicer scripting language (CPL?) I decided
to test the filing system to see how many levels of directory I could >create... I wrote a program to recursively create and descend, as you
do... I also put a bit into it to recursively descend and delete...
So I left it running, then realised I was late for a class or something, >stopped it and promptly forgot about it.
The next day I was summoned (again) to the head of computing service to >explain why I did it (because I could) and to be told that it caused
their shitty backup service to fail. (Because they were idiots who
couldn't code their way out of a paper bag).
I was told they had to manually go down several 100 levels and delete
the directories by hand and that if I were to do it again it would be
the end of my college life...
When I said why didn't they just write a program to do it, or look at
mine (they had a known history of looking at *all* my code as I was
under constant surveillance) I was just met with blank faces.
Morons, the lot of them. Biggest preventers of information entertainment
and I was glad to move out of computing and into Engineering where we had >real computers to use - more Apple IIs, CP/M and eventually BBC Micros,
all which exceeded the capabilities of the Primes at the time. Or felt
like it. (It could take over a day for a simple program to get through
their batch system, such was the overloaded service they tried to run).
-Gordon
In article <bvl3vil797j7nfdlqucqafne4fgs88jl39@4ax.com>,
D.J. <chucktheouch@gmnol.com> wrote:
On Tue, 12 Mar 2024 17:49:34 GMT, Charlie Gibbs
<cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> wrote:
On 2024-03-12, Julieta Shem <jshem@yaxenu.org> wrote:
David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> writes:
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed
'runaway' condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
Robert Tappan Morris?
An Internet pioneer, you might say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_worm
Ah, I remember that now. The VAX at my university didn't run that
operating system, nor was it on Darpanet.
--
I always say Morris owes me for hernia surgery! When the worm started hitting, one of the first things that became clear was it targeted
BSD Vax & Sun boxes. So we had a clunky Apple Mac II running A/UX
that I hoiked around the computer room to put it up as a UUCP relay
in front of our network so we could still have email on an immune
system to track worm news & fixes.
Turns out I shouldn't have lifted that Apple box..
On 2024-03-12, Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> wrote:
On 2024-03-12, Julieta Shem <jshem@yaxenu.org> wrote:
David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com> writes:
Freddy1X <freddy1X@indyX.netX> writes:
Alright! Anyone lurking here who has NOT created a programmed
'runaway' condition is to be mocked and shunned as 'unworthy'.
There's a guy named Robert Tappen Morris who.....
Robert Tappan Morris?
An Internet pioneer, you might say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_worm
I think Julieta may have been correcting the spelling of the middle
name.
Gordon, Scott, I think the only civilized way for you to settle this
debate is a fight to the death with the Lirpa.
Wormed his way into the history books.
In the early unix days, we had the fork bomb:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fork_bomb
On Thu, 29 Feb 2024 22:46:08 GMT, Scott Lurndal wrote:
In the early unix days, we had the fork bomb:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fork_bomb
It still works.
Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> writes:
On Thu, 29 Feb 2024 22:46:08 GMT, Scott Lurndal wrote:
In the early unix days, we had the fork bomb:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fork_bomb
It still works.
That depends entirely on how the administrator has
configured the system.
$ ulimit -a
nproc (-u) 1024
We were porting mainframe COBOL programs to a Unix box, using
MicroFocus COBOL. ...
The work files were named something like SORTnnn.WRK.
... when the process died it had created about 12,000 work files.
On 2024-03-30, Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:
That wouldn’t be so bad, if they were all in one temporary directory.
One quick “rm -rf” and it’s over.
Unfortunately, they were not; they were in the same directory as our
data files.
On 2024-03-30, Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:
On Sat, 30 Mar 2024 17:00:58 GMT, Charlie Gibbs wrote:
We were porting mainframe COBOL programs to a Unix box, using
MicroFocus COBOL. ...
The work files were named something like SORTnnn.WRK.
What an odd limitation. Even the earliest Unix systems allowed 14-
character file names.
I probably misremembered the exact file name. It might have been
longer - but the sequence number was much too short.
... when the process died it had created about 12,000 work files.
That wouldn’t be so bad, if they were all in one temporary directory. One >> quick “rm -rf” and it’s over.
Unfortunately, they were not; they were in the same directory as
our data files. Deleting files with a NUL (SOH, STX...) in the name
without disturbing other things took a bit of care - one slip of a
wild card and we'd have been reaching for our backup.
[snip]
Yes, it wasn't the number of files per se (although unnecessarily large >numbers of files can be unwieldy). But the fact that the compiler would >generate code which created such outlandish file names without some sort
of error check was rather tacky.
Programs that use the standard temporary file library functions (e.g.
mktemp, mkstemp, tempnam, tempfile, tmpnam) would rely on the TMPDIR environment variable to select the temporary directory location.
In article <qJ3ON.124720$_a1e.14467@fx16.iad>,
Charlie Gibbs <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> wrote:
On 2024-03-30, Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:
On Sat, 30 Mar 2024 17:00:58 GMT, Charlie Gibbs wrote:
We were porting mainframe COBOL programs to a Unix box, using
MicroFocus COBOL. ...
The work files were named something like SORTnnn.WRK.
What an odd limitation. Even the earliest Unix systems allowed 14-
character file names.
I probably misremembered the exact file name. It might have been
longer - but the sequence number was much too short.
... when the process died it had created about 12,000 work files.
That wouldn’t be so bad, if they were all in one temporary directory. One
quick “rm -rf” and it’s over.
Unfortunately, they were not; they were in the same directory as
our data files. Deleting files with a NUL (SOH, STX...) in the name >>without disturbing other things took a bit of care - one slip of a
wild card and we'd have been reaching for our backup.
If one knew the pattern of temporary file names, surely one
could write a small program that simply followed it? Something
like:
#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <unistd.h>
int
main()
{
int i;
char fn[12];
strcpy(fn, "SORTnnn.WRK");
for (i = 0; i < 12000; i++) {
fn[6] = i % 10;
fn[5] = (i / 10) % 10;
fn[4] = i / 100;
unlink(fn);
}
return (0);
}
On Sun, 31 Mar 2024 16:18:32 GMT, Scott Lurndal wrote:
Programs that use the standard temporary file library functions (e.g.
mktemp, mkstemp, tempnam, tempfile, tmpnam) would rely on the TMPDIR
environment variable to select the temporary directory location.
In my research, that wasn’t true back around the time of AT&T System III, >or System V Release 1.
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