From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-1.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 103376,4eb65fab6deaa097 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public From: Chris Morgan Subject: Re: Lack of Mature Tools (was: Lockheed Martin, Green Hills, etc.) Date: 2000/04/26 Message-ID: <87ln212ghg.fsf@think.mihalis.net>#1/1 X-Deja-AN: 615878306 Sender: cm@think.mihalis.net References: <4eaJ4.23498$hh2.538870@news.flash.net> <8d4lpa$ffu$1@nnrp1.deja.com> <8d531v$vcr$1@nnrp1.deja.com> <8d57mo$4d9@chronicle.concentric.net> <390472E9.E0A17BC6@ftw.rsc.raytheon.com> <8e5hr4$imt$1@nnrp1.deja.com> <87wvll7a5h.fsf@think.mihalis.net> <39069B90.C9A74221@earthlink.net> X-Trace: typhoon2.gnilink.net 956752138 151.202.100.25 (Wed, 26 Apr 2000 08:28:58 EDT) Organization: Linux Hackers Unlimited NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 26 Apr 2000 08:28:58 EDT Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Date: 2000-04-26T00:00:00+00:00 List-Id: "Robert I. Eachus" writes: > Chris Morgan wrote: > > > Are you really suggesting that if I see an announcement of a new > > public release of gnat on comp.lang.ada and I then download a file > > with that version number from cs.nyu.edu in /pub/gnat that it may > > somehow be corrupted? The wrong file? Altered by random strangers? > > I believe that the right answers are: several times, happened at > least once, and has not happened yet--at least on cs.nyu.edu. There are > many different versions of each new gnat release that can be found on > cs.nyu.edu. There have been uploading problems on several occasions > resulting in corrupted files, and at least once the wrong version of a > binary was uploaded. Note also that not all of the versions available > from cs.nyu.edu are created by ACT and so ACT as such has no way to > guarentee conformance for such versions. Yeah, but simple corruption would normally cause either tar or gunzip to fail. What I should have said, I suppose, is it's not at all difficult to reliably transmit the public versions to users and be assured the right bits got there, e.g. if ACT had a public area on their own ftp servers and published MD5 checksums. Of course ACT may occasionally make a mistake and put the wrong file up, even on their own servers, but in that case the odds would be reasonable that they would also make up a cd containing the mistake. > > Having said all that--and RBKD or someone else can provide the gory > details--GNAT is probably at least as reliable and robust as Netscape or > other products you can download over the net. But if you see the > announcement of a new "p" release and download it immediately, there > will be times when you will have to go back for the correct version. So > yes, Robert is implying that those things can happen and that ACT cannot > be responsible--among other things, it is not their server. Fair enough. But if I download this new p version and have a problem, it shouldn't be hard to verify my version. > I don't think any weaseling was intended. MD5 checksums would > probably be a good idea, but the archive formats do include checksums > that detect truncated or corrupted files. When I am concerned about > someone maliciously modifying software, however, I much prefer CD as a > delivery media. After installing, you should checksum not just the > compiler, but the entire directory hierarchy. There are tools to do > this. Such tools in fact are included in the DII COE, and in GCCS their > use is mandatory. Well not having ever had an ACT CD, I have to presume they transmit checksums with their CDs, in which case yes it's more reliable, however I still heartily dislike the implication that any users who just picked up some random bits called gnat somewhere on the net can't are not likely to have a valid version. Seeing as GNAT started off on DoD money to be a freely available tool, and started off with NYU staff dominating the development team, if they can't reliably transmit a known version to me at least most of the time via some ftp site such as cs.nyu.edu something is wrong. -- Chris Morgan http://mihalis.net "O gummier hum warder buffer-lore rum Enter dare enter envelopes ply"