[HECnet] DECnet for Linux Bug Fixes

[Paul Koning]

> On Jun 30, 2020, at 11:21 AM, Johnny Billquist <bqt at softjar.se> wrote:
> 
> ...
>> New programs:
>> NML2
>> New implementation of the Network Management Listener. Supports SUMMARY, STATUS
>> and CHARACTERISTICS for NODES, CIRCUITS and AREAS. It does not support LINKS
>> and OBJECTS which were in the old version but are system specific operations which
>> were only visible from DECnet-VMS systems.
> 
> Um. No. OBJECTS are also there in RSX. And I wonder if you mean LINES when you wrote LINKS. And LINES are also in RSX. Not sure there are some other systems that also have those types. But they are definitely not VMS only... And OBJECTS are actually rather relevant everywhere, it's just not that all systems make them visible. I would say it's actually nice and useful if they can be shown. LINES are also relevant, but it does depend a little on the implementation.

OBJECTS is a system dependent entity.  And if LINKS means logical links (DECnet virtual circuits) then the same is true there.  RSTS has both.  But they are implemented by system-dependent commands, so they don't work across operating systems.  Unfortunately NCP didn't think of having OS-dependent entities, the way EVTLOG does -- that would have allowed other OSs to interpret things by adding the OS-specific knowledge.

	paul