pagaltzis hates software: GNU tail

• From: A. Pagaltzis
  Date: 03:40 on 17 Sep 2007
  Subject: GNU tail
  
  $ tail -10 /var/log/messages
  [ 10 lines of output ]
  $ tail -10 /var/log/messages /var/log/syslog
  tail: invalid option -- 1
  Try `tail --help' for more information.
  
  
  

• From: Timothy Knox
  Date: 04:00 on 17 Sep 2007
  Subject: Re: GNU tail
  
  Somewhere on Shadow Earth, at Mon, Sep 17, 2007 at 04:40:26AM +0200, A. Pagaltzis wrote:
  > $ tail -10 /var/log/messages
  > [ 10 lines of output ]
  > $ tail -10 /var/log/messages /var/log/syslog
  > tail: invalid option -- 1
  > Try `tail --help' for more information.
  
  Yes, that is hateful, but I am forced to use enough boxen w/ GNU tail (and head)
  that I have gotten in to the habit of using "tail -n 10" instead of the
  traditional "tail -10". FreeBSD's tail also supports the "-n <NN>" notation, so
  I can use one consistent (if cumbersome) notation.
  
  
  

• From: A. Pagaltzis
  Date: 09:53 on 17 Sep 2007
  Subject: Re: GNU tail
  
  * Timothy Knox <tdk@xxxxxxxx.xxx> [2007-09-17 05:05]:
  > I have gotten in to the habit of using "tail -n 10" instead of
  > the traditional "tail -10". FreeBSD's tail also supports the
  > "-n <NN>" notation, so I can use one consistent (if cumbersome)
  > notation.
  
  Thanks; I'd already managed to find the manpage. Did you have a
  point?
  
  Regards,
  
  

• From: Peter da Silva
  Date: 12:26 on 17 Sep 2007
  Subject: Re: GNU tail
  
  I think the point is that the traditional tail that GNU tail is  
  maintaining compatibility with only worked with one file. So the FSF  
  is being hatefully literal minded about their emulation.
  
  
  

• From: Jarkko Hietaniemi
  Date: 12:50 on 17 Sep 2007
  Subject: Re: GNU tail
  
  Peter da Silva wrote:
  > So the FSF is being hatefully literal minded
  
  You didn't have to continue here...
  
  > about their emulation.
  
  
  
  
  

• From: A. Pagaltzis
  Date: 13:33 on 17 Sep 2007
  Subject: Re: GNU tail
  
  * Peter da Silva <peter@xxxxxxx.xxx> [2007-09-17 13:35]:
  > So the FSF is being hatefully literal minded about their
  > emulation.
  
  What I find even worse is that any way I can imagine to
  implement this bonehaded literalism requires dedicated code.
  
  And that's inexcusable. Gratuitous complexity is mortal sin.
  
  Regards,
  
  

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