From: Simon Burr <simes@tcp.co.uk>
Newsgroups: alt.sysadmin.recovery
Subject: Re: Moo.
Date: 5 Feb 1996 13:04:30 -0000
Organization: Total Connectivity Providers - Internet access for the UK
Message-ID: <4f4v8u$uu@poseidon.tcp.co.uk>
References: <19960205.317A18.50C3@ACCESS.digex.net>

In <19960205.317A18.50C3@ACCESS.digex.net> sheer@ACCESS.digex.net (Sheer Panic) writes:

>I swear I'm gonna kill SMTP. Slowly and painfully.

Why ? What's SMTP ever done to you to deserve death ? Most of the problems
related to SMTP are Luser created. I mean, its hardly SMTP's fault that lusers
often show less intelligence than rocks is it ?

You should view SMTP as a nice friendly animal that does *exactly* what you
tell it too... a dog would be a good example I guess :) The normal way it
should work is:

Luser: hmmm, I've got some mail to send out. SMTP! Where are you ?
SMTP : Woof! <bounces up and licks luser's face[1]>
Luser: I've got some nice mail for you!
SMTP : Woof! <bounces up and down in excitment>
Luser: Here SMTP, fetch! <throws mail in direction of SMTP>
SMTP : <catches mail> Woof!
Luser: Good SMTP.

However, certain Lusers who think that they know what they are doing, don't
do this. They don't treat SMTP very nicely and so SMTP responds in the typical
way:

Luser: Oi, SMTP! Where is that damned mail thing. Oi!
SMTP : Grrrrrr
Luser: <thwack> Don't do that. BAD SMTP.
SMTP : GRRRRRRR
Luser: Down... I've got some mail for you <throws mail at SMTP>
SMTP : Yelp!
Luser: Now, deliver it for me.
SMTP : GRRRR <snip - SMTP bits big chunks from Luser arm>
Luser: Argghhg... down, get off. I'll tell postmaster at you
SMTP : <bits more>
Luser: <starts hitting SMTP with a large stick> Get <thwack> Off <thwack> Me !
SMTP : <bit, rend, maim, etc>
Luser: Aieeee, Postmaster! Help
PM   : Alright, SMTP. HEEL!
SMTP : <stops bitting Luser and sits by Postmaster>
PM   : Okay, what happened here then ?
Luser: Well, I was trying to send some mail and...
PM   : I wasn't talking to *you*. I was asking SMTP.
Luser: What! You're going to trust that thing!
PM   : <looks balefully at Luser> yes. Okay SMTP, what happened
SMTP : Woof
PM   : What, this luser hit you with that badly formed EMail message and
       put you into a mail loop ?
Luser: I didn't do th...
SMTP : WOOF
PM   : SMTP seems to disagree with you. Looks like SMTP was correct to do some
       preventive maintainence on you
Luser: Preventive maintainence? It attacked me!
PM   : Exactly.... it will stop you from doing it again. Or it will once SMTP
       has finished with you.
Luser: Wha..
PM   : Hmmm, I've always wondered. Just how fast can a Luser run. SMTP, ATTACK!
Luser: Argghgh....
SMTP : <bounds after luser> GRRRRR
Luser: AIEEEEIGIGHGH
PM   : Not fast enough I guess.


[1]: Its a normal thing with most dogs... they don't really care *who* you
     are.... I guess I'm seeing SMTP as something like a labrador.... Although
     on some sites would prefer to see SMTP as a rabid wolverine :)

Thankfully, we're getting rid of all our customers who have a static IP address
fairly soon. Which also means that they are not going to have stuff waiting in
the mail queue any longer. A whole range of problems will be reduced in size :)

-- 
Simon Burr   (simes@tcp.co.uk)       |   http://www.tcp.co.uk/staff/simes/
Systems Manager and Programmer       |   Total Connectivity Providers Ltd 
          I *don't* speak for my company, my boss does that
                       Out of coffee. Admin halted