[Tutor] Autoreply wars

[Kirk Bailey]

AUTOREPLY WAR: Where 2+ programs which generate replies to incoming email begin talking 
to one another, and then replying to one another's replies, ad infinitum. This endless 
loop is not broken until human intervention or the exausting of the operating resources 
of one or both server systems. It is also annoying as all living hell to innicent 
bystanders on the lists in question, and is known to produce considerable flamage to the 
Luser in question upon his return to cyberspace.

There are features in TinyList to supress this sort of thing, so that people with 
idiotic vacation programs (and idiots who configure them) who subscribe to lists don't 
incurr the wrath of the list's membership. Thinking about these things, I also realized 
it is possible for the clueless to couple 2 lists together, crashing their own system- 
it rather strained my credulity to think 2 people on 2 different servers would do such a 
thing. (watch some luser come along and prove me wrong later).

SO, to test the effectiveness of my precautions, I *INTENTIONALLY* cross coupled 2 lists 
on my server, then sent in a message. It was sent out fine. NO LOOP. I sent to the other 
one. It came back fine. NO LOOP.

Were there a loop, the two lists would be talking to one another, replying to each 
other- and spewing into my constantly monitored mailbox. I had the ssh running and could 
kill an alias lickety split, if need be. It was not; the precautions worked perfectly in 
a nightmare scenario.

ME happy hacker this saterday evening. :-)
Oh- and I disassembled the coupling.  I'm daring, but I still have TRACES of sanity.
Let's see majordomo try this test...


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end

Cheers!
         Kirk D Bailey
                               think
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Fnord.