lynx-dev lynx2.8.2dev.23

[Philip Webb]

990423 Thomas Dickey wrote:
> * change the STARTFILE description in lynx.cfg to offer the user's home
>   directory as an alternative to lynx.browser.org (amended this to reflect
>   consensus that l.b.o should be the default -TD) - PW

in  www.flora.org/lynx-dev/html/month0499/msg00401.html  i submitted:

  the patch below gives KW's URL for the user's home directory, which works:
  the resulting screen may not enlighten novices, but will solve the problem
  when sysadmins leave the default & l.b.o. is not accessible;
  hopefully, the rest is not likely to mislead anyone.
  whoever changed  userdefs.h  should fix that too (it wasn't me).
  
discussion of other matters &  old/lynx.cfg  snipped;
section of  new/lynx.cfg  for STARTFILE:
  
  # The default offered for ordinary users is their home directory:
  STARTFILE:file://localhost/~/
  # If for any reason you don't want to use a local URL,
  # you might consider using the Lynx starting site:
  #STARTFILE:http://lynx.browser.org/

this followed the existing introduction: 
  
  # STARTFILE is the default starting URL if none is specified
  #   on the command line or via a WWW_HOME environment variable;
  #   Lynx will refuse to start without a starting URL of some kind.
  # STARTFILE can be remote, e.g. http://www.w3.org/default.html ,
  #                or local, e.g. file://localhost/PATH_TO/FILENAME ,
  #           where PATH_TO is replaced with the complete path to FILENAME
  #           using Unix shell syntax and including the device on VMS.
  #

in  lynx.cfg  for dev.24 my lines have been replaced by:  
  
# Normally we expect you will connect to a remote site, e.g., the Lynx starting
# site:
STARTFILE:http://lynx.browser.org/
#
# As an alternative, you may want to use a local URL.  A good choice for this is
# the user's home directory: 
#STARTFILE:file://localhost/~/ 
#
# Your choice of STARTFILE should reflect your site's needs, and be a URL that
# you can connect to reliably.  Otherwise users will become confused and think
# that they cannot run Lynx.

i checked the Archive & did not find evidence
that anyone wanted l.b.o. as default, let alone a "consensus";
indeed, there was no response of any kind to my patch-message above,
implying that my revised patch was generally acceptable.
the version created by TD thwarts the plain intention of my patch,
which was clearly stated to be to "solve the problem
when sysadmins leave the default & l.b.o. is not accessible";
it is also badly laid out & longer-winded.

TD does such a good job co-ordinating everyone's efforts usually
that i don't like to criticise him when he gets it wrong,
but there are  2  points here, apart from the content of  lynx.cfg :
(1) the revised version is TD's, not PW's, & should be so marked in CHANGES;
(2) TD should not revise in any significant manner someone else's patch
    without submitting his version to the list for everyone's comment.

my version solves the stated problem economically
& responds to  2  earlier objections made via lynx-dev by KW & HN.
i don't suppose TD intended to take it upon himself to impose something else
without discussion & consensus as usual: he has a lot to do all round
& can be excused for over-hasty attention to a brief docs change.

subject to further discussion via lynx-dev,
i hope my version as above will be restored in dev.25 .

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