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* On 2006.05.25, in <20060525184438.0926fa9d@pc09>, * "H.Merijn Brand" <h.m.brand@xxxxxx.xx> wrote: > > Huh? I've been using UNIX since 1982. Long enough? I started with System III, > and then got cought in a job that involved writing Unic Device drivers for > SLD disks. I've never seen a UNIX command from that time that did not support > -? Many commands do/did -?. Many also do/did -h. I don't care which one anyone thinks is better, just that -h has a record. Maybe -? should still work, too, but it doesn't mean that -h should't. In 1982 on System III machines, how many programs that you recall supported "--help"? > > But the larger point is that an exception occurs (-h is not recognized > > as an option) which triggers an error message. Given the history of > > -h, why should that error not be help itself, rather than metahelp? > > Not at all. It should be saved for something useful. Help isn't useful? That's the single most useful option on any command. It should be easy to get, and "--help" isn't a first choice for many people and it's not supported on a HUGE number of programs. But we're talking about commands that don't use -h for anything else, anyway. > Yes, to all those that only support info pages, and make their -?, --help, or > even -h tell us to read the info pages. > > info pages are useless. Give me plain man pages please, *AND* a useful --help > or -? +1. Also hate on netpbm for not only removing the built-in usage statements and telling us to read the man page instead, but for additionally removing the actual man-page content and pointing us to a web site. unix$ pnmtops -h option `--height' requires an argument unix$ pnmtops --help pnmtops: Use 'man pnmtops' for help. unix$ man pnmtops pnmtops(1) Netpbm pointer man pages pnmtops(1) pnmtops is part of the Netpbm package. Netpbm documentation is kept in HTML format. Please refer to <http://netpbm.sourceforge.net/doc//pnmtops.html>;. If that doesn't work, also try <http://netpbm.sourceforge.net>; and emailing Bryan Henderson, bryanh@xxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx. 30 Mar 2003 Netpbm pnmtops(1) unix$ !! | mailx -s 'Are you responsible for this, you bloody retard?' bryanh@xxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx *seethe* The "net" in "netpbm" never used to mean that you needed a network to use the software. -- -D. dgc@xxxxxxxx.xxx NSIT University of ChicagoThere's stuff above here
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