🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <oHi4y2w163w@shark.cs.fau.edu> jeffb.bbs@shark.cs.fau.edu (Jeffrey Boser) writes, in part:
>
>4) Compatability with other machines is NOT the responsability of the
>   format creator.  ie: is it IBM's fault that macs and other machines
>   cannot read their disks?  if you have unix, why dont *you* write
>   a program to let you peek into compressed files?
>[stuff deleted to save bandwidth]
>.....Jeff

The Stuffit 1.5.1 format is published.  The Compactor format is not.  How am
I supposed to write a UNIX program to decompress Compactor archives if I can't
get ahold of the format and then freely distribute the sorce code so that
the utility can be compiled on other UNIX machines?  Am I supposed to "figure
out the format for myself" or something?  I don't care who's "responsability"
it is to make public archives readable on non-mac platforms.  The fact is
that if your archives are in Compactor (or Stuffit Deluxe) format, they _can't_.

Compactor isn't even 32-bit clean.  Ever seen it run under the A/UX 32-bit
finder?  If the author of the program can't even go to the trouble of writing
his program to Apple specs (i.e. 32-bit cleanness) do you really think it will
make a good archive format?  Macs running A/UX are still Macs...shouldn't we
be allowed to use the archive format, too?

Lawrence Miller

PS: Macs with SuperDrives _can_ read IBM disks.  So can NeXTs (with floppies).
VAXs can't, but who cares?  Of course, you need special hardware if the disk is
5.25", but we are talking about formats, right (_not_ media)?  I guess the IBM
disk format is public :^)