Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 09:03:25 -0500 (EST) From: Chuck Robey <chuckr@picnic.mat.net> To: Marcin Cieslak <saper@system.pl> Cc: freebsd-ports@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Fixing comm/rzsz: what to do with a backdoor? Message-ID: <Pine.BSF.4.21.0001260851150.315-100000@picnic.mat.net> In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.21.0001261402130.17632-100000@tricord.system.pl>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
On Wed, 26 Jan 2000, Marcin Cieslak wrote: > > I work to fix a "comm/rzsz" port, very bad port (say, they > don't put version numbers on zipfiles). > > I found the following code in a sz.c file: [example of horrible code omitted] This just doesn't surprise me. Chuck Forsberg, the author, is a very well known web-crank, and has been for many years now. He was paid to write the first version of the zmodem protocol, and that's the reason the first version is public, because his employer wished it so. He keeps on bringing out little improvements, because he's always wanted to be paid forever for it. Which in itself, is (I guess) defensible, excepting that folks have found that, when they send him money (as folks in corporations used to do) all he would do is completely ignore them. No promised manual, no promised support, no "pro version". Sometimes he would remember to send this after a year or two. However, the thing that really takes the cake (for me) is what many reported, on using one of his early "improvements". Seems that there was a virus in the program, and many folks lost their whole disks. If you used it past a certain date, it would self destruct, and the self destruct got out of hand. He's been ranting on the internet since it was arpanet. If it was me, I would just change the port so that the entire section of #ifndef'ed code is taken out. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chuck Robey | Interests include C & Java programming, FreeBSD, chuckr@picnic.mat.net | electronics, communications, and signal processing. New Year's Resolution: I will not sphroxify gullible people into looking up fictitious words in the dictionary. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-ports" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?Pine.BSF.4.21.0001260851150.315-100000>