Xref: news2.mv.net comp.os.msdos.djgpp:4312 From: Clive Page Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.djgpp Subject: Re: What is all this "timezone" stuff for? Date: 28 May 1996 10:39:06 +0100 Organization: University of Leicester, UK Lines: 40 Message-ID: <4oehjq$o95@hawk.le.ac.uk> References: NNTP-Posting-Host: hawk.le.ac.uk To: djgpp AT delorie DOT com DJ-Gateway: from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp In article , Eli Zaretskii wrote: > >These files are POSIX. Since DJGPP is a POSIX-compliant environment, it >works in a POSIX-like way. I think DJGPP users can be trusted to detect >unused files and zip them away and don't need to be fed such wisdom with a >teaspoon. This whole discussion has been based on the assumption that an algorithm exists that can determine the difference between local time and UTC (GMT as was). I have to say that this simply isn't possible. The duration of Summer Time (as it's called in the Northern hemisphere) varies from place to place quite randomly and unpredictably, and changes are at the whim of governments, which don't have any sense of needing to conform with algorithms or standards. Recently lots of diaries and calendars in the UK had incorrect information about the dates on which clocks changed, because our government changed the relevant dates after lots of stuff had already been printed. Not surprisingly, lots of Unix and VMS systems which relied on supposed predictions of these dates got it wrong, and system managers had lots of fun sorting it all out. Perhaps this was an early sign of mad cow disease affecting our politicians, but I don't think late change to summer time rules was unique. In Western Europe the dates are now supposed to be "harmonised", but I wouldn't bet on the European Commission being any more rational or predictable. It's not just in Europe that things are a mess - I visited Arizona last year and found that state to be an exception to the general US Summer Time rules, and also that some parts of Arizona were different to others. I think the whole idea of predicting the local-time - UTC difference is fatally flawed. It seems silly for the DJGPP package to even attempt it. My respect for the sagacity of those who invented the Posix series of standards, already not all that high, has fallen further, now I know that they are responsible for clogging my disc with useless junk. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clive Page, Internet: cgp AT star DOT le DOT ac DOT uk Dept of Physics & Astronomy, University of Leicester.