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gtar 1.12
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Paul Eggert
203
README
203
README
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Hey! Emacs! Yo! This is -*- Text -*- !!!
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Here is GNU `tar' 1.12. Please glance through *all* sections of this
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`README' file before starting configuration. Also make sure you read files
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`ABOUT-NLS' and `INSTALL' if you are not familiar with them already.
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This is GNU tar 1.11.2. Please send bug reports, etc., to
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bug-gnu-utils@prep.ai.mit.edu. This is a beta-test release. Please
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try it out. There is no manual; the release of version 1.12 will
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contain a manual.
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If you got the `tar' distribution in `shar' format, timestamps ought to be
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properly restored, do not ignore such complaints at `unshar' time.
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GNU tar is based heavily on John Gilmore's public domain tar, but with
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added features. The manual is currently being written.
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GNU `tar' saves many files together into a single tape or disk
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archive, and can restore individual files from the archive. It includes
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multivolume support, the ability to archive sparse files, automatic archive
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compression/decompression, remote archives and special features that allow
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`tar' to be used for incremental and full backups. This distribution
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also includes `rmt', the remote tape server. The `mt' tape drive control
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program is in the GNU `cpio' distribution.
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This distribution also includes rmt, the remote tape server (which
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normally must reside in /etc). The mt tape drive control program is
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in the GNU cpio distribution.
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GNU `tar' is derived from John Gilmore's public domain `tar'.
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See the file INSTALL for compilation and installation instructions for Unix.
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See the file NEWS for information on all that is new in this version
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of tar.
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See file `ABOUT-NLS' for how to customize this program to your language.
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See file `BACKLOG' for a summary of pending mail and articles.
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See file `COPYING' for copying conditions.
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See file `INSTALL' for compilation and installation instructions.
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See file `PORTS' for various ports of GNU tar to non-Unix systems.
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See file `NEWS' for a list of major changes in the current release.
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See file `THANKS' for a list of contributors.
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makefile.pc is a makefile for Turbo C 2.0 on MS-DOS.
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Besides those configure options documented in files `INSTALL' and
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`ABOUT-NLS', a few extra options may be accepted after `./configure':
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Various people have been having problems using floppies on a NeXT. In
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order to have them work right, you need to kill the automounting
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program which tries to mount floppies as soon as they are added.
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* `--with-included-malloc' or `--without-included-malloc' may override
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the automatic choice made by `configure' about using included GNU malloc.
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If you want to do incremental dumps, use the distributed backup
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scripts. They are what we use at the FSF to do all our backups. Most
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importantly, do not use --incremental (-G) or --after-date (-N) or
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--newer-mtime to do incremental dumps. The only option that works
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correctly for this purpose is --listed-incremental. (When extracting
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incremental dumps, use --incremental (-G).)
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* `--with-dmalloc' is a debugging option for looking at memory management
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problems, it prerequires Gray Watson's package, which is available as
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`ftp://ftp.letters.com/src/dmalloc/dmalloc.tar.gz'.
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If your system needs to link with -lPW to get alloca, but has
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rename in the C library (so HAVE_RENAME is defined), -lPW might
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give you an incorrect version of rename. On HP-UX this manifests
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itself as an undefined data symbol called "Error" when linking cp, ln,
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and mv. If this happens, use `ar x' to extract alloca.o from libPW.a
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and `ar rc' to put it in a library liballoca.a, and put that in LIBS
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instead of -lPW. This problem does not occur when using gcc, which
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has alloca built in.
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The default archive device is now `stdin' on read and `stdout' on write.
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The installer can still override this by presetting `DEFAULT_ARCHIVE'
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in the environment before configuring (the behavior of `-[0-7]' or
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`-[0-7]lmh' options in `tar' are then derived automatically). Similarly,
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`DEFAULT_BLOCKING' can be preset to something else than 20.
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For comprehensive modifications to GNU tar, you might need tools beyond
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those used in simple installations. Fully install GNU m4 1.4 first,
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and only then, Autoconf 2.12 with officious patches held in `AC-PATCHES'.
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Install Perl, then Automake 1.1n with officious patches in `AM-PATCHES'.
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You might need Bison 1.25 with officious patches in `BI-PATCHES' (but yacc
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and byacc may be OK for you), and GNU tar itself. All are available on
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GNU archive sites, like in ftp://prep.ai.mit.edu/pub/gnu/, but Automake
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is still ftp://ftp.cygnus.com/pub/tromey/automake-1.1n.tar.gz.
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Send bug reports to `tar-bugs@gnu.ai.mit.edu'. (Beware, old-timers: it is
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`@gnu', not `@prep'; and not `bug-gnu-utils' anymore.) A bug report is
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an adequate description of the problem: your input, what you expected,
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what you got, and why this is wrong. Diffs are welcome, but they only
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describe a solution, from which the problem might be uneasy to infer.
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If needed, submit actual data files with your report. Small data files
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are preferred. Big files may sometimes be necessary, but do not send them
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to the report address; rather take special arrangement with the maintainer.
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Your feedback will help us to make a better and more portable package.
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Consider documentation errors as bugs, and report them as such. If you
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develop anything pertaining to `tar' or have suggestions, let us know
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and share your findings by writing at `tar-forum@iro.umontreal.ca'.
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.--------------------.
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| Installation hints |
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`--------------------'
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Here are a few hints which might help installing `tar' on some systems.
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* Static linking.
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Some platform will, by default, prepare a smaller `tar' executable
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which depends on shared libraries. Since GNU `tar' may be used for
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system-level backups and disaster recovery, installers might prefer to
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force static linking, making a bigger `tar' executable maybe, but able to
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work standalone, in situations where shared libraries are not available.
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The way to achieve static linking varies between systems. Set LDFLAGS
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to a value from the table below, before configuration (see `INSTALL').
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Platform Compiler LDFLAGS
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(any) Gnu C -static
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AIX (vendor) "-bnso -bI:/lib/syscalls.exp"
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HPUX (vendor) -Wl,-a,archive
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IRIX (vendor) -non_shared
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OSF (vendor) -non_shared
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SCO 3.2v5 (vendor) -dn
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Solaris (vendor) -Bstatic
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SunOS (vendor) -Bstatic
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* Failed `incremen.sh'.
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In an NFS environment, lack of synchronisation between machine clocks
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might create difficulties to any tool comparing dates and file timestamps,
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like `tar' in incremental dumps. This has been a recurrent problem in
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GNU Makefiles for the last few years. We would like a general solution.
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* BSD compatibility matters.
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Set LIBS to `-lbsd' before configuration (see `INSTALL') if the linker
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complains about undefined `valloc' (AIX) or `bsd_ioctl' (Slackware).
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Also set CPPFLAGS to `-I/usr/include/bsd/sys' before configuration to
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solve dirent problems (NeXT), or to `-I/usr/include/bsd' if <sgtty.h>
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is not found (Slackware).
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* `union wait' problems.
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Configuration of `union wait' does not always take the best decision.
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If you have this problem, edit file `config.cache' after configuration,
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find the line about `tar_cv_header_union_wait', change `yes' by `no'
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or vice-versa, execute `./config.status', then launch `make'.
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* `%lld' unsupported in `printf'.
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GNU C has `long long', but the underneath C library might not support
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the `%lld' format. If you have this problem, edit file `config.cache'
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after configuration, find the line about `ac_cv_sizeof_long_long, change
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`8' by `0', execute `./config.status', then launch `make'.
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* FreeBSD users -- `configure' fails.
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It has been reported that `configure' does not run on FreeBSD 2.1.7,
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because of a buggy `sh'. It works using `bash', however.
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* ISC users -- `S_*' symbols undefined.
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On ISC 4.1mu, POSIX environment, set CFLAGS to `-posix' and CPPFLAGS to
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`-D_SYSV3' before configuration (see `INSTALL'). This will trigger the
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definition of a few `S_' prefixed symbols from <sys/stat.h>.
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* Ultrix users -- broken `make'.
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It seems that Ultrix make does not correctly handle shell commands
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having logical connectives in them. Use `s5make' if you have it, try
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`PROG_ENV=SYSTEM_FIVE make' (works on Ultrix 4.4), or install GNU Make.
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.------------------.
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| Special topics. |
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`------------------'
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Here are a few special matters about GNU `tar', not related to build
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matters. See previous section for such.
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* File attributes.
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About *security*, it is probable that future releases of `tar' will have
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some behaviour changed. There are many pending suggestions to choose from.
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Today, extracting an archive not being `root', `tar' will restore suid/sgid
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bits on files but owned by the extracting user. `root' automatically gets
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a lot of special priviledges, `-p' might later become required to get them.
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GNU `tar' does not properly restore symlink attributes. Various systems
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implement flavours of symbolic links showing different behaviour and
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properties. We did not successfully sorted all these out yet. Currently,
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the `lchown' call will be used if available, but that's all.
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* POSIX compliance.
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GNU `tar' implements an early draft of the POSIX 1003.1 `ustar' standard
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which is different from the final standard. This will be progressively
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corrected over the incoming few years. Don't be mislead by the mere
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existence of the --posix option. Later releases will become able to
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read truly POSIX archives, and also to produce them under option. (Also,
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if you look at the internals, don't take the GNU extensions you see for
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granted, as they are planned to change.) GNU tar 2.0 will produce POSIX
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archives by default, but there is a long way before we get there.
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* What's next?
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The emphasis from 1.11.2 to 1.12 has been on solving the main portability,
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execution or usability bugs. This was accompanied all over with an
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internal cleanup in the sources, and the reassembly of a `tar' manual.
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The `BACKLOG' file shows an approximative priorisation of the many pending
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problems and suggestions. Besides pending problems and all other matters
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listed above, the cleanup is planned to continue and extend to the general
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organisation of the code, preparing a long time in advance for a possible
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merge of the `cpio' and `tar' distributions, into some common `paxutils'.
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We also want to address some long-awaited performance issues (for example:
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double buffering) or enhancements (for example: per-file compression).
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