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From: hoh@approve.se.NO_JUNK_EMAIL (Goran Larsson)
Subject: Re: unix acronyms -collecting a list?
Message-ID: <1997May16.222330.12894@lorelei.approve.se>
Originator: hoh@approve.se.NO_JUNK_EMAIL (Goran Larsson)
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References: <5kd2ng$c8b$1@rzsun02.rrz.uni-hamburg.de> <337B106B.4021@att.com> <5li53q$gvo@overload.lbl.gov> <337C9EFF.10B4D946@uniQserve.com>
Date: Fri, 16 May 1997 22:23:30 GMT
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In article <337C9EFF.10B4D946@uniQserve.com>,
Dr. Borg <vladiQmip@uniQserve.com> wrote:
> Brian V. Smith wrote:

> > The SunOs 4.1.3 "man 1 su" has "super-user":
> > 
> > SU(1V)                   USER COMMANDS                     SU(1V)
> > 
> > NAME
> >      su - super-user, temporarily switch to a new user ID
> 
> This is obviously wrong. One can 'su' from one user to another
> and it doesn't have to be superuser. Also, one can 'su' from

What the command does today is one thing, what it was used for
historically is another. I tend to believe the SunOS 4 manpage
as it is older than the GNU and SunOs 5 manpages. Furthermore,
I have here a historical document with the title

	UNIX Programmer's Manual
	Volume 2 - Supplementary Documents
	Seventh Edition
	January 10, 1979

and it has this description for su:

SU	Temporarily become the super user with all the rights and
	privileges thereof. Requires a password.

There is that "super user" thing again, but nothing about "switch
user" or "substitute user."

> superuser status to a regular user with normal privileges. I
> think "Switch User" has been so far the best interpretation of
> 'su' in this thread.

It describes the current use of the su program, but it is not
the original description as found in older documents.

-- 
 Goran Larsson                mailto:hoh @ approve . se
 I was an atheist,            http://home1.swipnet . se/%7Ew-12153/
 until I found out I was God.