WRITE(1-SysV)       RISC/os Reference Manual        WRITE(1-SysV)



NAME
     write - write to another user

SYNOPSIS
     write user [ line ]

DESCRIPTION
     write copies lines from your terminal to that of another
     user.  When first called, it sends the message:

          Message from yourname (tty??)  [ date ]...

     to the person you want to talk to.  When it has successfully
     completed the connection, it also sends two bells to your
     own terminal to indicate that what you are typing is being
     sent.

     The recipient of the message should write back at this
     point.  Communication continues until an end of file is read
     from the terminal, an interrupt is sent, or the recipient
     has executed "mesg n".  At that point write writes EOT on
     the other terminal and exits.

     If you want to write to a user who is logged in more than
     once, the line argument may be used to indicate which line
     or terminal to send to (e.g., tty00); otherwise, the first
     writable instance of the user found in /etc/utmp is assumed
     and the following message posted:

          user is logged on more than one place.
          You are connected to "terminal".
          Other locations are:
          terminal

     Permission to write may be denied or granted by use of the
     mesg(1) command.  Writing to others is normally allowed by
     default.  Certain commands, such as pr(1) disallow messages
     in order to prevent interference with their output.  How-
     ever, if the user has super-user permissions, messages can
     be forced onto a write-inhibited terminal.

     If the character ! is found at the beginning of a line,
     write calls the shell to execute the rest of the line as a
     command.

     The following protocol is suggested for using write:  when
     you first write to another user, wait for them to write back
     before starting to send.  Each person should end a message
     with a distinctive signal (i.e., (o) for ``over'') so that
     the other person knows when to reply.  The signal (oo) (for
     ``over and out'') is suggested when conversation is to be
     terminated.



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WRITE(1-SysV)       RISC/os Reference Manual        WRITE(1-SysV)



FILES
     /etc/utmp to find user
     /bin/sh        to execute !

SEE ALSO
     mail(1), mesg(1), pr(1), sh(1), who(1).

DIAGNOSTICS
     ``user is not logged on'' if the person you are trying to
            write to is not logged on.
     ``Permission denied'' if the person you are trying to write
            to denies that permission (with mesg).
     ``Warning: cannot respond, set mesg -y'' if your terminal is
            set to mesg n and the recipient cannot respond to
            you.
     ``Can no longer write to user'' if the recipient has denied
            permission (mesg n) after you had started writing.






































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