Mysterious error message: scenario please

[jerryp at tektools.UUCP]

In article <1369 at umd5> don at umd5 (Chris Sylvain) writes:
> []
> I'd like to know just what could possibly be causing the following error
> message in response to a call to system() with a string that if typed
> by hand to a shell works just fine -- "00: is not an identifier".

[I've redirected followups to comp.unix.questions only.]

I haven't checked into *why* your message is happening, but I can reproduce
it.  If your environment is trashed (has an environment variable with a bad
name), you can get the message.  Here's an example from 4.3BSD... the Bourne
shell never starts:

	Script started on Sat Nov 22 05:49:49 1986
	$ /bin/csh -f
	% setenv "FOO bar" trash
	% sh
	FOO bar=trash: is not an identifier
	%

--Jerry Peek, Tektronix, Inc.
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