Mysterious error message: scenario please

[levy at ttrdc.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'm totally mystified, and invite wild speculation on the part of you
>net.people (or comp.people if you've been renamed already) on what the cause
>might be...

My speculation: garbage being somehow put in the environment.  An example:

main()
{
	putenv("00");
	system("echo hello world");
}

$ a.out
00: is not an identifier
-- 
 -------------------------------    Disclaimer:  The views contained herein are
|       dan levy | yvel nad      |  my own and are not at all those of my em-
|         an engihacker @        |  ployer or the administrator of any computer
| at&t computer systems division |  upon which I may hack.
|        skokie, illinois        |
 --------------------------------   Path: ..!{akgua,homxb,ihnp4,ltuxa,mvuxa,
	   go for it!  			allegra,ulysses,vax135}!ttrdc!levy