Re: 'not a plain file'--huh?

[brownfld@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Kenneth R Brownfield)]

gravende@epas.utoronto.ca (David Gravender) writes:

>I need some assistance. Recently I discovered the ftp function, and
[...]
>filenames presented to me, the other being 'kb'), the response was the
>cryptic (to me) phrase 'not a plain file.'  I dinna ken this, so could
>some one of you helpful and computer-wise lovehounds out there
>instruct as to what it is i need to do to actually access the files,
>to avoid the 'not a plain file' denial? I seem to recall someone
>having complained of this same thing a few weeks ago, and having
>received a response--yet the response, so far as i could make out,
>while diagnosing the problem failed to provide the critical info, how
>to get around it. So if you can help, please do! :)

     When you get this error, the file you are getting is a directory, not a
file.  For instance, kb, is a directory.  To access the files in kb, type
"cd kb".  To see if files are normal or not, type "ls -l".  This will list the
names of the files in the current directory on the right.  If the file is a
directory, the far left character (column 1) will be a "d".  If it's an
actual text file or whatnot, it will be a "-".  If this isn't quite enough,
just email me.  (rec.music.gaffa.ftp  ;-)

>'i still dream of Organon'       david <gravende@epas.utoronto.ca>  

-- 
                                                        Ken.
Kenneth R. Brownfield                            brownfld@uiuc.edu
Computing Services Office                 uunet!uiucuxc!uiuc.edu!brownfld
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.     (finger for more info.)