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> Just imagine how many poorly-written shell scripts will break when we suddenly allow dollars, quotes, backticks and the likes in username. Heck, even allowing
by wolrah 2y ago
> Just imagine how many poorly-written shell scripts will break when we suddenly allow dollars, quotes, backticks and the likes in username. Heck, even allowing spaces sound like horror to me.
If we're admitting they're poorly-written, why can't we admit that they're already broken regardless of whether that brokenness is currently being triggered? Allowing symbols or spaces didn't break anything, it was broken from day one just no one noticed.
Why is the answer always "go out of your way to not upset the broken garbage that's been around forever" rather than "throw Zalgo at it and fix what breaks so it's no longer broken and won't be broken in the future"?
Bug compatibility is the worst behavior of the computing industry. Let the bad code break and more importantly call it out so everyone knows where the blame belongs.
- tsimionescu 2y agoBecause people don't care about the presence or absence of bugs, they care about getting their work or leisure done with the help of the computer. If the computer isn't working, then they can't get their work done, and so they are mad at whoever broke it (for example by upgrading it, or by adding a username with spaces inside it). If it's working, then they're happy, no matter how dangerously on the precipice it is.