WRITE(1)                GENIX Programmer's Manual                WRITE(1)



      NAME
           write - write to another user

      SYNOPSIS
           write user [ ttyname ]

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

                Message from yourname yourttyname...

           The recipient of the message should write back at this point.   Com-
           munication  continues until an end of file is read from the terminal
           or an interrupt is sent.  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
           ttyname  argument  may  be used to indicate the appropriate terminal
           name.

           Permission to write may be denied or granted by use of the mesg com-
           mand.   At the outset writing is allowed.  Certain commands, in par-
           ticular nroff and pr(1) disallow messages in order to prevent  messy
           output.

           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 him to write back before starting to
           send.  Each  party  should  end  each  message  with  a  distinctive
           signal-(o)  for  `over'  is  conventional-that  the other may reply.
           (oo) for `over and out' is suggested when conversation is  about  to
           be terminated.

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

      SEE ALSO
           mesg(1), who(1), mail(1)













      Printed 11/16/83                                                        1