[andreas_g4]

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107666

Just from the MacNN front page. What me interrests is how can this happen. Don't get me wrong, I'm not blaming anyone at Apple. I just can't understand why a single capital letter is not allowed in OF password. Can one explain?

[Arkham_c]

Originally posted by andreas_g4:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107666

Just from the MacNN front page. What me interrests is how can this happen. Don't get me wrong, I'm not blaming anyone at Apple. I just can't understand why a single capital letter is not allowed in OF password. Can one explain?

I suspect that it's related to the fact that Open Firmware is written in a language called Forth. In Forth, the letter "U" has a specific meaning (unsigned). I don't personally see how that would affect a string buffer, but I'm not a Forth programmer. YMMV.

[andreas_g4]

Originally posted by Arkham_c:
string buffer

[digital_dreamer]

A string of characters in a buffer of memory.

Characters input from keyboard go into a "string buffer". Characters output to the screen come from a string buffer, generally.

I don't know the Forth language, either. But, if it does have a specific meaning in Forth, it's meaning is only important to the compiler, IMO. No compiler would care what characters are in a string buffer, unless...
The "U", or its ASCII equivalent, is used as a tag in the code itself, say to signify "end of string." (Which would be a dumb thing to do. Heh.)

Just a guess.

Keep in mind OF is not meant to be accessed by every Joe Sixpack. It was written in short, simple, primitive code, for low-level access by technicians. Writing extra code to make it foolproof would be silly, as your grandma shouldn't be messing with it anyway.

regards,
MAJ