[aprssig] Q: Fine point on Paths

[Steve Noskowicz]

At the risk of loss of verbal life and limb ...

Short version:  Since the standard is a two alias path; What, __precisely__, is the "n" in the second WIDEn-N supposed to indicate?  Total requested hops or only the "Wide specific" hops (and thus exclude the "possibly fill-in" first hop).  
   Seems to me, the TOTAL POSSIBLE WIDE HOPS is the desired information to be included, when all is said-n-done, for the world at large to see...

Not so short Vers:
Now that I (perhaps foolishly believe that I) understand WIDEn-N, it seems to me that:

The oft referred to (not highly recommended) path of WIDE1-1,WIDE2-2

  Should actually be  WIDE1-1,WIDE3-2   Note the change "2" > "3"

  So that the world knows you initially specified a 3 hop.  (Even though the first *MAY* NOT be through a Wide, it could be) 
  I say this since the WIDE3* is all that is left in the packet when the full path is consumed and all the call-substitution stuff is in there (WIDE1-1 gone).    You can tell that the bloke set a 3-hop.

Is this a valid observation, or do I still need to change my smokes?


[I'm intentionally ignoring the intoxicated consumption flag asterisk thing, weaving around in the packet i.e. *WIDE > WIDE*] (;-)

73, born with this bone in my head requiring me to understand many things I don't even need to and agreeing to give talks on this stuff, Steve, K9DCI