Various updates/fixes for recent chkentry mods

2025-02-26 12:20:55 -08:00
1 parent 7e559b6da1
commit 664a7b57bd
@@ -425,7 +425,7 @@

 <!-- BEFORE: 1st line of markdown file: faq.md -->
 <h1 id="ioccc-faq-table-of-contents">IOCCC FAQ Table of Contents</h1>
-<p>This is FAQ version <strong>28.2.9 2025-02-12</strong>.</p>
+<p>This is FAQ version <strong>28.2.10 2025-02-26</strong>.</p>
 <h2 id="entering-the-ioccc-the-bare-minimum-you-need-to-know">0. <a href="#enter_questions">Entering the IOCCC: the bare minimum you need to know</a></h2>
 <ul>
 <li><strong>Q 0.0</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#enter">How can I enter the IOCCC?</a></li>
@@ -471,7 +471,7 @@
 <li><strong>Q 3.0</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#mkiocccentry_process">What is the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> process and what sort of checks does it perform?</a></li>
 <li><strong>Q 3.1</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#txzchk">How can I validate my submission tarball?</a></li>
 <li><strong>Q 3.2</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#fnamchk">What is the <code>fnamchk</code> tool?</a></li>
-<li><strong>Q 3.3</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#chkentry">How can I validate my <code>.auth.json</code> and/or <code>.info.json</code> files?</a></li>
+<li><strong>Q 3.3</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#chkentry">How can I validate my submission directory?</a></li>
 <li><strong>Q 3.4</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#auth_json">What is a <code>.auth.json</code> file?</a></li>
 <li><strong>Q 3.5</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#info_json">What is a <code>.info.json</code> file?</a></li>
 <li><strong>Q 3.6</strong>: <a class="normal" href="#author_handle_faq">What is an <code>author handle</code>?</a></li>
@@ -629,11 +629,21 @@ code, your Makefile, your remarks, any other data files you wish to provide (up
 to a maximum, including the mandatory files, defined in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">limit_ioccc.h</a>
 as <code>MAX_FILE_COUNT</code>) and other information about your submission,
-information about the author (or authors), and then it runs a lot of tests.</p>
+information about the author (or authors), and then it will give you a list of
+subdirectories, if any, that will be made, and files that will be copied to the
+submission directory. It will list files and directories that it will (for
+various reasons) not create as well, asking you to confirm these things are all
+okay. Some things are strictly forbidden (such as a directory tree too deep) and
+it will tell you about these as well, so you can fix it.</p>
+<p>Assuming you agree to the list of directories and files, it will make the
+directories (if necessary) and copy the files. It will then switch to the
+submission directory, run <code>make clobber</code> and then scan the directory again,
+looking for mismatches. If no errors are detected it will list everything to you
+again, asking you to confirm it is good.</p>
 <p>If everything is OK, it will write the required <code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code>
-files, checking each with <code>chkentry(1)</code> and then, if all is OK, it will create
-the tarball. After the tarball is formed, it will run <code>txzchk(1)</code> on it, which
-runs <code>fnamchk(1)</code>. If all is OK, your submission tarball should be good to go.</p>
+and then run <code>chkentry(1)</code> on the directory. If all is OK it will create the
+tarball. After the tarball is formed, it will run <code>txzchk(1)</code> on it, which runs
+<code>fnamchk(1)</code>. If all is OK, your submission tarball should be good to go.</p>
 <p>Please see
 FAQ on “<a href="#txzchk">txzchk</a>”,
 the
@@ -706,19 +716,20 @@ cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent version when
 submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right versions of
 the tools. This is why you <strong>MUST</strong> make sure you have the most recent version
 of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR you
-install them (<code>make install</code> as via <code>sudo</code> or as root).</p>
+install them (<code>make install</code> as via <code>sudo</code> or as root). We recommend you install
+the tools but if you wish to run it from the repo directory you may.</p>
 <p>If the <strong><em>subdirectory</em> in the <em>work directory</em></strong> (based on your submit ID and
-slot number) already exists, you will have to
-move it, remove it or otherwise specify a different work directory (<strong>NOT</strong> the
-subdirectory), as it needs to be empty.</p>
-<p>This <em>subdirectory is where your files will be <strong>copied</strong> to</em>. Your <em>submission
-tarball</em> (which you will upload to the submit server) that <code>txzchk(1)</code> will
-validate <em>will be placed in the <strong>work directory</strong></em>, and <strong>its <em>contents</em> will
-be the <em>subdirectory</em> with your submission’s files</strong>.
-The <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool will also ask you for information about your
-submission <em>as well as author details</em> (that will only be looked at if the
-submission wins), run some tests and run a number of other tools, as
-mentioned above, and as described in the “<a href="#mkiocccentry_details">finer
+slot number) already exists, you will have to move it, remove it or otherwise
+specify a different work directory (<strong>NOT</strong> the subdirectory), as it needs to be
+empty.</p>
+<p>This <em>subdirectory is where your directories will be made and where your files
+will be <strong>copied</strong> to</em>. Your <em>submission tarball</em> (which you will upload to the
+submit server) that <code>txzchk(1)</code> will validate <em>will be placed in the <strong>work
+directory</strong></em>, and <strong>its <em>contents</em> will be the <em>subdirectory</em> with your
+submission’s files</strong>. The <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool will also ask you for
+information about your submission <em>as well as author details</em> (that will only be
+looked at if the submission wins), run some tests and run a number of other
+tools, as mentioned above, and as described in the “<a href="#mkiocccentry_details">finer
 details</a>” section.</p>
 <p>See also the
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/FAQ.md">mkiocccentry repo FAQ</a>
@@ -885,7 +896,7 @@ FAQ on “<a href="#makefile">submission Makefiles</a>.</p>
 <div id="file_perms">
 <h3 id="q-0.6-what-permissions-may-my-files-be-and-what-if-i-need-different-permissions">Q 0.6: What permissions may my files be and what if I need different permissions?</h3>
 </div>
-<p>As <a href="#rule17">Rule 17</a> states, files in your submission tarball <strong>MUST</strong> be
+<p>As <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a> states, files in your submission tarball <strong>MUST</strong> be
 specific permissions. In particular: directories <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>drwxr-xr-x</code> (i.e.
 <code>0755</code>), the optional files, <code>try.sh</code> or <code>try.alt.sh</code>, if provided, <strong>MUST</strong> be
 <code>-r-xr-xr-x</code> (i.e. <code>0555</code>) and all other files <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>-r--r--r--</code> (i.e.
@@ -969,7 +980,7 @@ For example:</p>
 </div>
 <p>The IOCCC makes extensive use of <a href="https://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/">markdown</a>.
 For example, when <a href="next/submit.html">submitting to the IOCCC</a>, we have people
-submit remarks about entry in markdown format. Every
+submit remarks about their submission(s) in markdown format. Every
 <a href="years.html">winning IOCCC entry</a> uses a <code>README.md</code> markdown file
 as the basis for forming the <code>index.html</code> web page for that entry.
 All generated HTML pages on the <a href="https://www.ioccc.org/index.html">Official IOCCC website</a>
@@ -1018,6 +1029,10 @@ do have to try again you’ll have to remove it.</p>
 <p>This will run the tests that <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>, write the JSON files, use
 <code>chkentry(1)</code>, package the tarball and run <code>txzchk(1)</code> on it.</p>
 <p>See also the
+FAQ on “<a href="#mkiocccentry">mkiocccentry</a>”,
+the
+FAQ on “<a href="#using_mkiocccentry">using mkiocccentry</a>”,
+the
 FAQ on “<a href="#info_json">.info.json</a>”,
 the
 FAQ on “<a href="#auth_json">.auth.json</a>”,
@@ -1047,6 +1062,13 @@ submission</a>, which not only discusses the maximum
 number of files (including extra files) but also specific rules you must follow
 if you do include a tarball. Not following these points puts you at great risk
 of violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
+<p>Also, remember what the <a href="next/guidelines.html">guidelines</a> say:</p>
+<blockquote>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT REMINDER</strong>: make <strong>SURE</strong> your tarball does <strong>NOT</strong> reveal who you are!
+The <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool creates a v7 format tarball to prevent this.</p>
+</blockquote>
+<p>You can do this by creating the tarball like:</p>
+<pre><code>    tar --format=v7 -cJf foo.txz directory</code></pre>
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
 <div id="judging">
@@ -1129,16 +1151,19 @@ discussion</a>.</p>
 </div>
 <p>There are unfortunately some warnings that cannot be disabled; they are always
 enabled whatever warning options you have enabled. Also, there is a warning that
-is enabled whenever you act on <code>char *</code>s, saying it is unsafe buffer usage, even
-when it’s not. This might be enabled by <code>-Weverything</code> but it might not be; for
-more details on why we use <code>-Weverything</code> in Clang see the
-FAQ on “<a href="#weverything">-Weverything</a>”.</p>
-<p>It is not detrimental to your submission if you disable this, which you can do
-by specifying <code>-Wno-unsafe-buffer-usage</code>.</p>
+is enabled whenever you use a pointer as a buffer, saying it is unsafe buffer
+usage, even when it is not.</p>
+<p>This might be enabled by <code>-Weverything</code> but it might not be but it is not
+detrimental to your submission if you disable this, which you can do by
+specifying <code>-Wno-unsafe-buffer-usage</code>.</p>
 <p>So in short, no you should not worry about these as they are sometimes
 inevitable in obfuscated code and even non-obfuscated code.</p>
 <p>If you <em>can</em> work past this it might be good but this is not something that
-should be worried about too much as this is on the compiler developers, not you.</p>
+should be worried about too much as this is on the compiler developers, not you.
+Of course if you do work past it feel free to brag, though <strong>BE SURE TO TELL
+US</strong> the OS, OS version, compiler and compiler version.</p>
+<p>For more details on why we use <code>-Weverything</code> in Clang see the FAQ on
+“<a href="#weverything">-Weverything</a>”.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <div id="frequent-themes">
 <h3 id="q-2.3-what-types-of-entries-have-been-frequently-submitted-to-the-ioccc">Q 2.3: What types of entries have been frequently submitted to the IOCCC?</h3>
@@ -1399,11 +1424,12 @@ verify everything is in order. If something is not allowed (bad filename for
 example) or an error occurs (missing required file for example) you will be
 notified of this. After you verify everything is okay the files/directories
 found will be copied/made and it will then switch to the submission directory.
-In the submission directory it scans the file hierarchy again and verifies
-things are still okay. When done it will ask you to verify things are still OK.
-If all is good it’ll ask you for more information about the author(s). Next the
-two required JSON files <code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code> will be created, running
-<code>chkentry(1)</code> on each. If all is good it’ll give you another chance to say the
+In the submission directory it first runs <code>make clobber</code> and then scans the
+directory hierarchy again, verifying things are still okay. When done it will
+ask you to verify things still look OK to you too. If all is good it’ll ask you
+for more information about the author(s). Next the two required JSON files
+<code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code> will be created. After that <code>chkentry(1)</code> will be
+run on the directory. If all is good it’ll give you another chance to say the
 files/directories look good and if you answer yes it’ll create the tarball and
 run <code>txzchk</code> on it.</p>
 <p>In most cases the program will prompt you to verify your input is correct. In
@@ -1565,19 +1591,14 @@ but has no content is violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a> and
 <li>Ask the user for a one line abstract of the submission.</li>
 <li>Ask the user for the number of authors and for each author ask a variety of
 questions (see below for more information on what kind of questions).</li>
-<li>Create <code>.info.json</code> and run <code>chkentry(1)</code> on it.
+<li>Create <code>.info.json</code>.</li>
+<li>Create <code>.auth.json</code>.</li>
+<li>Run <code>chkentry(1)</code> on your submission directory to verify things look good,
+including that the <code>.info.json</code> and <code>.auth.json</code> files are okay.
 <ul>
-<li>If <code>chkentry(1)</code> fails to validate the file make sure that you have
-obtained and compiled the latest version of all the tools and you either are
-in the repo’s directory, you pass the options to give the path to the tools
-or you have installed the latest tools!</li>
-</ul></li>
-<li>Create <code>.auth.json</code> and run <code>chkentry(1)</code> on it.
-<ul>
-<li>If <code>chkentry(1)</code> fails to validate the file make sure that you have
-obtained and compiled the latest version of all the tools and you either are
-in the repo’s directory, you pass the options to give the path to the tools
-or you have installed the latest tools!</li>
+<li>It also checks that the manifest in <code>.info.json</code> matches what is in the
+submission directory and it verifies file permissions too; if you wish to
+know what else it does we suggest you read the source code.</li>
 </ul></li>
 <li>Show the output of <code>ls -lakR .</code>, asking the user to confirm that the listing
 is okay.</li>
@@ -1722,43 +1743,53 @@ for more information.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <div id="validating_auth_info_json">
 <div id="chkentry">
-<h3 id="q-3.3-how-can-i-validate-my-.auth.json-andor-.info.json-files">Q 3.3: How can I validate my <code>.auth.json</code> and/or <code>.info.json</code> files?</h3>
+<h3 id="q-3.3-how-can-i-validate-my-submission-directory">Q 3.3: How can I validate my submission directory?</h3>
 </div>
 </div>
-<p>If you want to validate the <code>.auth.json</code> or <code>.info.json</code> files you
-should use <code>chkentry(1)</code> from the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry">mkiocccentry
-repo</a>.</p>
-<p>The <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool uses the IOCCC version of the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/jparse/man/man3/jparse.3">jparse
+<p>If you want to validate your submission directory manually, including but not
+limited to the <code>.auth.json</code> or <code>.info.json</code> files, you should use <code>chkentry(1)</code>
+from the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry">mkiocccentry repo</a>.</p>
+<p>The <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool runs a variety of checks on your submission directory,
+including but not limited to, using the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/jparse/man/man3/jparse.3">jparse
 API</a>
-to perform <strong>additional</strong> checks on these two IOCCC specific JSON files. It is
-<em>possible</em> that this version will at times differ from the <a href="https://github.com/xexyl/jparse/blob/master/man/man3/jparse.3">official jparse
-API</a> at the
-<a href="https://github.com/xexyl/jparse">official jparse repo</a> and this is one of the
-reasons the tools’ <code>-V</code> (version option) show the JSON parser version as well.</p>
+to validate the two IOCCC specific JSON files (as valid JSON) and additional
+checks on those files as well. An important thing that it does is verify that
+your files are the right permissions and that the manifest in the <code>.info.json</code>
+files match what is in the directory. What all the checks are is out of scope of this
+document; if you wish to know we recommend you read the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/chkentry.c">source
+code</a>.</p>
+<p><strong>NOTE</strong>: the IOCCC <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/jparse/man/man3/jparse.3">jparse
+API</a>
+is a synced copy of the <a href="https://github.com/xexyl/jparse">official jparse
+repo</a> <em>at the time of the contest open date</em>.</p>
 <p>See the
 FAQ on “<a href="#auth_json">.auth.json</a>”
 and
 FAQ on “<a href="#info_json">.info.json</a>”
-for more details on these files.</p>
-<p>The <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool accepts more than one command line form.
-You may specify a <code>.auth.json</code> and/or
-<code>.info.json</code> file. An argument of “<code>.</code>” will skip that file. For instance:</p>
-<pre><code>    # run checks on .info.json:
-    chkentry . .info.json
-
-    # run checks on .auth.json:
-    chkentry .auth.json .
-
-    # run checks on .auth.json and .info.json:
-    chkentry .auth.json .info.json</code></pre>
+for more details on the two required and very important JSON files.</p>
+<p>The <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool accepts a single arg, a directory that <strong>MUST</strong> have the
+two JSON files, <code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code>. (Okay there is an option to skip
+files but this is for the judges <strong>ONLY</strong>; use of this option to validate your
+submission puts you at a great risk of violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
+17</a>!).</p>
+<p>As an example, if your submission directory is <code>12345678-1234-4321-abcd-1234567890ab-0/</code> then you should run the
+following command:</p>
+<pre><code>    chkentry 12345678-1234-4321-abcd-1234567890ab-0</code></pre>
 <p>If there is a <a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> issue detected by the
-<code>jparse(3)</code> API, then there is a <a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> error and
-<code>chkentry(1)</code> will report it as an <strong>error</strong>. If the parsing is OK (i.e. valid
-JSON) but there is an issue in one or both of the
+<code>jparse(3)</code> API (i.e. it is not valid JSON) it is an error and <code>chkentry(1)</code>
+will report this, exiting with a non-zero exit code. If the parsing is OK (i.e.
+valid JSON) but there is an issue in one or both of the
 <a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> files in <strong>the context of the IOCCC</strong>,
-it will report this as an <strong>error</strong>. Thus, if you were to package your
-submission manually then you would be violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
-17</a>.</p>
+it will report this as an <strong>error</strong>. It also does, as briefly noted above, other
+checks.</p>
+<p>If <code>chkentry(1)</code> fails to validate your submission directory your submission
+<strong>WILL</strong> be <strong>REJECTED</strong>! This is why you <strong>MUST</strong> make sure you use the
+<code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool to form your submission directory.</p>
+<p>See the
+FAQ on “<a href="#auth_json">.auth.json</a>”
+and the
+FAQ on “<a href="#info_json">.info.json</a>”
+as well as <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a> for more information.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <div id="auth_json">
 <h3 id="q-3.4-what-is-a-.auth.json-file">Q 3.4: What is a <code>.auth.json</code> file?</h3>
@@ -1787,7 +1818,7 @@ information about the author or authors of the submission, in JSON format.</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The current version of the <code>.auth.json</code> file.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>.auth.json</code> version, defined as
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>.auth.json</code> version, defined as
 <code>AUTH_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -1796,7 +1827,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>Which contest number this is (e.g. 1 for 1984, 2 for 1985, 27 for 2020).</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest value, defined as
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest value, defined as
 <code>IOCCC_CONTEST</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -1807,7 +1838,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 </ul>
 <p><strong>NOTE:</strong> sometimes an IOCCC year runs into another year and the contest year
 might not match when it ends.</p>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest, defined as
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest, defined as
 <code>IOCCC_YEAR</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -1816,17 +1847,17 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>The version of <code>mkiocccentry</code> that formed this <code>.auth.json</code> file.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>mkiocccentry</code> version,
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>mkiocccentry</code> version,
 defined as <code>MKIOCCCENTRY_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
 this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>chkentry_version</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
-<li>The version of <code>chkentry</code> that was used to validate this <code>.auth.json</code>,
-assuming that it was created by <code>mkiocccentry</code>.</li>
+<li>The version of <code>chkentry</code> that was used to validate the submission
+directory, including the <code>.auth.json</code> file.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>chkentry</code> version, defined
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>chkentry</code> version, defined
 as <code>CHKENTRY_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -1836,7 +1867,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <li>The version of <code>fnamchk</code> that <code>txzchk</code> uses to validate the filename of
 the xz compressed tarball.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>fnamchk</code> version in order for it
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>fnamchk</code> version in order for it
 to be valid. If this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>IOCCC_contest_id</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
@@ -1851,19 +1882,20 @@ violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>The xz compressed tarball filename.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match the actual tarball’s <strong>filename</strong> in order for
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match the actual tarball’s <strong>filename</strong> in order for
 this to be valid. If there is a mismatch you stand a great risk of having
 your submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!
 Moreover, it is possible that <code>txzchk</code> will report a problem through
 <code>fnamchk(1)</code> which also puts you at great risk of violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
-17</a>. If <code>txzchk</code> does not detect this, though, it
-does not mean it’s a bug but rather that the directory in the tarball
-matches the filename.</p></li>
+17</a>. <code>txzchk</code> will use the output of <code>fnamchk</code> to
+obtain the correct directory <em>name</em> in the tarball; if <code>fnamchk</code> fails to
+validate your filename, or if you have the wrong directory name in the
+tarball, this will be flaggd.</p></li>
 <li><p><code>submit_slot</code> (number)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The submission number.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range of 0 <strong>THROUGH</strong>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range of 0 <strong>THROUGH</strong>
 <code>MAX_SUBMIT_SLOT</code> (see
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>). If
@@ -1873,7 +1905,7 @@ rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>How many authors this submission has.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range of 1 <strong>THROUGH</strong>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range of 1 <strong>THROUGH</strong>
 <code>MAX_AUTHORS</code> (see
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>). If
@@ -1910,10 +1942,14 @@ for a list of valid codes.</li>
 <li><p><code>url</code> (<code>null</code> or double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The primary <strong>URL</strong> of this author, or <code>null</code> if not provided.</li>
+<li>The URL must start with <code>http://</code> or <code>https://</code> and have more text after it;
+we do not even try and detect a hostname.</li>
 </ul></li>
 <li><p><code>alt_url</code> (<code>null</code> or double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The <strong>alt URL</strong> of this author, or <code>null</code> if not provided.</li>
+<li>The URL must start with <code>http://</code> or <code>https://</code> and have more text after it;
+we do not even try and detect a hostname.</li>
 </ul></li>
 <li><p><code>mastodon</code> (<code>null</code> or double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
@@ -1931,7 +1967,7 @@ provided.</li>
 <ul>
 <li>This author’s <strong>affiliation</strong>, if any, or <code>null</code> if not provided.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if provided, the length of the <strong>affiliation</strong> <strong>MUST</strong> be within
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if provided, the length of the <strong>affiliation</strong> <strong>MUST</strong> be within
 the range of 1 <strong>THROUGH</strong> <code>MAX_AFFILIATION_LEN</code> (see
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>). If
@@ -1974,7 +2010,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 FAQ on “<a href="#info_json">.info.json</a>”
 for more information.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be greater than or equal to <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> (see
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be greater than or equal to <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> (see
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>). If
 this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected.</p></li>
@@ -1983,7 +2019,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected.</p></li>
 <li>Microseconds since the tstamp (seconds since epoch when <code>.auth.json</code> was
 formed - see <code>gettimeofday(2)</code>) second.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range <code>MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC</code>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range <code>MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC</code>
 <strong>THROUGH</strong> <code>MAX_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC</code> and is validated by
 <code>test_formed_timestamp_usec()</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/entry_util.c">soup/entry_util.c</a>
@@ -1994,7 +2030,7 @@ submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"</code> (<code>gettimeofday(2)</code> epoch).</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"</code> which is <code>#define</code>d
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"</code> which is <code>#define</code>d
 as <code>TIMESTAMP_EPOCH</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2003,30 +2039,35 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>Minimum number of second since epoch for <strong>this</strong> IOCCC.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be &gt;= <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> defined in
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be &gt;= <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> defined in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
 this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 </ul>
-<p>This file will be verified with the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool and if there are any
-problems <strong>it is an error</strong>. If there is an error the tarball will <strong>NOT</strong> be
-formed by <code>mkiocccentry</code>; otherwise the <code>txzchk(1)</code> tool will be executed on the
-tarball.</p>
-<p>This file will <strong>NOT</strong> be looked at unless the submission wins! Nonetheless,
-<code>chkentry(1)</code> <strong>WILL BE</strong> used on the file as part of the judging process.</p>
+<p>This file will be validated with the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool and if there are any
+problems with it or the submission directory, <strong>it is an error</strong>. If there is an
+error the tarball will <strong>NOT</strong> be formed by <code>mkiocccentry</code>; otherwise the
+<code>txzchk(1)</code> tool will be executed on the tarball.</p>
+<p>This file will <strong>NOT</strong> be looked at unless the submission wins! Nonetheless, the
+file <strong>MUST</strong> be present in the submission directory and it <strong>MUST</strong> be valid
+JSON and it <strong>MUST</strong> pass all IOCCC semantics checks and all other checks
+<code>chkentry(1)</code> perform. <code>chkentry(1)</code> is used by <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> and the judges
+will use it on the submission directory as part of the judging process.</p>
 <p>At the risk of stating the obvious, if your <code>.auth.json</code> file is invalid JSON or
-is reported invalid by <code>chkentry</code> your submission will almost certainly be
+is reported invalid by <code>chkentry(1)</code>, or if your submission directory is
+reported invalid by <code>chkentry(1)</code>, your submission will almost certainly be
 rejected for violating the <a href="next/rules.html">Rules</a> and in particular <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
 17</a>.</p>
-<p>An obvious example where <code>chkentry</code> would fail to validate <code>.auth.json</code> is if
+<p>An obvious example where <code>chkentry(1)</code> would fail to validate <code>.auth.json</code> is if
 there is a mismatch of type in the JSON file with what is expected, for
 instance, if in <code>.auth.json</code> the <code>no_comment</code> that we chose to not comment on is
-not a string. Another obvious example is when things are out of range (see above
-for list). Two more examples would be if a field is missing or if an unknown
-filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others that must be established as
-valid by <code>chkentry</code>) your submission would be rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
-17</a> and in particular because <code>chkentry</code> would not
-validate the <code>.auth.json</code> file.</p>
+not a string or is the wrong string. Another obvious example is when things are
+out of range (see above for list). Two more examples would be if a field is
+missing or if an unknown filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others
+that must be established as valid by <code>chkentry(1)</code>) your submission would be
+rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a> and in particular
+because <code>chkentry(1)</code> would not validate the <code>.auth.json</code> file (and maybe other
+things too).</p>
 <p>If you wish to <strong>verify</strong> that your <code>.auth.json</code> file is valid <strong>JSON</strong> then see the
 FAQ on “<a href="#validating_json">validating JSON documents</a>”.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
@@ -2066,7 +2107,7 @@ for more information.</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The current version of the <code>.info.json</code> files.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>.info.json</code> version, defined as
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>.info.json</code> version, defined as
 <code>INFO_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2075,7 +2116,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>Which contest number this is (e.g. 1 for 1984, 2 for 1985, 27 for 2020).</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest value, defined as
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest value, defined as
 <code>IOCCC_CONTEST</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2086,7 +2127,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 </ul>
 <p><strong>NOTE:</strong> sometimes an IOCCC year runs into another year and the contest year
 might not match when it ends.</p>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest, defined as
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s contest, defined as
 <code>IOCCC_YEAR</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2095,7 +2136,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>The version of <code>mkiocccentry</code> that formed this <code>.auth.json</code> file.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>mkiocccentry</code> version,
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>mkiocccentry</code> version,
 defined as <code>MKIOCCCENTRY_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2104,17 +2145,17 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>The version of <code>iocccsize</code> that was used for this <code>.info.json</code> file.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>iocccentry</code> version,
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>iocccentry</code> version,
 defined as <code>IOCCCSIZE_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
 this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>chkentry_version</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
-<li>The version of <code>chkentry</code> that was used to validate this <code>.info.json</code>,
-assuming that it was created by <code>mkiocccentry</code>.</li>
+<li>The version of <code>chkentry</code> that was used to validate the submission
+directory, including the <code>.info.json</code> file.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>chkentry</code> version, defined
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>chkentry</code> version, defined
 as <code>CHKENTRY_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2124,7 +2165,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <li>The version of <code>fnamchk</code> that <code>txzchk</code> uses to validate the filename of
 the xz compressed tarball.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>fnamchk</code> version, defined
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>fnamchk</code> version, defined
 as <code>FNAMCHK_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2133,7 +2174,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>The version of <code>txzchk</code> used to validate the xz compressed tarball.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>txzchk</code> version, defined
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match <strong>THIS</strong> IOCCC’s <code>txzchk</code> version, defined
 as <code>TXZCHK_VERSION</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h">soup/version.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2143,15 +2184,12 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <li>The IOCCC contestant ID used as a username in the form of <strong>in the form of
 a UUID</strong> and submission number; see the <a href="next/rules.html">rules</a> for more details
 on this, and in particular <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>.</li>
-</ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the contest ID is <strong>NOT</strong> in this format then <code>fnamchk</code> will
-report it as an <strong>error</strong> and your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected for
-violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
+</ul></li>
 <li><p><code>submit_slot</code> (number)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The submission number.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range of 0 <strong>THROUGH</strong>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range of 0 <strong>THROUGH</strong>
 <code>MAX_SUBMIT_SLOT</code> (see
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>). If
@@ -2164,7 +2202,7 @@ rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>) that
 matches the regexp <code>[a-z0-9][a-z0-9_+-]*</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great risk of having your submission
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great risk of having your submission
 rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>abstract</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
@@ -2174,33 +2212,34 @@ rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>)</li>
 </ul>
 <p>The <code>abstract</code> may not contain a <code>;</code> (semicolon), nor <code>&amp;</code> (ampersand), nor <code>,</code> (comma).</p>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if your abstract is 0 in length or &gt; the maximum abstract length you
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if your abstract is 0 in length or &gt; the maximum abstract length you
 stand a great risk of having your submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>tarball</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The xz compressed tarball filename.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match the actual tarball’s <strong>filename</strong> in order for
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> match the actual tarball’s <strong>filename</strong> in order for
 this to be valid. If there is a mismatch you stand a great risk of having
 your submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!
 Moreover, it is possible that <code>txzchk</code> will report a problem through
 <code>fnamchk(1)</code> which also puts you at great risk of violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
-17</a>. If <code>txzchk</code> does not detect this, though, it
-does not mean it’s a bug but rather that the directory in the tarball
-matches the filename.</p></li>
+17</a>. <code>txzchk</code> will use the output of <code>fnamchk</code> to
+obtain the correct directory <em>name</em> in the tarball; if <code>fnamchk</code> fails to
+validate your filename, or if you have the wrong directory name in the
+tarball, this will be flaggd.</p></li>
 <li><p><code>rule_2a_size</code> (number)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The size calculated of <a href="next/rules.html#rule2a">Rule 2a</a>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this violates <a href="next/rules.html#rule2a">Rule 2a</a> you stand a great
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this violates <a href="next/rules.html#rule2a">Rule 2a</a> you stand a great
 chance of having your submission rejected for violating the
 <a href="next/rules.html">Rules</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>rule_2b_size</code> (number)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>The size calculated of <a href="next/rules.html#rule2b">Rule 2b</a>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this violates <a href="next/rules.html#rule2b">Rule 2b</a> you stand a great
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this violates <a href="next/rules.html#rule2b">Rule 2b</a> you stand a great
 chance of having your submission rejected for violating the
 <a href="next/rules.html">Rules</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>empty_override</code> (boolean)</p>
@@ -2212,7 +2251,7 @@ chance of having your submission rejected for violating the
 <li><code>true</code> if user overrides warning of <a href="next/rules.html#rule2a">Rule 2a</a>
 violation, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <a href="next/rules.html#rule2a">Rule 2a</a> calculated size is <strong>NOT</strong>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <a href="next/rules.html#rule2a">Rule 2a</a> calculated size is <strong>NOT</strong>
 violated but this is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your
 submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>rule_2a_mismatch</code> (boolean)</p>
@@ -2225,7 +2264,7 @@ same as the file size.</li>
 <li><code>true</code> if user overrides warning of <a href="next/rules.html#rule2b">Rule 2b</a>
 violation, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <a href="next/rules.html#rule2b">Rule 2b</a> calculated size is <strong>NOT</strong>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <a href="next/rules.html#rule2b">Rule 2b</a> calculated size is <strong>NOT</strong>
 violated but this is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your
 submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>highbit_warning</code> (boolean)</p>
@@ -2249,7 +2288,7 @@ bit set - octet value &gt;= 128); see <a href="next/rules.html#rule13">Rule 13</
 <li><code>true</code> if <code>prog.c</code> triggered a word buffer overflow (see <code>iocccsize</code>),
 else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this does <strong>NOT</strong> mean that your code has been checked for buffer
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this does <strong>NOT</strong> mean that your code has been checked for buffer
 overflows in general.</p></li>
 <li><p><code>ungetc_warning</code> (boolean)</p>
 <ul>
@@ -2260,7 +2299,7 @@ overflows in general.</p></li>
 <li><code>true</code> if the user overrides any warnings about an incomplete/incorrect
 <code>Makefile</code> file, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file has no problems and this is <code>true</code> then
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file has no problems and this is <code>true</code> then
 you stand a good chance of having your submission rejected for violating
 <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
 <p>See the
@@ -2270,7 +2309,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>true</code> if the first rule in the <code>Makefile</code> file is <code>all</code>, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>all</code> rule or it is not
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>all</code> rule or it is not
 first and this boolean is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your
 submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
 <p>See the
@@ -2280,7 +2319,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>true</code> if the <code>Makefile</code> file has an <code>all</code> rule, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>all</code> rule and this
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>all</code> rule and this
 boolean is <code>true</code>, or if it does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>all</code> rule but
 <code>first_rule_is_all</code> is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your
 submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
@@ -2291,7 +2330,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>true</code> if the <code>Makefile</code> file has a <code>clean</code> rule, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have a <code>clean</code> rule and this
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have a <code>clean</code> rule and this
 boolean is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your submission
 rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
 <p>See the
@@ -2301,7 +2340,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>true</code> if the <code>Makefile</code> file has a <code>clobber</code> rule, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>clobber</code> rule and this
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>clobber</code> rule and this
 boolean is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your submission
 rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
 <p>See the
@@ -2311,7 +2350,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>true</code> if the <code>Makefile</code> file has a <code>try</code> rule, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have an <code>try</code> rule and this
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if the <code>Makefile</code> file does <strong>NOT</strong> have a <code>try</code> rule and this
 boolean is <code>true</code> then you stand a good chance of having your submission
 rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
 <p>See the
@@ -2321,7 +2360,7 @@ for more information.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>true</code> if the <code>test</code> ID was used to form the tarball, else <code>false</code>.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <code>true</code> then this may <strong>NOT</strong> be submitted to the
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <code>true</code> then this may <strong>NOT</strong> be submitted to the
 contest! Please do <strong>NOT</strong> email the <a href="judges.html">Judges</a> your submission!</p></li>
 </ul>
 <p>Next comes the <code>manifest</code> <strong>array</strong> which <strong>MUST</strong> have AT LEAST the following.
@@ -2337,8 +2376,9 @@ See the
 FAQ on “<a href="#info_json">.info.json</a>”
 for more information.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
-submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a
+great chance of having your submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
+17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>auth_JSON</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>This <code>MUST</code> be <code>".auth.json"</code>, defined as <code>AUTH_JSON_FILENAME</code> in
@@ -2349,7 +2389,7 @@ See the
 FAQ on “<a href="#auth_json">.auth.json</a>”
 for more information.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
 submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>c_src</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
@@ -2358,10 +2398,8 @@ submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!<
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>, and
 is your submission source code.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
-submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if you provide to <code>mkiocccentry</code> a different filename it will be
-copied to <code>prog.c</code>.</p></li>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
+submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>Makefile</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>This <code>MUST</code> be <code>"Makefile"</code>, defined as <code>MAKEFILE_FILENAME</code> in
@@ -2372,10 +2410,8 @@ See the
 FAQ on “<a href="#makefile">Makefile</a>”
 for more information.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
-submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if you provide to <code>mkiocccentry</code> a different filename it will be
-copied to <code>Makefile</code>.</p></li>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
+submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 <li><p><code>remarks</code> (double quoted string)</p>
 <ul>
 <li>This <code>MUST</code> be <code>"remarks.md"</code>, defined as <code>REMARKS_FILENAME</code> in
@@ -2386,10 +2422,8 @@ See the
 FAQ on “<a href="#remarks_md">remarks.md</a>”
 for more information.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
-submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> if you provide to <code>mkiocccentry</code> a different filename it will be
-copied to <code>remarks.md</code>.</p></li>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> if this is <strong>NOT</strong> the case you stand a great chance of having your
+submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!</p></li>
 </ul>
 <p>The <code>manifest</code> <strong>array</strong> also <strong>OPTIONALLY</strong> has one or more of the field:</p>
 <ul>
@@ -2397,16 +2431,17 @@ copied to <code>remarks.md</code>.</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>Any additional file that you need or want to include with your submission.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this MUST <strong>NOT</strong> match a mandatory filename (see above list) and
-<code>chkentry</code> will verify this for you; it is <strong>ALSO</strong> an <strong>error</strong> if the
-filenames are not unique. In these cases you stand a great risk of having
-your submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>! On
-the other hand, <strong>ONLY</strong> <code>mkiocccentry</code> will verify that the files exist and
-can be read; <code>txzchk(1)</code> will <strong>NOT</strong> do this for you as it only <strong>LISTS</strong>
-the tarball: it does <strong>NOT</strong> extract it. Even so, the <a href="judges.html">Judges</a>
-<strong>WILL</strong> extract the tarball and if a file listed in the manifest does not
-exist your submission will very likely be rejected for not being as
-documented!</p></li>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this MUST <strong>NOT</strong> match a mandatory filename (see above list)
+and <code>chkentry</code> will verify this for you; it is <strong>ALSO</strong> an <strong>error</strong> if the
+filenames are not unique, not POSIX plus + safe chars only, if they are the
+wrong permission and various other things. In these cases you stand a great
+risk of having your submission rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
+17</a>! On the other hand, <strong>ONLY</strong> <code>mkiocccentry</code> will
+verify that the files exist and can be read; <code>txzchk(1)</code> will <strong>NOT</strong> do
+this for you as it only <strong>LISTS</strong> the tarball: it does <strong>NOT</strong> extract it.
+Even so, the <a href="judges.html">Judges</a> <strong>WILL</strong> extract the tarball and if a
+file listed in the manifest does not exist your submission will very likely
+be rejected for not being as documented!</p></li>
 </ul>
 <p>Finally, after the <code>manifest</code> <strong>array</strong>, the following fields <strong>MUST</strong> exist:</p>
 <ul>
@@ -2414,7 +2449,7 @@ documented!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>Seconds since epoch when JSON (<code>.auth.json</code> or <code>.info.json</code>) file was formed (see <code>gettimeofday(2)</code>).</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be greater than or equal to <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> (see
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be greater than or equal to <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> (see
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>). If
 this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected.</p></li>
@@ -2423,7 +2458,7 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected.</p></li>
 <li>Microseconds since the tstamp (seconds since epoch when <code>.auth.json</code> was
 formed - see <code>gettimeofday(2)</code>) second.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range <code>MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC</code>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be within the range <code>MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC</code>
 <strong>THROUGH</strong> <code>MAX_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC</code> and is validated by
 <code>test_formed_timestamp_usec()</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/entry_util.c">soup/entry_util.c</a>
@@ -2434,7 +2469,7 @@ submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li><code>"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"</code> (<code>gettimeofday(2)</code> epoch).</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"</code> which is <code>#define</code>d
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"</code> which is <code>#define</code>d
 as <code>TIMESTAMP_EPOCH</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
@@ -2443,25 +2478,26 @@ this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 <ul>
 <li>Minimum number of second since epoch for <strong>this</strong> IOCCC.</li>
 </ul>
-<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be &gt;= <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> defined in
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT:</strong> this <strong>MUST</strong> be &gt;= <code>MIN_TIMESTAMP</code> defined in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/">mkiocccentry repo</a>. If
 this is not the case your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected!</p></li>
 </ul>
-<p>This file will be verified with the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool and if there are any
-problems <strong>it is an error</strong> and the tarball will <strong>NOT</strong> be formed by
-<code>mkiocccentry</code>; otherwise the <code>txzchk(1)</code> tool will be executed on the tarball.</p>
+<p>This file will be validated with the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool and if there are any
+problems with it or the submission directory, <strong>it is an error</strong>. If there is an
+error the tarball will <strong>NOT</strong> be formed by <code>mkiocccentry</code>; otherwise the
+<code>txzchk(1)</code> tool will be executed on the tarball.</p>
 <p>The <a href="judges.html">Judges</a> <strong>WILL</strong> use <code>chkentry(1)</code> on this file during the
 judging process and if it does not pass your submission <strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected.</p>
 <p>An obvious example where <code>chkentry</code> would fail to validate <code>.info.json</code> is if
 there is a mismatch of type in the JSON file with what is expected, for
 instance, if in <code>.info.json</code> the <code>no_comment</code> that we chose to not comment on is
-not a string. Another obvious example is when things are out of range (see above
-for list). Two more examples would be if a field is missing or if an unknown
-filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others that must be established as
-valid by <code>chkentry</code>) your submission would be rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule
-17</a> and in particular because <code>chkentry</code> would not
-validate the <code>.info.json</code> file.</p>
+not a string or is the wrong string. Another obvious example is when things are
+out of range (see above for list). Two more examples would be if a field is
+missing or if an unknown filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others
+that must be established as valid by <code>chkentry</code>) your submission would be
+rejected for violating <a href="next/rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a> and in particular
+because <code>chkentry</code> would not validate the <code>.info.json</code> file.</p>
 <p>If you wish to <strong>verify</strong> that your <code>.info.json</code> file is valid <strong>JSON</strong> then see the
 FAQ on “<a href="#validating_json">validating JSON documents</a>”.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
@@ -4049,8 +4085,8 @@ below note) this would be advisable.</p>
 <p><strong>NOTE</strong>: different versions of <code>clang</code> have other differences as well. For instance
 a defect of <code>clang</code> that required numerous entries to be fixed for clang is that it
 requires that <code>main()</code>’s arguments to be of a specific type. However some
-versions of <code>clang</code> are more strict in the number of args allowed.
-Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
+versions of <code>clang</code> are more strict in the number of args allowed.</p>
+<p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
 <div id="running_entries">
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # IOCCC FAQ Table of Contents

-This is FAQ version **28.2.9 2025-02-12**.
+This is FAQ version **28.2.10 2025-02-26**.


 ## 0. [Entering the IOCCC: the bare minimum you need to know](#enter_questions)
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ This is FAQ version **28.2.9 2025-02-12**.
 - **Q 3.0**: <a class="normal" href="#mkiocccentry_process">What is the `mkiocccentry(1)` process and what sort of checks does it perform?</a>
 - **Q 3.1**: <a class="normal" href="#txzchk">How can I validate my submission tarball?</a>
 - **Q 3.2**: <a class="normal" href="#fnamchk">What is the `fnamchk` tool?</a>
- **Q 3.3**: <a class="normal" href="#chkentry">How can I validate my `.auth.json` and/or `.info.json` files?</a>
+- **Q 3.3**: <a class="normal" href="#chkentry">How can I validate my submission directory?</a>
 - **Q 3.4**: <a class="normal" href="#auth_json">What is a `.auth.json` file?</a>
 - **Q 3.5**: <a class="normal" href="#info_json">What is a `.info.json` file?</a>
 - **Q 3.6**: <a class="normal" href="#author_handle_faq">What is an `author handle`?</a>
@@ -218,12 +218,23 @@ code, your Makefile, your remarks, any other data files you wish to provide (up
 to a maximum, including the mandatory files, defined in
 [limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
 as `MAX_FILE_COUNT`) and other information about your submission,
-information about the author (or authors), and then it runs a lot of tests.
+information about the author (or authors), and then it will give you a list of
+subdirectories, if any, that will be made, and files that will be copied to the
+submission directory. It will list files and directories that it will (for
+various reasons) not create as well, asking you to confirm these things are all
+okay. Some things are strictly forbidden (such as a directory tree too deep) and
+it will tell you about these as well, so you can fix it.
+
+Assuming you agree to the list of directories and files, it will make the
+directories (if necessary) and copy the files. It will then switch to the
+submission directory, run `make clobber` and then scan the directory again,
+looking for mismatches. If no errors are detected it will list everything to you
+again, asking you to confirm it is good.

 If everything is OK, it will write the required `.auth.json` and `.info.json`
-files, checking each with `chkentry(1)` and then, if all is OK, it will create
-the tarball. After the tarball is formed, it will run `txzchk(1)` on it, which
-runs `fnamchk(1)`. If all is OK, your submission tarball should be good to go.
+and then run `chkentry(1)` on the directory. If all is OK it will create the
+tarball. After the tarball is formed, it will run `txzchk(1)` on it, which runs
+`fnamchk(1)`. If all is OK, your submission tarball should be good to go.

 Please see
 FAQ on "[txzchk](#txzchk)",
@@ -328,21 +339,22 @@ cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent version when
 submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right versions of
 the tools. This is why you **MUST** make sure you have the most recent version
 of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR you
-install them (`make install` as via `sudo` or as root).
+install them (`make install` as via `sudo` or as root). We recommend you install
+the tools but if you wish to run it from the repo directory you may.

 If the **_subdirectory_ in the _work directory_** (based on your submit ID and
-slot number) already exists, you will have to
-move it, remove it or otherwise specify a different work directory (**NOT** the
-subdirectory), as it needs to be empty.
+slot number) already exists, you will have to move it, remove it or otherwise
+specify a different work directory (**NOT** the subdirectory), as it needs to be
+empty.

-This _subdirectory is where your files will be **copied** to_. Your _submission
-tarball_ (which you will upload to the submit server) that `txzchk(1)` will
-validate _will be placed in the **work directory**_, and **its _contents_ will
-be the _subdirectory_ with your submission's files**.
-The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will also ask you for information about your
-submission _as well as author details_ (that will only be looked at if the
-submission wins), run some tests and run a number of other tools, as
-mentioned above, and as described in the "[finer
+This _subdirectory is where your directories will be made and where your files
+will be **copied** to_. Your _submission tarball_ (which you will upload to the
+submit server) that `txzchk(1)` will validate _will be placed in the **work
+directory**_, and **its _contents_ will be the _subdirectory_ with your
+submission's files**.  The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will also ask you for
+information about your submission _as well as author details_ (that will only be
+looked at if the submission wins), run some tests and run a number of other
+tools, as mentioned above, and as described in the "[finer
 details](#mkiocccentry_details)" section.

 See also the
@@ -542,7 +554,7 @@ Jump to: [top](#)
 ### Q 0.6: What permissions may my files be and what if I need different permissions?
 </div>

-As [Rule 17](#rule17) states, files in your submission tarball **MUST** be
+As [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17) states, files in your submission tarball **MUST** be
 specific permissions. In particular: directories **MUST** be `drwxr-xr-x` (i.e.
 `0755`), the optional files, `try.sh` or `try.alt.sh`, if provided, **MUST** be
 `-r-xr-xr-x` (i.e. `0555`) and all other files **MUST** be `-r--r--r--` (i.e.
@@ -662,7 +674,7 @@ Jump to: [top](#)

 The IOCCC makes extensive use of [markdown](https://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/).
 For example, when [submitting to the IOCCC](next/submit.html), we have people
-submit remarks about entry in markdown format.  Every
+submit remarks about their submission(s) in markdown format.  Every
 [winning IOCCC entry](years.html) uses a `README.md` markdown file
 as the basis for forming the `index.html` web page for that entry.
 All generated HTML pages on the [Official IOCCC website](https://www.ioccc.org/index.html)
@@ -731,6 +743,10 @@ This will run the tests that `mkiocccentry(1)`, write the JSON files, use
 `chkentry(1)`, package the tarball and run `txzchk(1)` on it.

 See also the
+FAQ on "[mkiocccentry](#mkiocccentry)",
+the
+FAQ on "[using mkiocccentry](#using_mkiocccentry)",
+the
 FAQ on "[.info.json](#info_json)",
 the
 FAQ on "[.auth.json](#auth_json)",
@@ -766,6 +782,20 @@ number of files (including extra files) but also specific rules you must follow
 if you do include a tarball. Not following these points puts you at great risk
 of violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

+Also, remember what the [guidelines](next/guidelines.html) say:
+
+> **IMPORTANT REMINDER**: make **SURE** your tarball does **NOT** reveal who you are!
+The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool creates a v7 format tarball to prevent this.
+
+You can do this by creating the tarball like:
+
+
+``` <!---sh-->
+    tar --format=v7 -cJf foo.txz directory
+```
+
+
+
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">

@@ -873,19 +903,23 @@ Jump to: [top](#)

 There are unfortunately some warnings that cannot be disabled; they are always
 enabled whatever warning options you have enabled. Also, there is a warning that
-is enabled whenever you act on `char *`s, saying it is unsafe buffer usage, even
-when it's not. This might be enabled by `-Weverything` but it might not be; for
-more details on why we use `-Weverything` in Clang see the
-FAQ on "[-Weverything](#weverything)".
+is enabled whenever you use a pointer as a buffer, saying it is unsafe buffer
+usage, even when it is not.

-It is not detrimental to your submission if you disable this, which you can do
-by specifying `-Wno-unsafe-buffer-usage`.
+This might be enabled by `-Weverything` but it might not be but it is not
+detrimental to your submission if you disable this, which you can do by
+specifying `-Wno-unsafe-buffer-usage`.

 So in short, no you should not worry about these as they are sometimes
 inevitable in obfuscated code and even non-obfuscated code.

 If you *can* work past this it might be good but this is not something that
 should be worried about too much as this is on the compiler developers, not you.
+Of course if you do work past it feel free to brag, though **BE SURE TO TELL
+US** the OS, OS version, compiler and compiler version.
+
+For more details on why we use `-Weverything` in Clang see the FAQ on
+"[-Weverything](#weverything)".

 Jump to: [top](#)

@@ -1219,11 +1253,12 @@ verify everything is in order. If something is not allowed (bad filename for
 example) or an error occurs (missing required file for example) you will be
 notified of this. After you verify everything is okay the files/directories
 found will be copied/made and it will then switch to the submission directory.
-In the submission directory it scans the file hierarchy again and verifies
-things are still okay. When done it will ask you to verify things are still OK.
-If all is good it'll ask you for more information about the author(s). Next the
-two required JSON files `.auth.json` and `.info.json` will be created, running
-`chkentry(1)` on each. If all is good it'll give you another chance to say the
+In the submission directory it first runs `make clobber` and then scans the
+directory hierarchy again, verifying things are still okay. When done it will
+ask you to verify things still look OK to you too. If all is good it'll ask you
+for more information about the author(s). Next the two required JSON files
+`.auth.json` and `.info.json` will be created. After that `chkentry(1)` will be
+run on the directory. If all is good it'll give you another chance to say the
 files/directories look good and if you answer yes it'll create the tarball and
 run `txzchk` on it.

@@ -1369,21 +1404,18 @@ submission directory.
 13. Ask the user for a one line abstract of the submission.
 14. Ask the user for the number of authors and for each author ask a variety of
 questions (see below for more information on what kind of questions).
-15. Create `.info.json` and run `chkentry(1)` on it.
-    * If `chkentry(1)` fails to validate the file make sure that you have
-    obtained and compiled the latest version of all the tools and you either are
-    in the repo's directory, you pass the options to give the path to the tools
-    or you have installed the latest tools!
-16. Create `.auth.json` and run `chkentry(1)` on it.
-    * If `chkentry(1)` fails to validate the file make sure that you have
-    obtained and compiled the latest version of all the tools and you either are
-    in the repo's directory, you pass the options to give the path to the tools
-    or you have installed the latest tools!
-17. Show the output of `ls -lakR .`, asking the user to confirm that the listing
+15. Create `.info.json`.
+16. Create `.auth.json`.
+17. Run `chkentry(1)` on your submission directory to verify things look good,
+including that the `.info.json` and `.auth.json` files are okay.
+    * It also checks that the manifest in `.info.json` matches what is in the
+    submission directory and it verifies file permissions too; if you wish to
+    know what else it does we suggest you read the source code.
+18. Show the output of `ls -lakR .`, asking the user to confirm that the listing
 is okay.
-18. Create the tarball with the name in the form of
+19. Create the tarball with the name in the form of
 `submit.USERNAME-SLOT.TIMESTAMP`.
-19. Run `txzchk(1)` on the tarball.
+20. Run `txzchk(1)` on the tarball.

 If any of the steps fail or if the user says something is not okay, it aborts.
 Some of the other checks that are made:
@@ -1554,51 +1586,66 @@ Jump to: [top](#)

 <div id="validating_auth_info_json">
 <div id="chkentry">
-### Q 3.3: How can I validate my `.auth.json` and/or `.info.json` files?
+### Q 3.3: How can I validate my submission directory?
 </div>
 </div>

-If you want to validate the `.auth.json` or `.info.json` files you
-should use `chkentry(1)` from the [mkiocccentry
-repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry).
+If you want to validate your submission directory manually, including but not
+limited to the `.auth.json` or `.info.json` files, you should use `chkentry(1)`
+from the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry).

-The `chkentry(1)` tool uses the IOCCC version of the [jparse
+The `chkentry(1)` tool runs a variety of checks on your submission directory,
+including but not limited to, using the [jparse
 API](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/jparse/man/man3/jparse.3)
-to perform **additional** checks on these two IOCCC specific JSON files. It is
-_possible_ that this version will at times differ from the [official jparse
-API](https://github.com/xexyl/jparse/blob/master/man/man3/jparse.3) at the
-[official jparse repo](https://github.com/xexyl/jparse) and this is one of the
-reasons the tools' `-V` (version option) show the JSON parser version as well.
+to validate the two IOCCC specific JSON files (as valid JSON) and additional
+checks on those files as well. An important thing that it does is verify that
+your files are the right permissions and that the manifest in the `.info.json`
+files match what is in the directory. What all the checks are is out of scope of this
+document; if you wish to know we recommend you read the [source
+code](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/chkentry.c).
+
+**NOTE**: the IOCCC [jparse
+API](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/jparse/man/man3/jparse.3)
+is a synced copy of the [official jparse
+repo](https://github.com/xexyl/jparse) _at the time of the contest open date_.

 See the
 FAQ on "[.auth.json](#auth_json)"
 and
 FAQ on "[.info.json](#info_json)"
-for more details on these files.
+for more details on the two required and very important JSON files.
+
+The `chkentry(1)` tool accepts a single arg, a directory that **MUST** have the
+two JSON files, `.auth.json` and `.info.json`. (Okay there is an option to skip
+files but this is for the judges **ONLY**; use of this option to validate your
+submission puts you at a great risk of violating [Rule
+17](next/rules.html#rule17)!).
+
+As an example, if your submission directory is `12345678-1234-4321-abcd-1234567890ab-0/` then you should run the
+following command:

-The `chkentry(1)` tool accepts more than one command line form.
-You may specify a `.auth.json` and/or
-`.info.json` file. An argument of "`.`" will skip that file. For instance:

 ``` <!---sh-->
-    # run checks on .info.json:
-    chkentry . .info.json
-
-    # run checks on .auth.json:
-    chkentry .auth.json .
-
-    # run checks on .auth.json and .info.json:
-    chkentry .auth.json .info.json
+    chkentry 12345678-1234-4321-abcd-1234567890ab-0
 ```

 If there is a [JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) issue detected by the
-`jparse(3)` API, then there is a [JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) error and
-`chkentry(1)` will report it as an **error**. If the parsing is OK (i.e. valid
-JSON) but there is an issue in one or both of the
+`jparse(3)` API (i.e. it is not valid JSON) it is an error and `chkentry(1)`
+will report this, exiting with a non-zero exit code. If the parsing is OK (i.e.
+valid JSON) but there is an issue in one or both of the
 [JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) files in **the context of the IOCCC**,
-it will report this as an **error**. Thus, if you were to package your
-submission manually then you would be violating [Rule
-17](next/rules.html#rule17).
+it will report this as an **error**. It also does, as briefly noted above, other
+checks.
+
+If `chkentry(1)` fails to validate your submission directory your submission
+**WILL** be **REJECTED**! This is why you **MUST** make sure you use the
+`mkiocccentry(1)` tool to form your submission directory.
+
+See the
+FAQ on "[.auth.json](#auth_json)"
+and the
+FAQ on "[.info.json](#info_json)"
+as well as [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17) for more information.

 Jump to: [top](#)

@@ -1628,7 +1675,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `IOCCC_auth_version` (double quoted string)
    * The current version of the `.auth.json` file.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `.auth.json` version, defined as
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `.auth.json` version, defined as
    `AUTH_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1637,7 +1684,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `IOCCC_contest` (double quoted string)
    * Which contest number this is (e.g. 1 for 1984, 2 for 1985, 27 for 2020).

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest value, defined as
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest value, defined as
    `IOCCC_CONTEST` in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1649,7 +1696,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    **NOTE:** sometimes an IOCCC year runs into another year and the contest year
    might not match when it ends.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest, defined as
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest, defined as
    `IOCCC_YEAR` in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1658,17 +1705,17 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `mkiocccentry_version` (double quoted string)
    * The version of `mkiocccentry` that formed this `.auth.json` file.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `mkiocccentry` version,
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `mkiocccentry` version,
    defined as `MKIOCCCENTRY_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
    this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected!

 - `chkentry_version` (double quoted string)
-    * The version of `chkentry` that was used to validate this `.auth.json`,
-    assuming that it was created by `mkiocccentry`.
+    * The version of `chkentry` that was used to validate the submission
+    directory, including the `.auth.json` file.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `chkentry` version, defined
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `chkentry` version, defined
    as `CHKENTRY_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1678,7 +1725,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    * The version of `fnamchk` that `txzchk` uses to validate the filename of
    the xz compressed tarball.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `fnamchk` version in order for it
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `fnamchk` version in order for it
    to be valid. If this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected!

 - `IOCCC_contest_id` (double quoted string)
@@ -1693,19 +1740,20 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `tarball` (double quoted string)
    * The xz compressed tarball filename.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match the actual tarball's **filename** in order for
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match the actual tarball's **filename** in order for
    this to be valid. If there is a mismatch you stand a great risk of having
    your submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!
    Moreover, it is possible that `txzchk` will report a problem through
    `fnamchk(1)` which also puts you at great risk of violating [Rule
-    17](next/rules.html#rule17). If `txzchk` does not detect this, though, it
-    does not mean it's a bug but rather that the directory in the tarball
-    matches the filename.
+    17](next/rules.html#rule17). `txzchk` will use the output of `fnamchk` to
+    obtain the correct directory _name_ in the tarball; if `fnamchk` fails to
+    validate your filename, or if you have the wrong directory name in the
+    tarball, this will be flaggd.

 - `submit_slot` (number)
    * The submission number.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be within the range of 0 **THROUGH**
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be within the range of 0 **THROUGH**
    `MAX_SUBMIT_SLOT` (see
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)). If
@@ -1715,7 +1763,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `author_count` (number)
    * How many authors this submission has.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be within the range of 1 **THROUGH**
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be within the range of 1 **THROUGH**
    `MAX_AUTHORS` (see
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)). If
@@ -1734,71 +1782,74 @@ Next, the JSON `authors` **array** holds the following information about the
 author(s) of the submission:

 - `name` (double quoted string)
-     * The **name** of this author.
+    * The **name** of this author.

 - `location_code` (double quoted string)
-     * The **location code** of this author (an ISO 3166-1 2 character code).
+    * The **location code** of this author (an ISO 3166-1 2 character code).
     See
     <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-1_alpha-2#Officially_assigned_code_elements>
     for a list of valid codes.

-     **NOTE:** in `mkiocccentry` use `XX` if you want your location to be anonymous.
+    **NOTE:** in `mkiocccentry` use `XX` if you want your location to be anonymous.

 - `email` (`null` or double quoted string)
-     * The **email** of this author in the form of `x@y`, or `null` if not provided.
+    * The **email** of this author in the form of `x@y`, or `null` if not provided.

 - `url` (`null` or double quoted string)
-     * The primary **URL** of this author, or `null` if not provided.
+    * The primary **URL** of this author, or `null` if not provided.
+    * The URL must start with `http://` or `https://` and have more text after it;
+    we do not even try and detect a hostname.

 - `alt_url` (`null` or double quoted string)
-     * The **alt URL** of this author, or `null` if not provided.
+    * The **alt URL** of this author, or `null` if not provided.
+    * The URL must start with `http://` or `https://` and have more text after it;
+    we do not even try and detect a hostname.

 - `mastodon` (`null` or double quoted string)
-     * The Mastodon handle of this author in the form of `@user@domain`, or
+    * The Mastodon handle of this author in the form of `@user@domain`, or
     `null` if not provided.  See the
     FAQ on "[Mastodon](#try_mastodon)"
     for more information.
-
 - `github` (`null` or double quoted string)
-     * The **[GitHub](https://github.com) account** of this author in the form of `@user`, or `null` if not
+    * The **[GitHub](https://github.com) account** of this author in the form of `@user`, or `null` if not
     provided.

 - `affiliation` (`null` or double quoted string)
-     * This author's **affiliation**, if any, or `null` if not provided.
+    * This author's **affiliation**, if any, or `null` if not provided.

-    **NOTE:** if provided, the length of the **affiliation** **MUST** be within
+    **IMPORTANT:** if provided, the length of the **affiliation** **MUST** be within
    the range of 1 **THROUGH** `MAX_AFFILIATION_LEN` (see
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)). If
    this is not the case you stand a great risk of having your submission
    rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

-     **NOTE:** an **affiliation** does **NOT** have any affect on whether you will win or not.
+    **NOTE:** an **affiliation** does **NOT** have any affect on whether you will win or not.

 - `past_winning_author` (boolean)
-     * `true` if this author claims to have won a past IOCCC, `false` if this
-     author has **NOT** won before.
+    * `true` if this author claims to have won a past IOCCC, `false` if this
+      author has **NOT** won before.

-     **NOTE:** this has **NO** effect on whether you will win or not.
+    **NOTE:** this has **NO** effect on whether you will win or not.

 - `default_handle` (boolean)
-     * `true` if this default handle was accepted, `false` if one is provided
+    * `true` if this default handle was accepted, `false` if one is provided
     by this author.

 - `author_handle` (double quoted string)
-     * This author's handle (custom or default provided).
+    * This author's handle (custom or default provided).

-     **NOTE:** if you have won before, we **ENCOURAGE** you to use the same handle of
-     your previous winning entries, to help in organising the
-     [authors.html](authors.html) page and the author JSON file.
-     See the
-     FAQ on "[author handle](#author_handle_faq)"
-     and the
-     FAQ on "[author_handle.json](#author_json)"
-     for more information.
+    **NOTE:** if you have won before, we **ENCOURAGE** you to use the same handle of
+    your previous winning entries, to help in organising the
+    [authors.html](authors.html) page and the author JSON file.
+    See the
+    FAQ on "[author handle](#author_handle_faq)"
+    and the
+    FAQ on "[author_handle.json](#author_json)"
+    for more information.

 - `author_number` (number)
-     * This author number in the `authors` array.
+    * This author number in the `authors` array.

 After the `authors` **array** the remaining of a `.auth.json` file holds:

@@ -1807,7 +1858,7 @@ After the `authors` **array** the remaining of a `.auth.json` file holds:
    FAQ on "[.info.json](#info_json)"
    for more information.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be greater than or equal to `MIN_TIMESTAMP` (see
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be greater than or equal to `MIN_TIMESTAMP` (see
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)). If
    this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected.
@@ -1816,7 +1867,7 @@ After the `authors` **array** the remaining of a `.auth.json` file holds:
    * Microseconds since the tstamp (seconds since epoch when `.auth.json` was
    formed - see `gettimeofday(2)`) second.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be within the range `MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC`
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be within the range `MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC`
    **THROUGH** `MAX_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC` and is validated by
    `test_formed_timestamp_usec()` in
    [soup/entry_util.c](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/entry_util.c)
@@ -1827,7 +1878,7 @@ After the `authors` **array** the remaining of a `.auth.json` file holds:
 - `timestamp_epoch` (double quoted string)
    * `"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"`  (`gettimeofday(2)` epoch).

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be `"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"` which is `#define`d
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be `"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"` which is `#define`d
    as `TIMESTAMP_EPOCH` in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1836,33 +1887,38 @@ After the `authors` **array** the remaining of a `.auth.json` file holds:
 - `min_timestamp` (number)
    * Minimum number of second since epoch for **this** IOCCC.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be >= `MIN_TIMESTAMP` defined in
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be >= `MIN_TIMESTAMP` defined in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
    this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected!

-This file will be verified with the `chkentry(1)` tool and if there are any
-problems **it is an error**. If there is an error the tarball will **NOT** be
-formed by `mkiocccentry`; otherwise the `txzchk(1)` tool will be executed on the
-tarball.
+This file will be validated with the `chkentry(1)` tool and if there are any
+problems with it or the submission directory, **it is an error**. If there is an
+error the tarball will **NOT** be formed by `mkiocccentry`; otherwise the
+`txzchk(1)` tool will be executed on the tarball.

-This file will **NOT** be looked at unless the submission wins! Nonetheless,
-`chkentry(1)` **WILL BE** used on the file as part of the judging process.
+This file will **NOT** be looked at unless the submission wins! Nonetheless, the
+file **MUST** be present in the submission directory and it **MUST** be valid
+JSON and it **MUST** pass all IOCCC semantics checks and all other checks
+`chkentry(1)` perform. `chkentry(1)` is used by `mkiocccentry(1)` and the judges
+will use it on the submission directory as part of the judging process.

 At the risk of stating the obvious, if your `.auth.json` file is invalid JSON or
-is reported invalid by `chkentry` your submission will almost certainly be
+is reported invalid by `chkentry(1)`, or if your submission directory is
+reported invalid by `chkentry(1)`, your submission will almost certainly be
 rejected for violating the [Rules](next/rules.html) and in particular [Rule
 17](next/rules.html#rule17).

-An obvious example where `chkentry` would fail to validate `.auth.json` is if
+An obvious example where `chkentry(1)` would fail to validate `.auth.json` is if
 there is a mismatch of type in the JSON file with what is expected, for
 instance, if in `.auth.json` the `no_comment` that we chose to not comment on is
-not a string. Another obvious example is when things are out of range (see above
-for list). Two more examples would be if a field is missing or if an unknown
-filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others that must be established as
-valid by `chkentry`) your submission would be rejected for violating [Rule
-17](next/rules.html#rule17) and in particular because `chkentry` would not
-validate the `.auth.json` file.
+not a string or is the wrong string. Another obvious example is when things are
+out of range (see above for list). Two more examples would be if a field is
+missing or if an unknown filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others
+that must be established as valid by `chkentry(1)`) your submission would be
+rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17) and in particular
+because `chkentry(1)` would not validate the `.auth.json` file (and maybe other
+things too).

 If you wish to **verify** that your `.auth.json` file is valid **JSON** then see the
 FAQ on "[validating JSON documents](#validating_json)".
@@ -1904,7 +1960,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `IOCCC_info_version` (double quoted string)
    * The current version of the `.info.json` files.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `.info.json` version, defined as
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `.info.json` version, defined as
    `INFO_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1913,7 +1969,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `IOCCC_contest` (double quoted string)
    * Which contest number this is (e.g. 1 for 1984, 2 for 1985, 27 for 2020).

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest value, defined as
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest value, defined as
    `IOCCC_CONTEST` in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1925,7 +1981,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    **NOTE:** sometimes an IOCCC year runs into another year and the contest year
    might not match when it ends.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest, defined as
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's contest, defined as
    `IOCCC_YEAR` in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1934,7 +1990,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `mkiocccentry_version` (double quoted string)
    * The version of `mkiocccentry` that formed this `.auth.json` file.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `mkiocccentry` version,
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `mkiocccentry` version,
    defined as `MKIOCCCENTRY_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1943,17 +1999,17 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `iocccsize_version` (double quoted string)
    * The version of `iocccsize` that was used for this `.info.json` file.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `iocccentry` version,
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `iocccentry` version,
    defined as `IOCCCSIZE_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
    this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected!

 - `chkentry_version` (double quoted string)
-    * The version of `chkentry` that was used to validate this `.info.json`,
-    assuming that it was created by `mkiocccentry`.
+    * The version of `chkentry` that was used to validate the submission
+    directory, including the `.info.json` file.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `chkentry` version, defined
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `chkentry` version, defined
    as `CHKENTRY_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1963,7 +2019,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    * The version of `fnamchk` that `txzchk` uses to validate the filename of
    the xz compressed tarball.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `fnamchk` version, defined
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `fnamchk` version, defined
    as `FNAMCHK_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1972,7 +2028,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `txzchk_version` (double quoted string)
    * The version of `txzchk` used to validate the xz compressed tarball.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `txzchk` version, defined
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match **THIS** IOCCC's `txzchk` version, defined
    as `TXZCHK_VERSION` in
    [soup/version.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/version.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -1983,15 +2039,10 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    a UUID** and submission number; see the [rules](next/rules.html) for more details
    on this, and in particular [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17).

-    **NOTE:** if the contest ID is **NOT** in this format then `fnamchk` will
-    report it as an **error** and your submission **WILL BE** rejected for
-    violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!
-
-
 - `submit_slot` (number)
    * The submission number.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be within the range of 0 **THROUGH**
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be within the range of 0 **THROUGH**
    `MAX_SUBMIT_SLOT` (see
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)). If
@@ -2004,7 +2055,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)) that
    matches the regexp `[a-z0-9][a-z0-9_+-]*`.

-    **NOTE:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great risk of having your submission
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great risk of having your submission
    rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

 - `abstract` (double quoted string)
@@ -2015,33 +2066,34 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:

    The `abstract` may not contain a `;` (semicolon), nor `&` (ampersand), nor `,` (comma).

-    **NOTE:** if your abstract is 0 in length or > the maximum abstract length you
+    **IMPORTANT:** if your abstract is 0 in length or > the maximum abstract length you
    stand a great risk of having your submission rejected for violating [Rule
    17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

 - `tarball` (double quoted string)
    * The xz compressed tarball filename.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** match the actual tarball's **filename** in order for
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** match the actual tarball's **filename** in order for
    this to be valid. If there is a mismatch you stand a great risk of having
    your submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!
    Moreover, it is possible that `txzchk` will report a problem through
    `fnamchk(1)` which also puts you at great risk of violating [Rule
-    17](next/rules.html#rule17). If `txzchk` does not detect this, though, it
-    does not mean it's a bug but rather that the directory in the tarball
-    matches the filename.
+    17](next/rules.html#rule17). `txzchk` will use the output of `fnamchk` to
+    obtain the correct directory _name_ in the tarball; if `fnamchk` fails to
+    validate your filename, or if you have the wrong directory name in the
+    tarball, this will be flaggd.

 - `rule_2a_size` (number)
    * The size calculated of [Rule 2a](next/rules.html#rule2a).

-    **NOTE:** if this violates [Rule 2a](next/rules.html#rule2a) you stand a great
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this violates [Rule 2a](next/rules.html#rule2a) you stand a great
    chance of having your submission rejected for violating the
    [Rules](next/rules.html)!

 - `rule_2b_size` (number)
    * The size calculated of [Rule 2b](next/rules.html#rule2b).

-    **NOTE:** if this violates [Rule 2b](next/rules.html#rule2b) you stand a great
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this violates [Rule 2b](next/rules.html#rule2b) you stand a great
    chance of having your submission rejected for violating the
    [Rules](next/rules.html)!

@@ -2052,7 +2104,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    * `true` if user overrides warning of [Rule 2a](next/rules.html#rule2a)
    violation, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the [Rule 2a](next/rules.html#rule2a) calculated size is **NOT**
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the [Rule 2a](next/rules.html#rule2a) calculated size is **NOT**
    violated but this is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2064,7 +2116,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    * `true` if user overrides warning of [Rule 2b](next/rules.html#rule2b)
    violation, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the [Rule 2b](next/rules.html#rule2b) calculated size is **NOT**
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the [Rule 2b](next/rules.html#rule2b) calculated size is **NOT**
    violated but this is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2085,7 +2137,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    * `true` if `prog.c` triggered a word buffer overflow (see `iocccsize`),
    else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** this does **NOT** mean that your code has been checked for buffer
+    **IMPORTANT:** this does **NOT** mean that your code has been checked for buffer
    overflows in general.

 - `ungetc_warning` (boolean)
@@ -2095,7 +2147,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
    * `true` if the user overrides any warnings about an incomplete/incorrect
    `Makefile` file, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the `Makefile` file has no problems and this is `true` then
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the `Makefile` file has no problems and this is `true` then
    you stand a good chance of having your submission rejected for violating
    [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2106,7 +2158,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `first_rule_is_all` (boolean)
    * `true` if the first rule in the `Makefile` file is `all`, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `all` rule or it is not
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `all` rule or it is not
    first and this boolean is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2117,7 +2169,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `found_all_rule` (boolean)
    * `true` if the `Makefile` file has an `all` rule, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `all` rule and this
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `all` rule and this
    boolean is `true`, or if it does **NOT** have an `all` rule but
    `first_rule_is_all` is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!
@@ -2129,7 +2181,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `found_clean_rule` (boolean)
    * `true` if the `Makefile` file has a `clean` rule, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have a `clean` rule and this
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have a `clean` rule and this
    boolean is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your submission
    rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2140,7 +2192,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `found_clobber_rule` (boolean)
    * `true` if the `Makefile` file has a `clobber` rule, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `clobber` rule and this
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `clobber` rule and this
    boolean is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your submission
    rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2151,7 +2203,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `found_try_rule` (boolean)
    * `true` if the `Makefile` file has a `try` rule, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have an `try` rule and this
+    **IMPORTANT:** if the `Makefile` file does **NOT** have a `try` rule and this
    boolean is `true` then you stand a good chance of having your submission
    rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

@@ -2162,7 +2214,7 @@ In order of the file's contents we describe each required field, below:
 - `test_mode` (boolean)
    * `true` if the `test` ID was used to form the tarball, else `false`.

-    **NOTE:** if this is `true` then this may **NOT** be submitted to the
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is `true` then this may **NOT** be submitted to the
    contest! Please do **NOT** email the [Judges](judges.html) your submission!

 Next comes the `manifest` **array** which **MUST** have AT LEAST the following.
@@ -2177,8 +2229,9 @@ The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will write it in this order:
    FAQ on "[.info.json](#info_json)"
    for more information.

-    **NOTE:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
-    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a
+    great chance of having your submission rejected for violating [Rule
+    17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

 - `auth_JSON` (double quoted string)
    * This `MUST` be `".auth.json"`, defined as `AUTH_JSON_FILENAME` in
@@ -2189,7 +2242,7 @@ The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will write it in this order:
    FAQ on "[.auth.json](#auth_json)"
    for more information.

-    **NOTE:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

 - `c_src` (double quoted string)
@@ -2198,12 +2251,9 @@ The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will write it in this order:
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/), and
    is your submission source code.

-    **NOTE:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

-    **NOTE:** if you provide to `mkiocccentry` a different filename it will be
-    copied to `prog.c`.
-
 - `Makefile` (double quoted string)
    * This `MUST` be `"Makefile"`, defined as `MAKEFILE_FILENAME` in
    [soup/entry_util.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/entry_util.h)
@@ -2213,12 +2263,9 @@ The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will write it in this order:
    FAQ on "[Makefile](#makefile)"
    for more information.

-    **NOTE:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

-    **NOTE:** if you provide to `mkiocccentry` a different filename it will be
-    copied to `Makefile`.
-
 - `remarks` (double quoted string)
    * This `MUST` be `"remarks.md"`, defined as `REMARKS_FILENAME` in
    [soup/entry_util.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/entry_util.h)
@@ -2228,35 +2275,33 @@ The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool will write it in this order:
    FAQ on "[remarks.md](#remarks_md)"
    for more information.

-    **NOTE:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
+    **IMPORTANT:** if this is **NOT** the case you stand a great chance of having your
    submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)!

-    **NOTE:** if you provide to `mkiocccentry` a different filename it will be
-    copied to `remarks.md`.
-
 The `manifest` **array** also **OPTIONALLY** has one or more of the field:

 - `extra_file` (double quoted string)

    * Any additional file that you need or want to include with your submission.

-    **NOTE:** this MUST **NOT** match a mandatory filename (see above list) and
-    `chkentry` will verify this for you; it is **ALSO** an **error** if the
-    filenames are not unique. In these cases you stand a great risk of having
-    your submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17)! On
-    the other hand, **ONLY** `mkiocccentry` will verify that the files exist and
-    can be read; `txzchk(1)` will **NOT** do this for you as it only **LISTS**
-    the tarball: it does **NOT** extract it. Even so, the [Judges](judges.html)
-    **WILL** extract the tarball and if a file listed in the manifest does not
-    exist your submission will very likely be rejected for not being as
-    documented!
+    **IMPORTANT:** this MUST **NOT** match a mandatory filename (see above list)
+    and `chkentry` will verify this for you; it is **ALSO** an **error** if the
+    filenames are not unique, not POSIX plus + safe chars only, if they are the
+    wrong permission and various other things. In these cases you stand a great
+    risk of having your submission rejected for violating [Rule
+    17](next/rules.html#rule17)! On the other hand, **ONLY** `mkiocccentry` will
+    verify that the files exist and can be read; `txzchk(1)` will **NOT** do
+    this for you as it only **LISTS** the tarball: it does **NOT** extract it.
+    Even so, the [Judges](judges.html) **WILL** extract the tarball and if a
+    file listed in the manifest does not exist your submission will very likely
+    be rejected for not being as documented!

 Finally, after the `manifest` **array**, the following fields **MUST** exist:

 - `formed_timestamp` (number)
    * Seconds since epoch when JSON (`.auth.json` or `.info.json`) file was formed (see `gettimeofday(2)`).

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be greater than or equal to `MIN_TIMESTAMP` (see
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be greater than or equal to `MIN_TIMESTAMP` (see
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/)). If
    this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected.
@@ -2265,7 +2310,7 @@ Finally, after the `manifest` **array**, the following fields **MUST** exist:
    * Microseconds since the tstamp (seconds since epoch when `.auth.json` was
    formed - see `gettimeofday(2)`) second.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be within the range `MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC`
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be within the range `MIN_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC`
    **THROUGH** `MAX_FORMED_TIMESTAMP_USEC` and is validated by
    `test_formed_timestamp_usec()` in
    [soup/entry_util.c](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/entry_util.c)
@@ -2276,7 +2321,7 @@ Finally, after the `manifest` **array**, the following fields **MUST** exist:
 - `timestamp_epoch` (double quoted string)
    * `"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"`  (`gettimeofday(2)` epoch).

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be `"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"` which is `#define`d
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be `"Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 UTC"` which is `#define`d
    as `TIMESTAMP_EPOCH` in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
@@ -2285,14 +2330,15 @@ Finally, after the `manifest` **array**, the following fields **MUST** exist:
 - `min_timestamp` (number)
    * Minimum number of second since epoch for **this** IOCCC.

-    **NOTE:** this **MUST** be >= `MIN_TIMESTAMP` defined in
+    **IMPORTANT:** this **MUST** be >= `MIN_TIMESTAMP` defined in
    [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
    in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/). If
    this is not the case your submission **WILL BE** rejected!

-This file will be verified with the `chkentry(1)` tool and if there are any
-problems **it is an error** and the tarball will **NOT** be formed by
-`mkiocccentry`; otherwise the `txzchk(1)` tool will be executed on the tarball.
+This file will be validated with the `chkentry(1)` tool and if there are any
+problems with it or the submission directory, **it is an error**. If there is an
+error the tarball will **NOT** be formed by `mkiocccentry`; otherwise the
+`txzchk(1)` tool will be executed on the tarball.

 The [Judges](judges.html) **WILL** use `chkentry(1)` on this file during the
 judging process and if it does not pass your submission **WILL BE** rejected.
@@ -2300,12 +2346,12 @@ judging process and if it does not pass your submission **WILL BE** rejected.
 An obvious example where `chkentry` would fail to validate `.info.json` is if
 there is a mismatch of type in the JSON file with what is expected, for
 instance, if in `.info.json` the `no_comment` that we chose to not comment on is
-not a string. Another obvious example is when things are out of range (see above
-for list). Two more examples would be if a field is missing or if an unknown
-filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others that must be established as
-valid by `chkentry`) your submission would be rejected for violating [Rule
-17](next/rules.html#rule17) and in particular because `chkentry` would not
-validate the `.info.json` file.
+not a string or is the wrong string. Another obvious example is when things are
+out of range (see above for list). Two more examples would be if a field is
+missing or if an unknown filed is in the file. In these cases (and any others
+that must be established as valid by `chkentry`) your submission would be
+rejected for violating [Rule 17](next/rules.html#rule17) and in particular
+because `chkentry` would not validate the `.info.json` file.

 If you wish to **verify** that your `.info.json` file is valid **JSON** then see the
 FAQ on "[validating JSON documents](#validating_json)".
@@ -4780,6 +4826,7 @@ below note) this would be advisable.
 a defect of `clang` that required numerous entries to be fixed for clang is that it
 requires that `main()`'s arguments to be of a specific type. However some
 versions of `clang` are more strict in the number of args allowed.
+
 Jump to: [top](#)

 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
@@ -436,8 +436,9 @@ Mastodon</a> feed as <em>sometimes</em> the
 <p>See our
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#feedback">rules, guidelines, tools feedback</a>”
 as well as our
-FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#question">about asking questions</a>”
-about these guidelines. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, especially the
+FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#question">asking questions</a>”
+about these rules. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, as well as the
+<a href="../quick-start.html">quick start guide</a> and <a href="register.html">how to register</a>.
 FAQ on “<a href="../quick-start.html#enter">how to enter the IOCCC</a>”.</p>
 <h1 id="the-ioccc-is-pending">The IOCCC is pending</h1>
 <p>While the IOCCC is not open yet, there is a tentative opening date for the next IOCCC.</p>
@@ -461,11 +462,11 @@ writing by <a href="../contact.html">contacting the judges</a>.</p>
 </div>
 </div>
 <p class="leftbar">
-These <a href="guidelines.html">IOCCC guidelines</a> are version <strong>28.38 2025-02-12</strong>.
+These <a href="guidelines.html">IOCCC guidelines</a> are version <strong>28.39 2025-02-26</strong>.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The <a href="guidelines.md" download="guidelines.md">markdown form of these guidelines</a>
-is available for download.
+The markdown form of these guidelines <a href="guidelines.md"
+download="guidelines.md">is available for download</a>.
 </p>
 <p><strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: Be <strong>SURE</strong> to read the <a href="rules.html">IOCCC rules</a>.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
@@ -602,11 +603,12 @@ The <code>-d</code> option is an alias for <code>-s 21701</code>. An example use
 </p>
 <pre><code>    mkiocccentry -d workdir topdir</code></pre>
 <p class="leftbar">
-where <code>workdir</code> is the directory which the tarball will be formed and the
+where <code>workdir</code> is the directory where the tarball will be formed and the
 <code>topdir</code> is the directory which has the required files (<code>prog.c</code>, <code>Makefile</code> and
-<code>remarks.md</code>) along with extra data files you wish to submit. Be aware
-that if the directory exists already, you will have to remove it or move it
-before this option will work a second time, just like in normal mode.
+<code>remarks.md</code>) along with extra data files (and if you wish, directories) you
+wish to submit. Be aware that if the directory exists already, you will have to
+remove it or move it before this option will work a second time, just like in
+normal mode.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 <strong>IMPORTANT NOTE</strong>: if you run the program outside the repo directory
@@ -616,9 +618,10 @@ are required like <code>chkentry(1)</code>, <code>txzchk(1)</code> and <code>fna
 have installed them but some tools are out of date (in the install path) it will
 cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent version when
 submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right versions of
-the tools. This is why you <strong>MUST</strong> make sure you have the most recent
-version of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR
-you install them (<code>make install</code> as root or via <code>sudo</code>).
+the tools. This is why you <strong>MUST</strong> make sure you have the most recent version
+of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR you
+install them (<code>make install</code> as via <code>sudo</code> or as root). We recommend you install
+the tools but if you wish to run it from the repo directory you may.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 <a href="rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a> has been <strong>significantly modified</strong>
@@ -652,8 +655,8 @@ previously uploaded submission by rebuilding your submission with the
 To help you with this, so that you do not have to repeatedly answer all the
 questions, the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool has the options <code>-a answers</code>, <code>-A answers</code>
 and <code>-i answers</code>, where <code>-a</code> will write to an answers file (if it does not
-already exist), <code>-A</code> will overwrite the file and <code>-i</code> will read the answers from
-the file. If you use <code>-A</code>, be sure you don’t overwrite another file by accident!
+already exist), <code>-A</code> <strong>WILL OVERWRITE THE FILE</strong> and <code>-i</code> will read the answers from
+the file. If you use <code>-A</code>, <strong>BE SURE</strong> you don’t overwrite another file by accident!
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 Once the contest enters the <strong><a href="../status.html#judging">judging</a></strong> state, you will
@@ -854,10 +857,11 @@ its algorithm.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 If <code>mkiocccentry</code> encounters an <strong>error</strong> the program will exit and the xz
-compressed tarball <strong>will not be formed</strong>. For instance, if <code>chkentry(1)</code> (see
-below) fails to validate the <code>.auth.json</code> or <code>.info.json</code>
-<a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> files (see below) that <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> creates,
-it is an error and <strong>possibly</strong> a bug that you should <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report as a bug at the
+compressed tarball <strong>will not be formed</strong>. For instance, if
+<a href="#chkentry">chkentry(1)</a> fails to validate the <code>.auth.json</code> or <code>.info.json</code>
+<a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> files (see below) that
+<code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> creates, or anything else <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> does, it is an
+<strong>error</strong> and <strong>possibly</strong> a bug that you should <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report as a bug at the
 mkiocccentry bug report
 page</a>.
 <strong>PLEASE run the <code>bug_report.sh</code> script to help us out here!</strong> See the
@@ -878,7 +882,9 @@ Needless to say, we do <strong>NOT</strong> recommend these options.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 In many places it will prompt you to verify what you input, allowing you to
-correct details as you go along.
+correct details as you go along. Be advised that there is a default answer and
+if you press enter it will proceed with that default, so make sure you have
+provided the correct answer.
 </p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <div id="mkiocccentry-synopsis">
@@ -891,9 +897,10 @@ The synopsis of the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool is:
 <p class="leftbar">
 To help you with editing a submission, the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool has
 some options to write <em>OR</em> read from an answers file so you do not have to input
-the information about the author(s) and the submission more than once (unless of
+the information about the author(s) and the submission more than once, unless of
 course you need to make some changes, in which case you can use the option that
-overwrites the file).
+overwrites the file. If you do use the overwrite option, <strong>MAKE SURE</strong> you do
+not overwrite another file!
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 See the
@@ -911,8 +918,9 @@ execute one or more additional tools.
 </p>
 <h2 id="iocccsize"><code>iocccsize</code></h2>
 <p class="leftbar">
-<code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> will use code from <code>iocccsize(1)</code> which
-detects a number of issues that you may ignore, if you wish, as noted above.
+<code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> will use code from <code>iocccsize(1)</code> which detects a number of
+issues (such as <a href="rules.html#rule2">Rule 2</a>) that you may ignore, if you wish, as
+noted above.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 In other words, you no longer need to run <code>iocccsize</code> manually. However, the
@@ -929,7 +937,12 @@ submission. These files <strong>MUST</strong> pass the checks of <code>chkentry(
 If <code>chkentry</code> does not pass and you used <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> it is <strong>very likely</strong> a
 bug and you should <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry issues
 page</a>.
-See the
+<strong>PLEASE</strong> run the command:
+</p>
+<pre><code>    make bug_report</code></pre>
+<p class="leftbar">
+from the top level repo directory itself.
+See also the
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#mkiocccentry_bugs">reporting mkiocccentry bugs</a>”.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -939,10 +952,15 @@ executed on it. In this case, there should be no problems, as <code>mkiocccentry
 <strong>NOT</strong> form a tarball if there are any issues.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-If <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> is used and <code>chkentry(1)</code> fails to validate either of the
-files, then unless it is a system specific problem, it is likely a bug in
+<strong>NOTE</strong>: <code>chkentry(1)</code> also validates other things in your submission
+directory.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+If <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> is used and <code>chkentry(1)</code> fails to validate your submission
+directory, then unless it is a system specific problem, it could be a bug in
 <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>, <code>chkentry(1)</code> or possibly <code>jparse</code>, though this is quite
-unlikely.
+unlikely. Nonetheless, if you believe there is a bug, you may report it as
+explained above.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 If you want to know what <code>.auth.json</code> is, see the
@@ -993,15 +1011,16 @@ installed separately, in order to use the tools in <code>mkiocccentry</code>.
 In other words, <code>mkiocccentry</code> <strong>contains everything</strong> you need, and <em>even if you
 do install</em> the libraries from their respective repos, it/they will <strong>not be
 used</strong> when compiling the <code>mkiocccentry</code> tools. This is important to
-make sure that you’re using the correct versions, which is verified by
-<code>chkentry</code>. See <a href="rules.html#rule17">Rule 17</a>!
+make sure that you’re using the correct versions, which is also verified by
+<code>chkentry</code> (in the JSON files created by <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>). See <a href="rules.html#rule17">Rule
+17</a>!
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 Please see the
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#chkentry">validating .auth.json and/or .info.json files</a>
 for more details on <code>chkentry</code> and how you can use it to validate your
-<code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code> files manually, without having to repackage your
-submission.
+<code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code> files (and your submission directory in general)
+manually, without having to repackage your submission.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 You might also wish to see the
@@ -1018,7 +1037,8 @@ compressed tarball; if any issues are found (‘<code>feathers are stuck in the
 <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code></strong>, then it is <strong>possibly</strong> a bug in one of the tools and you
 might want to <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry bug report
 page</a>. <strong>PLEASE run the
-<code>bug_report.sh</code> script to help us out here!</strong> See the
+<code>bug_report.sh</code> script to help us out here!</strong> You may do this by running from
+the top level directory of the repo <code>make bug_report</code>. See the
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#mkiocccentry_bugs">report mkiocccentry bugs</a>”.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -1055,9 +1075,9 @@ an extra file, not an optional file.
 <p class="leftbar">
 In particular, any file that is not <code>prog.c</code>, <code>Makefile</code>, <code>remarks.md</code>,
 <code>try.sh</code>, <code>prog.alt.c</code> or <code>try.alt.sh</code> will be counted as an extra file, and if
-<code>try.sh</code>, <code>prog.alt.c</code> or <code>try.alt.sh</code> are not in the top level directory they
-will also be counted as an extra file. The <code>.info.json</code> and <code>.auth.json</code> files
-are not counted as extra files but are required.
+<code>try.sh</code>, <code>prog.alt.c</code> or <code>try.alt.sh</code> are not in the top level submission
+directory they will also be counted as an extra file. The <code>.info.json</code> and
+<code>.auth.json</code> files are not counted as extra files but are required.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 In other words, the actual amount of <strong>EXTRA</strong> files is 31.
@@ -1078,7 +1098,9 @@ section</a> for more details on this important tool.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 If you <strong>DO</strong> include a tarball, and the build process or the program extracts
-said tarball(s), the make <code>clobber</code> rule <strong>MUST</strong> remove them.
+said tarball(s), the make <code>clobber</code> rule <strong>MUST</strong> remove them. Even so, if you
+include a tarball to get past the limit on the number of files, you <strong>MUST</strong>
+justify this in your remarks!
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 <strong>IMPORTANT REMINDER</strong>: make <strong>SURE</strong> your tarball does <strong>NOT</strong> reveal who you are!
@@ -1442,6 +1464,10 @@ use of <code>git(1)</code> or <code>gh(1)</code>, just be sure that your submiss
 submission Makefile don’t depend on such tools.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
+Of course if you do use GitHub to work on your submission, you might want to
+make the repo private so you don’t reveal who you are. :-)
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
 If this is not clear, please do <strong>NOT</strong> use these tools to help with the
 <code>clobber</code> rule! For instance, do <strong>NOT</strong> use <code>git clean</code>! Not only does this
 depend on the user having <code>git(1)</code> but it also does not account for the
@@ -1461,6 +1487,12 @@ In other words, for <code>make clobber</code>, do something like:
 <p class="leftbar">
 And do <strong>NOT</strong> use <code>git</code> for any other tool either.
 </p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+<strong>NOTE</strong>: <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> will directly run <code>make clobber</code> in the submission
+directory. An although it is not an error if this fails, if it fails because the
+Makefile does not have a clobber rule, it will be flagged by <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>
+(you may ignore this but it does put you at a risk of violating the rules).
+</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <div id="likes">
 <div id="dislikes">
@@ -14,8 +14,9 @@ Mastodon](https://fosstodon.org/@ioccc) feed as _sometimes_ the
 See our
 FAQ on "[rules, guidelines, tools feedback](../faq.html#feedback)"
 as well as our
-FAQ on "[about asking questions](../faq.html#question)"
-about these guidelines. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, especially the
+FAQ on "[asking questions](../faq.html#question)"
+about these rules. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, as well as the
+[quick start guide](../quick-start.html) and [how to register](register.html).
 FAQ on "[how to enter the IOCCC](../quick-start.html#enter)".


@@ -49,12 +50,12 @@ Jump to: [top](#)
 </div>

 <p class="leftbar">
-These [IOCCC guidelines](guidelines.html) are version **28.38 2025-02-12**.
+These [IOCCC guidelines](guidelines.html) are version **28.39 2025-02-26**.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The <a href="guidelines.md" download="guidelines.md">markdown form of these guidelines</a>
-is available for download.
+The markdown form of these guidelines <a href="guidelines.md"
+download="guidelines.md">is available for download</a>.
 </p>

 **IMPORTANT**: Be **SURE** to read the [IOCCC rules](rules.html).
@@ -226,11 +227,12 @@ The `-d` option is an alias for `-s 21701`. An example use:
 ```

 <p class="leftbar">
-where `workdir` is the directory which the tarball will be formed and the
+where `workdir` is the directory where the tarball will be formed and the
 `topdir` is the directory which has the required files (`prog.c`, `Makefile` and
-`remarks.md`) along with extra data files you wish to submit. Be aware
-that if the directory exists already, you will have to remove it or move it
-before this option will work a second time, just like in normal mode.
+`remarks.md`) along with extra data files (and if you wish, directories) you
+wish to submit. Be aware that if the directory exists already, you will have to
+remove it or move it before this option will work a second time, just like in
+normal mode.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -241,9 +243,10 @@ are required like `chkentry(1)`, `txzchk(1)` and `fnamchk(1)`. But even if you
 have installed them but some tools are out of date (in the install path) it will
 cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent version when
 submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right versions of
-the tools. This is why you **MUST** make sure you have the most recent
-version of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR
-you install them (`make install` as root or via `sudo`).
+the tools. This is why you **MUST** make sure you have the most recent version
+of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR you
+install them (`make install` as via `sudo` or as root). We recommend you install
+the tools but if you wish to run it from the repo directory you may.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -283,8 +286,8 @@ previously uploaded submission by rebuilding your submission with the
 To help you with this, so that you do not have to repeatedly answer all the
 questions, the `mkiocccentry(1)` tool has the options `-a answers`, `-A answers`
 and `-i answers`, where `-a` will write to an answers file (if it does not
-already exist), `-A` will overwrite the file and `-i` will read the answers from
-the file. If you use `-A`, be sure you don't overwrite another file by accident!
+already exist), `-A` **WILL OVERWRITE THE FILE** and `-i` will read the answers from
+the file. If you use `-A`, **BE SURE** you don't overwrite another file by accident!
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -531,10 +534,11 @@ its algorithm.

 <p class="leftbar">
 If `mkiocccentry` encounters an **error** the program will exit and the xz
-compressed tarball **will not be formed**. For instance, if `chkentry(1)` (see
-below) fails to validate the `.auth.json` or `.info.json`
-[JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) files (see below) that `mkiocccentry(1)` creates,
-it is an error and **possibly** a bug that you should [report as a bug at the
+compressed tarball **will not be formed**. For instance, if
+[chkentry(1)](#chkentry) fails to validate the `.auth.json` or `.info.json`
+[JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) files (see below) that
+`mkiocccentry(1)` creates, or anything else `mkiocccentry(1)` does, it is an
+**error** and **possibly** a bug that you should [report as a bug at the
 mkiocccentry bug report
 page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E).
 **PLEASE run the `bug_report.sh` script to help us out here!**  See the
@@ -558,7 +562,9 @@ Needless to say, we do **NOT** recommend these options.

 <p class="leftbar">
 In many places it will prompt you to verify what you input, allowing you to
-correct details as you go along.
+correct details as you go along. Be advised that there is a default answer and
+if you press enter it will proceed with that default, so make sure you have
+provided the correct answer.
 </p>


@@ -579,9 +585,10 @@ The synopsis of the `mkiocccentry(1)` tool is:
 <p class="leftbar">
 To help you with editing a submission, the `mkiocccentry(1)` tool has
 some options to write _OR_ read from an answers file so you do not have to input
-the information about the author(s) and the submission more than once (unless of
+the information about the author(s) and the submission more than once, unless of
 course you need to make some changes, in which case you can use the option that
-overwrites the file).
+overwrites the file. If you do use the overwrite option, **MAKE SURE** you do
+not overwrite another file!
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -607,8 +614,9 @@ execute one or more additional tools.
 </div>

 <p class="leftbar">
-`mkiocccentry(1)` will use code from `iocccsize(1)` which
-detects a number of issues that you may ignore, if you wish, as noted above.
+`mkiocccentry(1)` will use code from `iocccsize(1)` which detects a number of
+issues (such as [Rule 2](rules.html#rule2)) that you may ignore, if you wish, as
+noted above.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -631,7 +639,16 @@ submission. These files **MUST** pass the checks of `chkentry(1)`!
 If `chkentry` does not pass and you used `mkiocccentry(1)` it is **very likely** a
 bug and you should [report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry issues
 page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E).
-See the
+**PLEASE** run the command:
+</p>
+
+``` <!---sh-->
+    make bug_report
+```
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+from the top level repo directory itself.
+See also the
 FAQ on "[reporting mkiocccentry bugs](../faq.html#mkiocccentry_bugs)".
 </p>

@@ -643,10 +660,16 @@ executed on it. In this case, there should be no problems, as `mkiocccentry(1)`
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-If `mkiocccentry(1)` is used and `chkentry(1)` fails to validate either of the
-files, then unless it is a system specific problem, it is likely a bug in
+**NOTE**: `chkentry(1)` also validates other things in your submission
+directory.
+</p>
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+If `mkiocccentry(1)` is used and `chkentry(1)` fails to validate your submission
+directory, then unless it is a system specific problem, it could be a bug in
 `mkiocccentry(1)`, `chkentry(1)` or possibly `jparse`, though this is quite
-unlikely.
+unlikely. Nonetheless, if you believe there is a bug, you may report it as
+explained above.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -703,16 +726,17 @@ installed separately, in order to use the tools in `mkiocccentry`.
 In other words, `mkiocccentry` **contains everything** you need, and _even if you
 do install_ the libraries from their respective repos, it/they will **not be
 used** when compiling the `mkiocccentry` tools. This is important to
-make sure that you're using the correct versions, which is verified by
-`chkentry`. See [Rule 17](rules.html#rule17)!
+make sure that you're using the correct versions, which is also verified by
+`chkentry` (in the JSON files created by `mkiocccentry(1)`). See [Rule
+17](rules.html#rule17)!
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
 Please see the
 FAQ on "[validating .auth.json and/or .info.json files](../faq.html#chkentry)
 for more details on `chkentry` and how you can use it to validate your
-`.auth.json` and `.info.json` files manually, without having to repackage your
-submission.
+`.auth.json` and `.info.json` files (and your submission directory in general)
+manually, without having to repackage your submission.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -736,7 +760,8 @@ tarball`' :-) ) **AND if and _ONLY IF_ you used
 `mkiocccentry(1)`**, then it is **possibly** a bug in one of the tools and you
 might want to [report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry bug report
 page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E). **PLEASE run the
-`bug_report.sh` script to help us out here!** See the
+`bug_report.sh` script to help us out here!** You may do this by running from
+the top level directory of the repo `make bug_report`. See the
 FAQ on "[report mkiocccentry bugs](../faq.html#mkiocccentry_bugs)".
 </p>

@@ -780,9 +805,9 @@ an extra file, not an optional file.
 <p class="leftbar">
 In particular, any file that is not `prog.c`, `Makefile`, `remarks.md`,
 `try.sh`, `prog.alt.c` or `try.alt.sh` will be counted as an extra file, and if
-`try.sh`, `prog.alt.c` or `try.alt.sh` are not in the top level directory they
-will also be counted as an extra file. The `.info.json` and `.auth.json` files
-are not counted as extra files but are required.
+`try.sh`, `prog.alt.c` or `try.alt.sh` are not in the top level submission
+directory they will also be counted as an extra file. The `.info.json` and
+`.auth.json` files are not counted as extra files but are required.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -807,7 +832,9 @@ section](#txzchk) for more details on this important tool.

 <p class="leftbar">
 If you **DO** include a tarball, and the build process or the program extracts
-said tarball(s), the make `clobber` rule **MUST** remove them.
+said tarball(s), the make `clobber` rule **MUST** remove them. Even so, if you
+include a tarball to get past the limit on the number of files, you **MUST**
+justify this in your remarks!
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -835,8 +862,6 @@ in your `remarks.md`).
 </p>


-
-
 <p class="leftbar">
 See also the
 FAQ on "[txzchk](../faq.html#txzchk)".
@@ -1282,6 +1307,11 @@ use of `git(1)` or `gh(1)`, just be sure that your submission code and your
 submission Makefile don't depend on such tools.
 </p>

+<p class="leftbar">
+Of course if you do use GitHub to work on your submission, you might want to
+make the repo private so you don't reveal who you are. :-)
+</p>
+
 <p class="leftbar">
 If this is not clear, please do **NOT** use these tools to help with the
 `clobber` rule! For instance, do **NOT** use `git clean`! Not only does this
@@ -1314,6 +1344,13 @@ And do **NOT** use `git` for any other tool either.
 </p>


+<p class="leftbar">
+**NOTE**: `mkiocccentry(1)` will directly run `make clobber` in the submission
+directory. An although it is not an error if this fails, if it fails because the
+Makefile does not have a clobber rule, it will be flagged by `mkiocccentry(1)`
+(you may ignore this but it does put you at a risk of violating the rules).
+</p>
+
 Jump to: [top](#)

 <div id="likes">
@@ -437,8 +437,8 @@ Mastodon</a> feed as <em>sometimes</em> the
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#feedback">rules, guidelines, tools feedback</a>”
 as well as our
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#question">about asking questions</a>”
-about these rules. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, especially the
-FAQ on “<a href="../quick-start.html#enter">how to enter the IOCCC</a>”.</p>
+about these rules. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, as well as the
+<a href="../quick-start.html">quick start guide</a> and <a href="register.html">how to register</a>.</p>
 <h1 id="the-ioccc-is-pending">The IOCCC is pending</h1>
 <p>While the IOCCC is not open now, there is a tentative opening date for the next IOCCC.</p>
 <p>Comments and suggestions on these preliminary rules are welcome. See the
@@ -461,11 +461,11 @@ writing by <a href="../contact.html">contacting the judges</a>.</p>
 </div>
 </div>
 <p class="leftbar">
-These <a href="rules.html">IOCCC rules</a> are version <strong>28.24 2025-02-12</strong>.
+These <a href="rules.html">IOCCC rules</a> are version <strong>28.25 2025-02-26</strong>.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The <a href="rules.md" download="rules.md">markdown form of these rules</a>
-is available for download.
+The markdown form of these rules <a href="rules.md" download="rules.md">is
+available for download</a>.
 </p>
 <p><strong>IMPORTANT</strong>: Be sure to read the <a href="guidelines.html">IOCCC guidelines</a>.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
@@ -859,7 +859,7 @@ super-user, special owner, special group, etc.) are still <strong>HIGHLY
 DISCOURAGED</strong>. We do not guarantee these functions will behave as
 you expect on our test platforms. If your program needs special
 permissions you <strong>MUST</strong> document this fact, and explain why
-it is needed in your submissions <code>remarks.md</code> file.</p>
+it is needed in your submission’s <code>remarks.md</code> file.</p>
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <div id="rule12">
 <h2 id="rule-12">Rule 12</h2>
@@ -978,10 +978,9 @@ and <code>.auth.json</code>) and files that are also not the optional files (<co
 <p>Jump to: <a href="#">top</a></p>
 <h3 id="rule-17---the-complex-details">Rule 17 - The COMPLEX details</h3>
 <p class="leftbar">
-Each submission <strong>MUST</strong> be in the form of a xz compressed tarball.
+<p>Each submission <strong>MUST</strong> be in the form of a xz compressed tarball.
 The xz compressed tarball filename must be of the form:
-</p>
-<pre><code>    ^submit.username-slot_num.[1-9][0-9]{9,}.txz$</code></pre>
+<code>^submit.username-slot_num.[1-9][0-9]{9,}.txz$</code>.</p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 … where <em><code>username</code></em> is your IOCCC registration username <strong>in the form of a
 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universally_unique_identifier">UUID</a></strong> (see
@@ -993,7 +992,7 @@ details), and where <em><code>slot_num</code></em> is a single decimal digit int
 In particular, <code>username</code> is in the form of:
 <code>xxxxxxxx-xxxx-4xxx-Nxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx</code> where <code>'x'</code> is a hex digit in the range
 of <code>[0-9a-f]</code>, 4 is the UUID version, and <code>N</code> is one of <code>8</code>, <code>9</code>, <code>a</code>, or <code>b</code>.
-And yes, there is a 4 (UUID version 4) and variants <code>0x8</code>, <code>0x9</code>, <code>0xa</code> and
+And yes, there is a 4 (UUID version 4) and the variants <code>0x8</code>, <code>0x9</code>, <code>0xa</code> and
 <code>0xb</code> in there.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -1001,40 +1000,27 @@ Your xz compressed tarball <strong>MUST</strong> contain, <strong>at a minimum</
 </p>
 <ul>
 <li><p class="leftbar">
-<code>Makefile</code>
+<code>prog.c</code>
 </p></li>
 <li><p class="leftbar">
-<code>prog.c</code>
+<code>Makefile</code>
 </p></li>
 <li><p class="leftbar">
 <code>remarks.md</code>
 </p></li>
 <li><p class="leftbar">
-<code>.info.json</code>
+<code>.auth.json</code>
 </p></li>
 <li><p class="leftbar">
-<code>.auth.json</code>
+<code>.info.json</code>
 </p></li>
 </ul>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The <code>.info.json</code> is generated by the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool. If not, and it is
-not valid JSON or it does not pass the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool, your submission
-<strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected! If you do use <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> and it fails to pass
-<code>chkentry(1)</code> then you might wish to <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry
-issues
-page</a>.
-</p>
-<p class="leftbar">
-The <code>.auth.json</code> is generated by the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool. If not, and it is
-not valid JSON or it does not pass the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool, your submission
-<strong>WILL BE</strong> rejected! If you do use <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> and it fails to pass
-<code>chkentry(1)</code> then you might wish to <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry
-issues
-page</a>.
+<code>prog.c</code> is of course your submission program.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 The <code>Makefile</code> <strong>MUST</strong> be a <strong>non</strong>-empty file in <strong><a href="https://www.gnu.org/software/make/manual/make.html">GNU
-Makefile</a></strong> form. See the
+Makefile</a></strong> format. See the
 <a href="guidelines.html#makefile">Makefile section in the guidelines</a>,
 the
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#submission_makefiles">submission Makefile</a>”
@@ -1043,7 +1029,7 @@ FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#make_compatibility">Makefile compatibility</a>”
 for help.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The <code>remarks.md</code> <strong>MUST</strong> be a <strong>non</strong>-empty file in markdown form
+The <code>remarks.md</code> <strong>MUST</strong> be a <strong>non</strong>-empty file in markdown format
 (<code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> only checks the file size but if you do not have any text in
 it you still risk violating this rule). See also
 <a href="#rule18">Rule 18</a> and our
@@ -1057,13 +1043,40 @@ See also the <a href="https://www.markdownguide.org/basic-syntax">markdown synta
 and the <a href="https://spec.commonmark.org/current/">CommonMark Spec</a>.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The xz compressed tarball file <strong>MUST</strong> be less than or equal to <strong>3999971</strong> octets in size.
+The <code>.auth.json</code> file is created by <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> and it holds information
+about the author(s) of the submission. It will <strong>ONLY</strong> be looked at if your
+submission wins but it <strong>MUST</strong> still be valid according to <code>chkentry(1)</code>.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+The <code>.info.json</code> file is created by <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> and it holds information
+about the submission itself. It also <strong>MUST</strong> be valid according to
+<code>chkentry(1)</code>.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+For the complete <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> process, see the
+FAQ on the “<a href="../faq.html#mkiocccentry_process">mkiocccentry process</a>.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+The tool performs a lot of checks, both directly and indirectly, and if it or
+any other tool detects <strong>ANY</strong> problem, you are <strong>HIGHLY</strong> encouraged to fix it
+and try again.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+If you do use <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> and you run into a problem, you might see the
+FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#questions">how to ask a question about the IOCCC rules, guidelines and
+tools</a>”.
+If you believe you have encountered a bug, feel free to open a bug report at the
+<a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">mkiocccentry repo issues
+page</a>.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+The xz compressed tarball file <strong>MUST</strong> be &lt;= <strong>3999971</strong> octets in size.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 When your submission’s xz compressed tarball is uncompressed,
-the total size of your submission: the sum of the size of the program,
-hints, comments, build and info files <strong>MUST</strong> be less than or equal
-to <strong>28314624</strong> octets (<strong>27651K</strong>) in size.
+the total size of your submission (the sum of the size of the program,
+hints, comments, build and info files) <strong>MUST</strong> be &lt;=
+<strong>28314624</strong> octets (<strong>27651K</strong>) in size.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 Your submission’s xz compressed tarball <strong>MUST</strong> pass the <code>txzchk(1)</code> test. See
@@ -1101,7 +1114,7 @@ Be &lt;= <strong>38</strong> characters in length.
 <li><p class="leftbar">
 <strong>NOT</strong> contain a path component of: <strong><code>.</code></strong> (that is, with
 the exception of files generated by <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> itself, it must have
-<strong>NO</strong> <strong><code>.</code></strong>).
+<strong>NO</strong> <strong><code>.</code></strong> an <strong>NO</strong> dot file).
 </p></li>
 <li><p class="leftbar">
 <strong>NOT</strong> contain a path component of: <strong><code>..</code></strong> (that is,
@@ -1134,8 +1147,8 @@ entry.
 </p></li>
 </ul>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool will validate these two JSON files <em>prior to</em> the tarball
-being formed.
+The <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool will validate these two JSON files, and do other checks
+on your submission directory as well, <em>prior to</em> forming the tarball.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 Files and directories in your submission tarball <strong>MUST</strong> be specific
@@ -1144,17 +1157,22 @@ permissions and <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> does this for you. In particular: d
 <code>try.alt.sh</code>, if provided, <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>-r-xr-xr-x</code> (i.e. <code>0555</code>) and all other
 files <strong>MUST</strong> be <code>-r--r--r--</code> (i.e. <code>0444</code>). If the files do not have these
 permissions, your submission <strong>WILL</strong> be rejected for violating <a href="#rule17">Rule
-17</a>! If you do need different permissions, then see the
+17</a>! In addition to <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> creating and copying the
+directories and files with these modes, it also verifies them after the fact and
+if they are not correct it is an <strong>error</strong>.
+</p>
+<p class="leftbar">
+If you do need different permissions, then see the
 FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#file_perms">file permissions</a>”. Also keep in mind
 <a href="#rule4">Rule 4</a>, <a href="#rule5">Rule 5</a> and <a href="#rule21">Rule 21</a>.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-The <code>txzchk(1)</code> tool will verify these (and other things) for you and
-the <code>chkentry(1)</code> tool will do additional checks on the contents of the
-<code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code> files (including JSON validity). If these checks
-fail it is an error and <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> will fail. In this case (it fails and
-you used <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>) it is very <strong>possibly</strong> a bug; please <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it as
-a bug at the mkiocccentry issues
+The <code>txzchk(1)</code> tool will also verify file/directory permissions (and many other
+things) for you and so will <code>chkentry(1)</code> (along with validating the JSON files
+and running semantics checks on them). If these checks fail it is an <strong>error</strong>
+and <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> will fail. In this case (it fails and you used
+<code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>) it is very <strong>possibly</strong> a bug; please <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it as a bug at
+the mkiocccentry issues
 page</a>.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -1166,7 +1184,9 @@ possible there could be a problem and this poses a big risk of violating <a href
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 The <code>fnamchk(1)</code>, which <code>txzchk(1)</code> executes, will verify that the
-filename is correct.
+filename is correct. But if you do package your tarball manually, and you have a
+mismatch in what is in the tarball and the name, <code>txzchk(1)</code> will flag the
+discrepancy as an error and exit with non-zero.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 These checks <strong>MUST PASS</strong>. If they do not you stand a significant chance of
@@ -1179,7 +1199,7 @@ having your submission rejected for violating <a href="#rule17">Rule 17</a>!
 The maximum number of files your submission tarball may contain, not counting
 the optional files (<code>prog.alt.c</code>, <code>try.sh</code>, <code>try.alt.sh</code>) and the mandatory
 files (<code>prog.c</code>, <code>Makefile</code>, <code>remarks.md</code> plus the <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> generated
-files <code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code>) is 31. This is defined in the macro
+files <code>.auth.json</code> and <code>.info.json</code>), is 31. This is defined in the macro
 <code>MAX_EXTRA_FILE_COUNT</code> in
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h">soup/limit_ioccc.h</a>
 in the <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry">mkiocccentry repo</a>. See the
@@ -1191,7 +1211,8 @@ If you do include a tarball that takes your extra files count over the maximum,
 you <strong>MUST</strong> explain this in your <code>remarks.md</code> file! <strong>PLEASE</strong> do not include a
 tarball with extra files for a test-suite; instead mention in your remarks that
 you have extra files for a test-suite that can be included should your
-submission win.
+submission win. Of course if you don’t need that many files for a test-suite you
+are more than welcome to include those files in your submission.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 If you need to extract a tarball by some Makefile, or perhaps the program
@@ -1199,13 +1220,14 @@ itself, then <code>make clobber</code> <strong>MUST</strong> remove everything t
 created!
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-Tarballs <strong>MUST</strong> only create files and directories <em>under them</em>. They may
-<strong>NOT</strong> contain absolute paths (paths that start with <code>/</code>)! <code>txzchk</code> only checks
-the submission tarball so you must verify these details yourself.
+Tarballs <strong>MUST</strong> only create files and directories <em>under</em> the submission
+directory. They may <strong>NOT</strong> contain absolute paths (paths that start with <code>/</code>)!
+<code>txzchk</code> only checks the submission tarball so you must verify these details
+yourself.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-Make <strong>SURE</strong> your tarball does not reveal who you are! The <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code>
-tool uses the v7 format. For instance you might try:
+<strong>IMPORTANT REMINDER</strong>: <strong>MAKE SURE</strong> your tarball does not reveal who you are!
+The <code>mkiocccentry(1)</code> tool uses the v7 format. For instance you might try:
 </p>
 <pre><code>    tar --format=v7 -cJf foo.txz directory</code></pre>
 <hr style="width:50%;text-align:left;margin-left:0">
@@ -1232,16 +1254,18 @@ for more help on ensuring you do have the most up to date release.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 We recommend that you run <code>make</code> and then install the tools (and man pages) via
-<code>make install</code> (as root or using <code>sudo(1)</code>) to help you run these tools from your
-submission’s directory. The <code>make install</code> will install in <code>/usr/local</code>.
-However, <strong>you do not have</strong> to install them, but in that case you’ll have to run it
-from the toolkit’s directory or use the correct options to specify the path to
-the necessary tools, and also specify the path to your files.
+<code>make install</code> (as root or using <code>sudo(1)</code>) to help you run these tools from
+your submission’s directory (or any other directory). The <code>make install</code> will
+install in <code>/usr/local</code>. However, <strong>you do not have</strong> to install them, but in
+that case you’ll have to run it from the toolkit’s directory or use the correct
+options to specify the path to the necessary tools, and also specify the path to
+your files.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
-These tools will link in the <code>jparse(3)</code> library; <code>chkentry(1)</code> uses the parser
-to validate the <a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> but the other tools
-use parts of the library as well.
+These tools will link in the <code>jparse(3)</code> library and the <code>dbg</code> library and the
+<code>dyn_array</code> library; <code>chkentry(1)</code> uses the JSON parser (<code>jparse</code>) to validate
+and parse the <a href="https://www.json.org/json-en.html">JSON</a> but the other tools use
+parts of the <code>jparse</code> utility functions as well.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 If you run into a problem with one or more of these tools, <strong>PLEASE</strong> <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&amp;labels=bug&amp;projects=&amp;template=bug_report.yml&amp;title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E">report it
@@ -1253,10 +1277,10 @@ FAQ on “<a href="../faq.html#mkiocccentry_bugs">mkiocccentry repo bugs</a>”.
 </p>
 <p class="leftbar">
 At the risk of stating the obvious: submissions that violate <a href="#rule17">Rule
-17</a> <strong>will be rejected</strong>, so <strong>be sure</strong> to use the latest release of the
+17</a> <strong>WILL BE REJECTED</strong>, so <strong>BE SURE</strong> to use the latest release of the
 <a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry">mkiocccentry repo</a>, to form and test
 your submission’s xz compressed tarball. Do <strong>NOT</strong> assume you have the most
-recent release without pulling or downloading via GitHub and <strong>make sure</strong> you
+recent release without pulling or downloading via GitHub and do <strong>MAKE SURE</strong> you
 do this <strong>AFTER</strong> the <a href="../status.html">contest status</a> has changed to
 <a href="../status.html#open">open</a>.
 </p>
@@ -15,8 +15,8 @@ See our
 FAQ on "[rules, guidelines, tools feedback](../faq.html#feedback)"
 as well as our
 FAQ on "[about asking questions](../faq.html#question)"
-about these rules. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, especially the
-FAQ on "[how to enter the IOCCC](../quick-start.html#enter)".
+about these rules. You might also find the FAQ in general useful, as well as the
+[quick start guide](../quick-start.html) and [how to register](register.html).


 # The IOCCC is pending
@@ -50,15 +50,13 @@ Jump to: [top](#)
 </div>
 </div>

-
-
 <p class="leftbar">
-These [IOCCC rules](rules.html) are version **28.24 2025-02-12**.
+These [IOCCC rules](rules.html) are version **28.25 2025-02-26**.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The <a href="rules.md" download="rules.md">markdown form of these rules</a>
-is available for download.
+The markdown form of these rules <a href="rules.md" download="rules.md">is
+available for download</a>.
 </p>

 **IMPORTANT**: Be sure to read the [IOCCC guidelines](guidelines.html).
@@ -603,7 +601,7 @@ super-user, special owner, special group, etc.) are still **HIGHLY
 DISCOURAGED**. We do not guarantee these functions will behave as
 you expect on our test platforms. If your program needs special
 permissions you **MUST** document this fact, and explain why
-it is needed in your submissions `remarks.md` file.
+it is needed in your submission's `remarks.md` file.


 Jump to: [top](#)
@@ -757,11 +755,7 @@ Jump to: [top](#)
 <p class="leftbar">
 Each submission **MUST** be in the form of a xz compressed tarball.
 The xz compressed tarball filename must be of the form:
-</p>
-
-``` <!---re-->
-    ^submit.username-slot_num.[1-9][0-9]{9,}.txz$
-```
+`^submit.username-slot_num.[1-9][0-9]{9,}.txz$`.

 <p class="leftbar">
 ... where _`username`_ is your IOCCC registration username **in the form of a
@@ -775,7 +769,7 @@ details), and where _`slot_num`_ is a single decimal digit integer
 In particular, `username` is in the form of:
 `xxxxxxxx-xxxx-4xxx-Nxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx` where `'x'` is a hex digit in the range
 of `[0-9a-f]`, 4 is the UUID version, and `N` is one of `8`, `9`, `a`, or `b`.
-And yes, there is a 4 (UUID version 4) and variants `0x8`, `0x9`, `0xa` and
+And yes, there is a 4 (UUID version 4) and the variants `0x8`, `0x9`, `0xa` and
 `0xb` in there.
 </p>

@@ -783,33 +777,19 @@ And yes, there is a 4 (UUID version 4) and variants `0x8`, `0x9`, `0xa` and
 Your xz compressed tarball **MUST** contain, **at a minimum**, the following files:
 </p>

-* <p class="leftbar">`Makefile`</p>
 * <p class="leftbar">`prog.c`</p>
+* <p class="leftbar">`Makefile`</p>
 * <p class="leftbar">`remarks.md`</p>
-* <p class="leftbar">`.info.json`</p>
 * <p class="leftbar">`.auth.json`</p>
+* <p class="leftbar">`.info.json`</p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The `.info.json` is generated by the `mkiocccentry(1)` tool. If not, and it is
-not valid JSON or it does not pass the `chkentry(1)` tool, your submission
-**WILL BE** rejected! If you do use `mkiocccentry(1)` and it fails to pass
-`chkentry(1)` then you might wish to [report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry
-issues
-page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E).
-</p>
-
-<p class="leftbar">
-The `.auth.json` is generated by the `mkiocccentry(1)` tool. If not, and it is
-not valid JSON or it does not pass the `chkentry(1)` tool, your submission
-**WILL BE** rejected! If you do use `mkiocccentry(1)` and it fails to pass
-`chkentry(1)` then you might wish to [report it as a bug at the mkiocccentry
-issues
-page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E).
+`prog.c` is of course your submission program.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
 The `Makefile` **MUST** be a **non**-empty file in **[GNU
-Makefile](https://www.gnu.org/software/make/manual/make.html)** form. See the
+Makefile](https://www.gnu.org/software/make/manual/make.html)** format. See the
 [Makefile section in the guidelines](guidelines.html#makefile),
 the
 FAQ on "[submission Makefile](../faq.html#submission_makefiles)"
@@ -819,7 +799,7 @@ for help.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The `remarks.md` **MUST** be a **non**-empty file in markdown form
+The `remarks.md` **MUST** be a **non**-empty file in markdown format
 (`mkiocccentry(1)` only checks the file size but if you do not have any text in
 it you still risk violating this rule).  See also
 [Rule 18](#rule18) and our
@@ -835,14 +815,47 @@ and the [CommonMark Spec](https://spec.commonmark.org/current/).
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The xz compressed tarball file **MUST** be less than or equal to **3999971** octets in size.
+The `.auth.json` file is created by `mkiocccentry(1)` and it holds information
+about the author(s) of the submission. It will **ONLY** be looked at if your
+submission wins but it **MUST** still be valid according to `chkentry(1)`.
+</p>
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+The `.info.json` file is created by `mkiocccentry(1)` and it holds information
+about the submission itself. It also **MUST** be valid according to
+`chkentry(1)`.
+</p>
+
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+For the complete `mkiocccentry(1)` process, see the
+FAQ on the "[mkiocccentry process](../faq.html#mkiocccentry_process).
+</p>
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+The tool performs a lot of checks, both directly and indirectly, and if it or
+any other tool detects **ANY** problem, you are **HIGHLY** encouraged to fix it
+and try again.
+</p>
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+If you do use `mkiocccentry(1)` and you run into a problem, you might see the
+FAQ on "[how to ask a question about the IOCCC rules, guidelines and
+tools](../faq.html#questions)".
+If you believe you have encountered a bug, feel free to open a bug report at the
+[mkiocccentry repo issues
+page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E).
+</p>
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+The xz compressed tarball file **MUST** be <= **3999971** octets in size.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
 When your submission's xz compressed tarball is uncompressed,
-the total size of your submission: the sum of the size of the program,
-hints, comments, build and info files **MUST** be less than or equal
-to **28314624** octets (**27651K**) in size.
+the total size of your submission (the sum of the size of the program,
+hints, comments, build and info files) **MUST** be <=
+**28314624** octets (**27651K**) in size.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -881,7 +894,7 @@ Filenames in your entry (that is, not including the files generated by the
 * <p class="leftbar">**NOT** have a leading **`/`**.</p>
 * <p class="leftbar">**NOT** contain a path component of: **`.`** (that is, with
 the exception of files generated by `mkiocccentry(1)` itself, it must have
-**NO** **`.`**).</p>
+**NO** **`.`** an **NO** dot file).</p>
 * <p class="leftbar">**NOT** contain a path component of: **`..`** (that is,
 **NO** **`..`**).</p>
 * <p class="leftbar">Match the regular expression
@@ -901,8 +914,8 @@ authors (that will only be looked at if the submission wins).</p>
 entry.</p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The `chkentry(1)` tool will validate these two JSON files _prior to_ the tarball
-being formed.
+The `chkentry(1)` tool will validate these two JSON files, and do other checks
+on your submission directory as well, _prior to_ forming the tarball.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -912,18 +925,24 @@ permissions and `mkiocccentry(1)` does this for you. In particular: directories
 `try.alt.sh`, if provided, **MUST** be `-r-xr-xr-x` (i.e. `0555`) and all other
 files **MUST** be `-r--r--r--` (i.e. `0444`).  If the files do not have these
 permissions, your submission **WILL** be rejected for violating [Rule
-17](#rule17)! If you do need different permissions, then see the
+17](#rule17)! In addition to `mkiocccentry(1)` creating and copying the
+directories and files with these modes, it also verifies them after the fact and
+if they are not correct it is an **error**.
+</p>
+
+<p class="leftbar">
+If you do need different permissions, then see the
 FAQ on "[file permissions](../faq.html#file_perms)". Also keep in mind
 [Rule 4](#rule4), [Rule 5](#rule5) and [Rule 21](#rule21).
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-The `txzchk(1)` tool will verify these (and other things) for you and
-the `chkentry(1)` tool will do additional checks on the contents of the
-`.auth.json` and `.info.json` files (including JSON validity). If these checks
-fail it is an error and `mkiocccentry(1)` will fail. In this case (it fails and
-you used `mkiocccentry(1)`) it is very **possibly** a bug; please [report it as
-a bug at the mkiocccentry issues
+The `txzchk(1)` tool will also verify file/directory permissions (and many other
+things) for you and so will `chkentry(1)` (along with validating the JSON files
+and running semantics checks on them). If these checks fail it is an **error**
+and `mkiocccentry(1)` will fail. In this case (it fails and you used
+`mkiocccentry(1)`) it is very **possibly** a bug; please [report it as a bug at
+the mkiocccentry issues
 page](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&projects=&template=bug_report.yml&title=%5BBug%5D+%3Ctitle%3E).
 </p>

@@ -937,7 +956,9 @@ possible there could be a problem and this poses a big risk of violating [Rule

 <p class="leftbar">
 The `fnamchk(1)`, which `txzchk(1)` executes, will verify that the
-filename is correct.
+filename is correct. But if you do package your tarball manually, and you have a
+mismatch in what is in the tarball and the name, `txzchk(1)` will flag the
+discrepancy as an error and exit with non-zero.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -953,7 +974,7 @@ having your submission rejected for violating [Rule 17](#rule17)!
 The maximum number of files your submission tarball may contain, not counting
 the optional files (`prog.alt.c`, `try.sh`, `try.alt.sh`) and the mandatory
 files (`prog.c`, `Makefile`, `remarks.md` plus the `mkiocccentry(1)` generated
-files `.auth.json` and `.info.json`) is 31. This is defined in the macro
+files `.auth.json` and `.info.json`), is 31. This is defined in the macro
 `MAX_EXTRA_FILE_COUNT` in
 [soup/limit_ioccc.h](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/soup/limit_ioccc.h)
 in the [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry). See the
@@ -966,7 +987,8 @@ If you do include a tarball that takes your extra files count over the maximum,
 you **MUST** explain this in your `remarks.md` file! **PLEASE** do not include a
 tarball with extra files for a test-suite; instead mention in your remarks that
 you have extra files for a test-suite that can be included should your
-submission win.
+submission win. Of course if you don't need that many files for a test-suite you
+are more than welcome to include those files in your submission.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -976,14 +998,15 @@ created!
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-Tarballs **MUST** only create files and directories _under them_. They may
-**NOT** contain absolute paths (paths that start with `/`)! `txzchk` only checks
-the submission tarball so you must verify these details yourself.
+Tarballs **MUST** only create files and directories _under_ the submission
+directory. They may **NOT** contain absolute paths (paths that start with `/`)!
+`txzchk` only checks the submission tarball so you must verify these details
+yourself.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-Make **SURE** your tarball does not reveal who you are! The `mkiocccentry(1)`
-tool uses the v7 format. For instance you might try:
+**IMPORTANT REMINDER**: **MAKE SURE** your tarball does not reveal who you are!
+The `mkiocccentry(1)` tool uses the v7 format. For instance you might try:
 </p>

 ``` <!---sh-->
@@ -1019,17 +1042,19 @@ for more help on ensuring you do have the most up to date release.

 <p class="leftbar">
 We recommend that you run `make` and then install the tools (and man pages) via
-`make install` (as root or using `sudo(1)`) to help you run these tools from your
-submission's directory. The `make install` will install in `/usr/local`.
-However, **you do not have** to install them, but in that case you'll have to run it
-from the toolkit's directory or use the correct options to specify the path to
-the necessary tools, and also specify the path to your files.
+`make install` (as root or using `sudo(1)`) to help you run these tools from
+your submission's directory (or any other directory). The `make install` will
+install in `/usr/local`.  However, **you do not have** to install them, but in
+that case you'll have to run it from the toolkit's directory or use the correct
+options to specify the path to the necessary tools, and also specify the path to
+your files.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
-These tools will link in the `jparse(3)` library; `chkentry(1)` uses the parser
-to validate the [JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) but the other tools
-use parts of the library as well.
+These tools will link in the `jparse(3)` library and the `dbg` library and the
+`dyn_array` library; `chkentry(1)` uses the JSON parser (`jparse`) to validate
+and parse the [JSON](https://www.json.org/json-en.html) but the other tools use
+parts of the `jparse` utility functions as well.
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">
@@ -1042,10 +1067,10 @@ FAQ on "[mkiocccentry repo bugs](../faq.html#mkiocccentry_bugs)".
 </p>

 <p class="leftbar">At the risk of stating the obvious: submissions that violate [Rule
-17](#rule17) **will be rejected**, so **be sure** to use the latest release of the
+17](#rule17) **WILL BE REJECTED**, so **BE SURE** to use the latest release of the
 [mkiocccentry repo](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry), to form and test
 your submission's xz compressed tarball. Do **NOT** assume you have the most
-recent release without pulling or downloading via GitHub and **make sure** you
+recent release without pulling or downloading via GitHub and do **MAKE SURE** you
 do this **AFTER** the [contest status](../status.html) has changed to
 [open](../status.html#open).
 </p>
@@ -540,16 +540,17 @@ However, installing it will make it easier for you as you can run it from your
 submission’s directory. See the
 FAQ on “<strong><a href="https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/FAQ.md#install">installing mkiocccentry</a></strong>”
 at the mkiocccentry repo.</p>
-<p>However, an <strong>IMPORTANT NOTE</strong>: if you run the program outside the repo
-directory (specifying the absolute or relative path to the tool) and you
-have not installed the tools then you will have to specify the options for the
-tools that are required like <code>chkentry(1)</code>, <code>txzchk(1)</code> and <code>fnamchk(1)</code>. But
-even if you have installed them but some tools are out of date (in the install
-path) it will cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent
-version when submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right
-versions of the tools. This is why you <strong>MUST</strong> make sure you have the most
-recent version of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory
-itself OR you install them (<code>make install</code> as via <code>sudo</code> or as root).</p>
+<p><strong>IMPORTANT NOTE</strong>: if you run the program outside the repo directory
+(specifying the absolute or relative path to the tool) and you have not
+installed the tools then you will have to specify the options for the tools that
+are required like <code>chkentry(1)</code>, <code>txzchk(1)</code> and <code>fnamchk(1)</code>. But even if you
+have installed them but some tools are out of date (in the install path) it will
+cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent version when
+submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right versions of
+the tools. This is why you <strong>MUST</strong> make sure you have the most recent version
+of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR you
+install them (<code>make install</code> as via <code>sudo</code> or as root). We recommend you install
+the tools but if you wish to run it from the repo directory you may.</p>
 <p>If the <code>mkiocccentry</code> tool indicates that there is a problem with your
 submission, especially if it identifies a <a href="next/rules.html#rule2">Rule 2</a>, or
 any other rule, related problem, you are <strong>strongly</strong> encouraged to revise and
@@ -164,16 +164,17 @@ submission's directory. See the
 FAQ on "**[installing mkiocccentry](https://github.com/ioccc-src/mkiocccentry/blob/master/FAQ.md#install)**"
 at the mkiocccentry repo.

-However, an **IMPORTANT NOTE**: if you run the program outside the repo
-directory (specifying the absolute or relative path to the tool) and you
-have not installed the tools then you will have to specify the options for the
-tools that are required like `chkentry(1)`, `txzchk(1)` and `fnamchk(1)`. But
-even if you have installed them but some tools are out of date (in the install
-path) it will cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent
-version when submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right
-versions of the tools. This is why you **MUST** make sure you have the most
-recent version of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory
-itself OR you install them (`make install` as via `sudo` or as root).
+**IMPORTANT NOTE**: if you run the program outside the repo directory
+(specifying the absolute or relative path to the tool) and you have not
+installed the tools then you will have to specify the options for the tools that
+are required like `chkentry(1)`, `txzchk(1)` and `fnamchk(1)`. But even if you
+have installed them but some tools are out of date (in the install path) it will
+cause problems. Additionally, if you do not have the most recent version when
+submitting a tarball it will be rejected for not having the right versions of
+the tools. This is why you **MUST** make sure you have the most recent version
+of all the tools and you either run it from the repo directory itself OR you
+install them (`make install` as via `sudo` or as root). We recommend you install
+the tools but if you wish to run it from the repo directory you may.

 If the `mkiocccentry` tool indicates that there is a problem with your
 submission, especially if it identifies a [Rule 2](next/rules.html#rule2), or