After receiving a request from Martin on the misc@ mailing list to make IPv6 the default version for netcalc, I decided to implement my original idea to dynamically detect which version IP address the user specifies so that no switch is necessary. It was a trivial change but definitely an improvement; and, like Martin remarked, "it's 2019 after all." Despite the fact that IPv4 still traffics most of the Internet with approximately 75% coverage, any encouragement to implement its successor should be the default position.
I am a little surprised that IPv6 wasn't the default taught at university as
late as November 2018. In any case, it is no longer necessary to use the -6
switch to specify IPv6 in netcalc
:
$ netcalc dfa2:984b:2b37:b4a5:594b:fcbd:66be:4faf/111 Address : dfa2:984b:2b37:b4a5:594b:fcbd:66be:4faf CIDR notation : dfa2:984b:2b37:b4a5:594b:fcbd:66be::/111 Start address : dfa2:984b:2b37:b4a5:594b:fcbd:66be:: End address : dfa2:984b:2b37:b4a5:594b:fcbd:66bf:ffff Block size: : 131,072 contiguous usable hosts
And a switch still isn't needed for IPv4 either:
$ netcalc 40.33.200.1/27 Address : 40.33.200.1 CIDR notation : 40.33.200.0/27 Address range : 40.33.200.1 —— 40.33.200.30 Broadcast address : 40.33.200.31 Subnet mask : 255.255.255.224 [0xffffffe0] Address block : 30 contiguous hosts
Magic! The updated version is available on the projects page. Alternatively, you can clone the Fossil repository.