Survey Results: What is the one true MaxL script file extension to rule them all?

I was feeling a little bit whimsical last week and wanted to get a little use out of my SurveyMonkey account, so I decided to do a quick poll: what is the proper file extension for MaxL scripts?

This issue initially arose for me when I was heckling Cameron Lackpour at one of his presentations a few years ago. My memory must be a little faulty because at the time I could have swore that he liked .mxl, whereas I am more of an .msh guy. So I wanted to settle this once and for all.

Oracle, for its part, doesn’t provide a ton of consistency on this issue, as scripts created from EAS seem to suggest a .mxl extension, whereas the script interpreter and commands seem to suggest that .msh is a little more on the recommended side. I have seen both in environments. Literally both, as in, some scripts are .mxl and some are .msh, and sometimes this naming inconsistency even exists in the same set of automation. Shudder.

Without further ado, here are the results.

  • Total responses: 21
  • .msh: 9 (42.9%)
  • .mxl: 10 (47.6%)
  • .maxl 2 (9.5%)
  • Other: 1 (this wound up being entered in as .mxls)

So, there you have it. I would like to note, by the way, that if you chose other then I implied with your answer that you were a ‘monster’. I’m only half-joking. Way to think outside the box. Anyway, I haven’t personally seen .maxl scripts in production but someone on the Network54 forum commented that, hey, down with 8.3 file naming and in with the whole name as extension. I have to admit, I never really thought about this in the context of MaxL scripts, but oddly I do find it a little disgusting when HTML files have a .htm extension rather than a full .html extension.

Suffice it to say, I am more than a little disappointed with these results and than the .msh file extension lost in a neck and neck battle. I’m going to pretend that this survey never happened and that .msh is the one true script extension to rule them all.

Thank you all for submitting answers to this somewhat lighthearted survey. If you have ideas for further issues to explore and survey the community about, please send them to me and I’ll get another survey going!