Dustin Sallings sez:
/*
 * 	If you cannot resolve starwolf.com, you cannot resolve anything under
 * starwolf.com.  I think you may be a little confused as to what you're looking
 * for.  *sigh* some of us think it's sick to put A records (what you're probably
 * looking for) on domain names:
 * 
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       NS      CYBERNETIX.COM
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       NS      NBN.NBN.COM
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       NS      MOON.NBN.COM
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       NS      DNS.AA.MSEN.COM
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       MX      100 sneech.idiom.COM
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       MX      10 idiom.COM
 * starwolf.com    604784 IN       MX      5 starwolf.starwolf.com

1. Those aren't A records.

2. I can resolve starwolf.starwolf.com just fine (because it's the only
   one advertised; my internal nyetwork is isolated if it ever exists at all)
   from both ends and get justifiably different results.

3. The MX records look fine:
	- I get mail if I'm up;
	- idiom.com gets it if I'm down;
	- sneech.idiom.com gets it if idiom.com is down

4. cybernetix.com is my main name server.

5.  idiom.com, starwolf.starwolf.com, starwolf, localhost,
    localhost.starwolf.com, loghost are all defined in my /etc/hosts file.

To recap:

	My problem is that occasionally when I telnet to any of:
	127.0.0.1
	localhost
	localhost.starwolf.com
	localhost.starwolf.com.

My nameserver wants to jump out the door and resolve it externally.

BUT:  nslookup works fine.

Go figure.  I am collecting the responses; if I figure anything
out I will let people know lest they be in a similar situation.

Thanks to everyone for their help, and sorry to hit the list like this
but this (and port-sparc) are the only lists I regularly read, and I
just don't jump into news much anymore, and it seemed the friendliest
group of people to ask, so I did.  I'm not disappointed in the replies
I saw, though I was a bit surprised to see the comment about "file lookup
bind" (please, please give me some credit -- I'm not the DNS newbie that
that person thought me to be.  I set my own nameserver up without too much
incident, really -- it worked pretty much from the word GO).

 * 
 * 
 * --
 * Taos Mountain TS         My girlfriend asked me which one I like better.
 * pub  1024/3CAE01D5 1994/11/03 Dustin Sallings <dustin@spy.net>
 * |    Key fingerprint =  87 02 57 08 02 D0 DA D6  C8 0F 3E 65 51 98 D8 BE 
 * L_______________________ I hope the answer won't upset her. ____________
 * 
 */





				--*greywolf;
--
"Your chief has even inscribed his name on the sole of my boot."