Device File Permissions

[Andrew Gronosky <agronosky@mediaone.net>]

Hi,

I've been running Debian for a while, but only recently did I get
serious about configuring all my peripherals (sound card, printer,
etc.).

I noticed that some important device files- for example, /dev/dsp and
/dev/lp0 - are owned by root, belong to special groups (audio and lp,
respectively), and most importantly are *not* world-writeable.

Is there an important reason for this, and would it be a mistake to
chmod the device files so processes running under an ordinary userid can
write to /dev/audio and /dev/lp0?  It seems there may be something I'm
missing here... I want the devices to work with Debian software and with
third-party software such as Loki games and StarOffice. :)

Thanks,

-Andrew Gronosky