[erlang-questions] can nodes fail/recover too fast to be seen?

[Jonathan Leivent]

I have another related question.  When monitor(process, {Name, Node}) is 
called, and the Node is already down, how quickly will the corresponding 
'DOWN' event show up?  Will it show up synchronously with the monitor/2 
function call?  In other words, is a pattern like this:

    MRef = monitor(process, {Name, Node}),
    receive
       {'DOWN', MRef, process, {Name, Node}, _Info} -> ...
    after 0 -> ok
    end,

useful as a way to determine if the {Name, Node} is currently down or 
disconnected?  Or, must the monitoring process always wait patiently for 
'DOWN' events on nodes it monitors?

How about when the Node is up, but Name is not registered there.  Or it 
is registered there, but the registered process is not up?

-- Jonathan