diff --git a/src/common/execio.c b/src/common/execio.c
--- a/src/common/execio.c
+++ b/src/common/execio.c
@@ -75,6 +75,7 @@ int execio_open(struct execio **rem, con
       
       /* setup execio struct */
       (*rem) = malloc(sizeof(struct execio));
+      fprintf(stderr, "Allocated rem at %d\n", rem);
       if(!(*rem))
 	{
 	  /* we should tell the child we're dead - use wait and close our end of the pipes! */
@@ -139,8 +140,8 @@ int execio_open(struct execio **rem, con
        */
       execvp(progname, argv);
 
-      return 1; /* this line should never be reached because we exec -- unless if the exec returns something bad. Then we'd have to tell execio over the pipe about that somehow... */
-      /* in fact, maybe we should abort() here because if we returned, a monster of a distren client would exist! */
+      fprintf(stderr, "uh-oh, ``%s'' didn't start for execio\n", progname);
+      exit(1);
     }
 }
 
@@ -165,6 +166,7 @@ int _execio_checkpid(struct execio *eio)
 
 int execio_read(struct execio *eio, void *buf, size_t len, size_t *bytesread)
 {
+  ssize_t ret;
   /*
     TODO: detect NULL eio? 
     TODO: errno?
@@ -172,8 +174,25 @@ int execio_read(struct execio *eio, void
 
     whenever read() returns 0, it means EOF
    */
-  (*bytesread) = read(eio->pipe_read, buf, len);
-  if(!*bytesread)
+  
+  ret = read(eio->pipe_read, buf, len);
+  if(ret == -1)
+    {
+      (*bytesread) = 0;
+      perror("read");
+      switch(errno)
+	{
+	case EAGAIN:
+	case EINTR:
+	  return 0;
+	  break;
+	default:
+	  return 1;
+	}
+    }
+
+  (*bytesread) = (size_t)ret;
+  if(!ret)
     {
       /* should also be able to figure out if is bad fd and should set EXECIO_STATE_ERROR instead of _EOF */
       eio->state = EXECIO_STATE_EOF;