+    # Save function name
+    local FN="${FUNCNAME[0]}";
+
+    # Process arguments
+    argInput="$1";
+    argType="$2";
+    if [[ $# -gt 2 ]]; then yell "ERROR:$0:$FN:Too many arguments."; exit 1; fi;
+
+    # Check for blank
+    if [[ -z "$argInput" ]]; then return 1; fi
+    
+    # Define input types
+    ## ssh_pubkey
+    ### Check for alnum/dash base64 (ex: "ssh-rsa AAAAB3NzaC1yc2EAAA")
+    if [[ "$argType" = "ssh_pubkey" ]]; then
+       if [[ "$argInput" =~ ^[[:alnum:]-]*[\ ]*[[:alnum:]+/=]*$ ]]; then
+           return 0; fi; fi;
+
+    ## age_pubkey
+    ### Check for age1[:bech32:]
+    if [[ "$argType" = "age_pubkey" ]]; then
+       if [[ "$argInput" =~ ^age1[qpzry9x8gf2tvdw0s3jn54khce6mua7l]*$ ]]; then
+           return 0; fi; fi
+
+    ## integer
+    if [[ "$argType" = "integer" ]]; then
+       if [[ "$argInput" =~ ^[[:digit:]]*$ ]]; then
+           return 0; fi; fi;
+
+    ## time element (year, month, week, day, hour, minute, second)
+    if [[ "$argType" = "time_element" ]]; then
+       if [[ "$argInput" = "year" ]] || \
+              [[ "$argInput" = "month" ]] || \
+              [[ "$argInput" = "week" ]] || \
+              [[ "$argInput" = "day" ]] || \
+              [[ "$argInput" = "hour" ]] || \
+              [[ "$argInput" = "minute" ]] || \
+              [[ "$argInput" = "second" ]]; then
+           return 0; fi; fi;
+    
+    # Return error if no condition matched.
+    return 1;
+} # Validates strings
+magicWriteVersion() {
+    # Desc: Appends time-stamped VERSION to PATHOUT_TAR
+    # Usage: magicWriteVersion
+    # Version: 0.1.0
+    # Input: CONTENT_VERSION, FILEOUT_VERSION, PATHOUT_TAR, DIR_TMP
+    # Input: SCRIPT_VERSION, SCRIPT_URL, AGE_VERSION, AGE_URL, SCRIPT_HOSTNAME
+    # Output: appends tar PATHOUT_TAR
+    # Depends: dateTimeShort, appendArgTar
+    local CONTENT_VERSION pubKeyIndex
+    
+    # Set VERSION file name
+    FILEOUT_VERSION="$(dateTimeShort)..VERSION";
+
+    # Gather VERSION data in CONTENT_VERSION
+    CONTENT_VERSION="SCRIPT_VERSION=$SCRIPT_VERSION";
+    #CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n";
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""SCRIPT_NAME=$SCRIPT_NAME";
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""SCRIPT_URL=$SCRIPT_URL";
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""AGE_VERSION=$AGE_VERSION";
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""AGE_URL=$AGE_URL";
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""DATE=$(date --iso-8601=seconds)";
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""HOSTNAME=$SCRIPT_HOSTNAME";
+    ## Add list of recipient pubkeys
+    for pubkey in "${recPubKeysValid[@]}"; do
+       ((pubKeyIndex++))
+       CONTENT_VERSION="$CONTENT_VERSION""\\n""PUBKEY_$pubKeyIndex=$pubkey";
+    done
+    ## Process newline escapes
+    CONTENT_VERSION="$(echo -e "$CONTENT_VERSION")"
+
+    # Write CONTENT_VERSION as file FILEOUT_VERSION and write-append to PATHOUT_TAR
+    appendArgTar "$CONTENT_VERSION" "$FILEOUT_VERSION" "$PATHOUT_TAR" "$DIR_TMP";
+    
+} # bkgpslog: write version data to PATHOUT_TAR via appendArgTar()
+magicGatherWriteBuffer() {
+    # Desc: bkgpslog-specific meta function for writing data to DIR_TMP then appending each file to PATHOUT_TAR
+    # Inputs: PATHOUT_TAR FILEOUT_{NMEA,GPX,KML} CMD_CONV_{NMEA,GPX,KML} CMD_{COMPRESS,ENCRYPT} DIR_TMP,
+    # Inputs: BUFFER_TTL bufferTTL_STR SCRIPT_HOSTNAME CMD_COMPRESS_SUFFIX CMD_ENCRYPT_SUFFIX
+    # Depends: yell, try, vbm, appendArgTar, tar
+    local FN="${FUNCNAME[0]}";
+    wait; # Wait to avoid collision with older magicWriteBuffer() instances (see https://www.tldp.org/LDP/abs/html/x9644.html )
+    # Create buffer file with unique name
+    PATHOUT_BUFFER="$DIR_TMP/buffer$SECONDS";
+    # Fill buffer
+    timeout "$BUFFER_TTL"s gpspipe -r -o "$PATHOUT_BUFFER" ;
+    timeBufferStart="$(dateTimeShort  "$(date --date="$BUFFER_TTL seconds ago")")"; # Note start time
+    vbm "DEBUG:STATUS:$FN:Started magicWriteBuffer().";
+    # Determine file paths (time is start of buffer period)
+    FILEOUT_BASENAME="$timeBufferStart""--""$bufferTTL_STR""..""$SCRIPT_HOSTNAME""_location" && vbm "STATUS:Set FILEOUT_BASENAME to:$FILEOUT_BASENAME";
+    ## Files saved to DIR_TMP
+    FILEOUT_NMEA="$FILEOUT_BASENAME".nmea"$CMD_COMPRESS_SUFFIX""$CMD_ENCRYPT_SUFFIX" && vbm "STATUS:Set FILEOUT_NMEA to:$FILEOUT_NMEA";
+    FILEOUT_GPX="$FILEOUT_BASENAME".gpx"$CMD_COMPRESS_SUFFIX""$CMD_ENCRYPT_SUFFIX" && vbm "STATUS:Set FILEOUT_GPX to:$FILEOUT_GPX";
+    FILEOUT_KML="$FILEOUT_BASENAME".kml"$CMD_COMPRESS_SUFFIX""$CMD_ENCRYPT_SUFFIX" && vbm "STATUS:Set FILEOUT_KML to:$FILEOUT_KML";
+    PATHOUT_NMEA="$DIR_TMP"/"$FILEOUT_NMEA" && vbm "STATUS:Set PATHOUT_NMEA to:$PATHOUT_NMEA";
+    PATHOUT_GPX="$DIR_TMP"/"$FILEOUT_GPX" && vbm "STATUS:Set PATHOUT_GPX to:$PATHOUT_GPX";
+    PATHOUT_KML="$DIR_TMP"/"$FILEOUT_KML" && vbm "STATUS:Set PATHOUT_KML to:$PATHOUT_KML";
+    ## Files saved to disk (DIR_OUT)
+    ### one file per day (Ex: "20200731..hostname_location.[.gpx.gz].tar")
+    PATHOUT_TAR="$DIR_OUT"/"$(dateShort "$(date --date="$BUFFER_TTL seconds ago")")".."$SCRIPT_HOSTNAME""_location""$CMD_COMPRESS_SUFFIX""$CMD_ENCRYPT_SUFFIX".tar && \
+       vbm "STATUS:Set PATHOUT_TAR to:$PATHOUT_TAR";
+    # DEBUG: check vars
+    vbm "STATUS:DIR_TMP     :$DIR_TMP";
+    vbm "STATUS:PATHOUT_TAR :$PATHOUT_TAR";
+    vbm "STATUS:PATHOUT_NMEA:$PATHOUT_NMEA";
+    vbm "STATUS:PATHOUT_GPX:$PATHOUT_GPX";
+    vbm "STATUS:PATHOUT_KML:$PATHOUT_KML";