CompuServe Messages

Martin, A few nits to be picked: UNIX was originally developed on a PDP-7, not a PDP-11, though the first copies that left Bell Labs were indeed -11 versions. I know, because I indeed got THE first copy out of the Labs, complete with Ken Thompson's personal desk copy of the manual because they were too busy to print one for me, complete with his notes in the margins… unfortunately I don't own it any more. Giving UNIX to colleges and universities was not clever AT&T marketing. At the time (early-mid 70s… copy #1 went out in late summer/early fall '73), AT&T was PROHIBITED by Consent Decrees and various other legalities from getting involved in computing. The ONLY way UNIX could see any light outside Bell Labs was "free distribution" (meaning AT&T got no profit from the sale, AND would provide no support). Ken and Dennis were actually legitimately interested in getting this system out there. In those days it was actually quite good by comparison (the only other multi-user alternative for a -11 was RSTS … not even RSTS/E, just RSTS, at the time, and that was limited to BASIC as a programming language. We lucked into UNIX instead of having to write our OWN decent operating system for the -11.). Of course a side effect of all that university distribution is that the system was hacked twelve ways to Sunday by everyone and his/her brother, with no discipline and no standards, so it was not *too* many years before proprietary operating systems caught up (by virtue of discipline and standards) technically. That's one reason why my company got out of active UNIX software development in '85 and went to RSX and VMS. Anyway as you can see I don't at all disagree with the thrust of your argument… just wanted to be sure that the next time you use it, the other side can't accuse you of not knowing the facts 🙂 … -Bill