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From: greyelf@wpi.wpi.edu (Michael J Pender)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: UNIX on the Apple II?
Message-ID: <6952@wpi.wpi.edu>
Date: 19 Jan 90 04:02:16 GMT
References: <113300242@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu> <6935@wpi.wpi.edu> <1299@husc6.harvard.edu>
Reply-To: greyelf@wpi.wpi.edu (Michael J Pender)
Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester ,MA
Lines: 48

In article <1299@husc6.harvard.edu> huang@husc4.UUCP (Howard Huang) writes:
>I would say the main reason to use UNIX instead of ProDOS, MS-DOS, etc.
>is to support a multi-user environment -- e.g., many people logged onto
>terminals connected to a VAX. If all UNIX handled was files and compilers,
>it wouldn't have any advantages over any other PC operating system. 
>Actually, its cryptic commands like "ls" and "cp" would put it at a
>disadvantage unless someone added a GUI. 
>
>Trying to keep track of several people sharing resources on a single computer
>presents many problems.  For example, synchronizing processes, deciding 
>which user gets how much CPU time, allocating RAM to individual users, 
>protection and privileges to avoid other people reading your files, etc.
>

I'm starting to understand now.  I never understood why people were
all fired up about unix, but basically its because it would allow the
user to do several things at once.  On the current hardware of an
apple IIgs I can't see multiusers (can you say one keyboard boys and 
girls?) but multiple processes running would be possible.

What I think would be a worthwhile investment of time would be a 
c shell program for the apple II line that runs under prodos 8,
requires 64K of ram.  Then a c compiler could be just like another
system program.  For an editor a person could use any editor they 
like now, just send output as a text file or some such.

Multiple tasks would be an option say to people with mouse cards,
and if they wanted they could use it, even though it would slow the 
machine down.

In a nutshell I would like to see a primitive add-on to Prodos that
would provide the user interface and a couple of commands, like
ls, cp, cat (like the type command).

That is, merely something to replace BASIC.SYSTEM that wouldn't
take up as much space.  That way whatever code the c compiler produces
could take one of two forms, a p-code that runs under the c.system
or Assembler code capable of interfacing directly to Prodos.

A neat idea, but I can't write the compiler.  The shell maybe, but
not the whole compiler.

Any takers?

---
Michael J Pender Jr  Box 1942 c/o W.P.I.        ... (Mankind) has already 
greyelf@wpi.bitnet   100 Institute Rd.          used its last chance.
greyelf@wpi.wpi.edu  Worcester, Ma 01609               - Gen. MacArthur