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From: Steve_Lesner@f170.n771.z3.fidonet.org (Steve Lesner)
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.misc
Subject: Re: Multiuser OS/2
Message-ID: <9105231120.AA92755@f170.n771.z3.fidonet.org>
Date: 17 May 91 22:07:24 GMT
Reply-To: Steve_Lesner@f261.n141.z1.fidonet.org (Steve Lesner)
Lines: 47
Comment-To: Kevin_Lowey@f43.n140.z1.fidonet.org (Kevin Lowey)


 KL> There is no equivalent to this in OS/2.  The closest you can come is OS/
2 
 KL> on a LAN, in which files CAN have this setup.  I suppose someone could 

In fact, VERY CLOSE.

 KL> There are many other examples of how Unix has the multiuser support 
built 
 KL> in, whereas OS/2 doesn't and needs to rely on non-standard third party 
 KL> utilities. For example, Unix gives FULL access to the operating system 
 KL> to multiple users.  A BBS program only gives users a menu-driven front 
 KL> end.  If you pop out of the BBS to the command prompt, you get full run 
 KL> of every file on the computer.  

Or you could write an app that gave them the same capabilites Unix does.  
But naturally, Unix does do this better because most all of the core apps 
come with built in support for RS-232 connects regardless of if its a modem 
or direct connect attached.  With direct screen writing programs, unless you 
use something like OS2YOU (a Carbon copy type program), an OS/2 user 
connecting via a modem is #hit out of luck!  But what it really boils down 
to are the methods we programmers for DOS and OS/2 use to program our 
applications.  For the longest time, we keep thinking 1 user, 1 machine.  
Its time for all software developers to think about their applications and 
optimize them to run in various scenarios (such as a modem connection in a 
multi-user mode).


 KL> Unix has support for accounting.  Who did what and when, and how much 
CPU 
 KL> time did they use, how much DISK space, how many printed pages, etc.  

Lans do the same.

 KL> Unix has support for quotas on individuals.  You can say Joe User can 
 KL> only have at most 1M of disk space, and cannot run jobs at a priority 
 KL> higher than X.   Joe can only access these files on the system, and not 

Lans do the same.

I don't disagree with you, but there are many ways in which one could build 
a fairly nice mutli-user environment on top of OS/2 with some thought and a 
bit of time.


--- Maximus-CBCS v1.02.OS/2.B0
 * Origin: Uh Huh, OS/2, I've got the right one Baby, Uh Huh (1:141/261)