Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site brl-tgr.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!sdcsvax!dcdwest!ittvax!decvax!wanginst!ucadmus!harvard!seismo!brl-tgr!tgr!gwyn@Brl-Vld.ARPA From: Doug Gwyn (VLD/VMB) Newsgroups: net.unix Subject: Re: AT&T vs. Berkeley UNIX ?? Message-ID: <8266@brl-tgr.ARPA> Date: Tue, 12-Feb-85 00:12:33 EST Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.8266 Posted: Tue Feb 12 00:12:33 1985 Date-Received: Fri, 15-Feb-85 04:17:19 EST Sender: news@brl-tgr.ARPA Organization: Ballistic Research Lab Lines: 34 I doubt that "Berkeley is developing a UNIX release that emulates UNIX System V". This is perhaps a garbled rendition of the following true fact: "There is an emulation of UNIX System V that runs on 4.2BSD." That emulation was done (by me) at BRL and made freely available to sites having the appropriate licenses. There has been some talk about distributing the emulation along with 4.nBSD (for some n > 2) as "user-contributed software". At least one major computer vendor has similar plans. This is fine with me, since after sending out ~100 tapes I am eager for someone else to do the distribution. If anyone is seriously interested in doing this, I would hope that they pick up the most recent distribution, as there have been continual improvements. ENTER "SOAP BOX" MODE: It is apparent to me that, like it or not, the UNIX System V environment is well on its way to becoming the standard for applications software. Evidence for this is abundant; for example, there are three separate published standards documents (well okay, the ANSI C effort is not yet a published standard) modeled very closely on the UNIX System V system interface. As an applications designer I applaud this development. However, one consequence is that as time goes on it becomes increasingly important to provide this system interface on other (e.g., 4.nBSD-based) systems. I have found an expedient way to do this given that native facilities have to be used unaltered. Vendors with more control over the native system (e.g., Pyramid) have chosen other methods for accomplishing the same goal. I have yet to see a system fully follow the existing specs (not even UNIX System V itself quite does this), but several come very close. gwyn@brl.ARPA decvax!brl-bmd!gwyn