Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!uwvax!oddjob!hao!ames!necntc!linus!philabs!elvis!rob
From: rob@philabs.Philips.Com (Rob Robertson)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: Help us defend against VMS!
Message-ID: <3347@briar.Philips.Com>
Date: 7 Mar 88 21:22:04 GMT
References: <1636@tulum.UUCP> <68@musky2.MUSKINGUM.EDU> <5586@elroy.Jpl.Nasa.Gov> <1179@uop.edu>
Sender: news@philabs.Philips.Com
Organization: Philips Laboratories, Briarcliff Manor, NY
Lines: 33
Keywords: huh?

In article <1179@uop.edu> mcginnis@uop.edu (Rogue Barbarian) writes:
>I found that the VMS
>documentation was very inadequate for the needs of even a substandard
>programmer.  There was no documentation on any higher system functions 
>or programming.  I prefer a UNIX enviorment and will, hopefully, not 
>use VMS ever again.  I'd rather use Ultrix.

yeah, tell me another one.

"With UNIX, if you're looking for something, you can easily and
 quickly check that small manual and find out that it's not there.  With
 VMS, no matter what you look for -- it's literally a five-foot shelf of
 documentation -- if you look long enough it's there.  That's the
 difference -- the beauty of UNIX is it's simple; and the beauty of VMS
 is that it's all there."
		--Ken Olsen, President of DEC

ken's right.  VMS IS well documented.  Everything is in the manuals.
Where it is is another story, but it's there.  I have a funny feeling
you did not have a COMPLETE set of VMS documentation (not only is it
big, but expensive).

I have a few problems with Ultrix documentation.  There
are also alot of DEC internal formats that ain't documented.  Changing
the "BUGS" section to "RESTRICTIONS" is something that really irks me.
Why not call a spade a spade?   And the removal of the "AUTHORS"
sections is also a pisser.  Alot of the berkeley stuff was done by
midnight hackers whose only renumeration was being listed under the
AUTHORS section.  I'd rather use 4.3 BSD.

rob
				william robertson
				rob@philabs.philips.com