Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!mmlai!burzio
From: burzio@mmlai.UUCP (Tony Burzio)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: proprietary OSs
Summary: UNIX as an OpSys
Message-ID: <488@mmlai.UUCP>
Date: 21 Dec 88 06:27:15 GMT
References: <205@imspw6.UUCP> <4330119@hpindda.HP.COM> <5254@bsu-cs.UUCP>
Organization: Martin Marietta Labs, Baltimore, MD
Lines: 27

In article <5254@bsu-cs.UUCP>, dhesi@bsu-cs.UUCP (Rahul Dhesi) writes:
> >While I agree with your prediction of
> >the role of Unix in the next few years, I can also see why there continue
> >to be propietary OSs.  One reason is the inefficiencies of Unix.  I am no
> >Unix kernel expert, so I don't pretend to know why, but I have seen that
> >a propietary OS can support many more time-sharing users than Unix when
> >both are run on the same hardware.

I continue to hear rumors that DEC is going to come up with a VMS shell
for UNIX based machines and toss the old BLISS VMS code overboard.  With
their new 15 MIP machines, they should be able to mess up UNIX enough to
allow emulation of a uVAXII :-)  Imagine, RMS emulation in UNIX.
If you think about it, VMS residing as a shell in UNIX will make Olsens'
statement that VMS is/will be OSF compliant understandable...

> By the way, UNIX itself is a proprietary OS.  Perhaps we should be talking
> about "portable" and "unportable" operating systems. 

Portable?  Which version of UNIX are you using this morning?  In all
fairness, though, portability seems to be *ever* so close.  Now if the
marketing guys can keep their proprietary hands off...

*********************************************************************
Tony Burzio               * Ski Angel Fire NM...
Martin Marietta Labs      *
mmlai!burzio@uunet.uu.net *
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