Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uflorida!haven!adm!smoke!gwyn
From: gwyn@smoke.BRL.MIL (Doug Gwyn )
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: Mirror Tech hard drives, 3200 color pics, & AppleII UNIX!
Keywords: Unix, IIgs
Message-ID: <9908@smoke.BRL.MIL>
Date: 23 Mar 89 15:32:51 GMT
References: <1946@mentor.cc.purdue.edu>
Reply-To: gwyn@brl.arpa (Doug Gwyn (VLD/VMB) <gwyn>)
Organization: Ballistic Research Lab (BRL), APG, MD.
Lines: 35

In article <1946@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> asd@mace.cc.purdue.edu (Kareth) writes:
>- Is there anything that could prevent one from creating Unix for a
>  Apple II (not gs)?  or Apple IIgs?  I'm not concerned with lack of
>  compilers, speed of cpu, etc, I am mainly concerned with IF it is possible,
>  and/or IF it is possible but would require much too effort.  Right now,
>  I figure the IIgs would be easiest to do this on.  With the MemoryManager
>  and stuff built in ROM, you wouldn't have to mess around with creating
>  your own routines for managing memory (like on any non-gs II).

This is a project I consider doing from time to time.

The 8-bit Apple II is simply too small to support anything like a
modern UNIX implementation.  The IIGS has enough memory capacity,
but isn't particularly well suited for several reasons, including:
	(a) most peripherals are not controlled by interrupts
	(b) lack of MMU means that user-mode processes can easily
	corrupt or crash the system

There is also the problem of affording the UNIX license.  It is
infeasible to personally reconstruct all the UNIX software from
scratch, and only a fairly rich individual could afford to license
the sources.  (Actually, APG could sublicense them at $2000 apiece,
barely within range of affordability, to government contractors,
but I don't think there is any official interest in Apple IIGSes.)

I think the best that can be hoped for, if Apple doesn't take on
the task themselves (fat chance!), is to port MINIX or perhaps
XINU to the IIGS, and even then some compromises will have to be
made.  Probably the ProDOS file system (or hopefully HFS by then)
would continue to be used instead of a true UNIX filesystem, alas.
That rather crimps the style of several UNIX system utilities, and
on it goes.  The result would be something notably better than the
god-awful BASIC and FINDER environments, but not a sufficiently
deep exploitation of the best UNIX principles to keep many of us
happy.