Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!purdue!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!pasteur!ames!sgi!karlton@fudge.SGI.COM
From: karlton@fudge.SGI.COM (Phil Karlton)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.sgi
Subject: Re: UNIX vs ULTRIX
Summary: Ultrix is Digital's version of BSD 4.2
Message-ID: <32477@sgi.SGI.COM>
Date: 10 May 89 21:18:40 GMT
References: <8905091526.AA00538@sgidallas>
Sender: daemon@sgi.SGI.COM
Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc., Mountain View, CA
Lines: 27

In article <8905091526.AA00538@sgidallas>, treed@SGI.COM (Thomas E Reed) writes:
> I am interested in any information good or bad concerning DEC's ultrix OS.
> 
> I am trying to put together an unbiased comparison of unix OS's primarily
> (AT&T, BSD, and DEC).
 
I don't know if I am completely unbiased, but here goes anyway.


Basically, Ultrix is Digital's version of BSD 4.2. The device drivers
tend to be very different than those for the same device out of Berkeley.

It has had most of the AT&T features added; where there are conflicts
an environment variable helps the application choose which "mode" to
run in.

Because of long lead times, some applications that one expects with
BSD just haven't made it out the release cycle yet. Very few of the
4.3 features are available, including some developed by Digital
engineers located at Berkeley and "shipped" with BSD releases 1 or 2
years ago.

A lot of work (some successful) has gone into trying to make
installation and system management easier for novices. The techniques
tend to get in the way of the knowledgable user.

PK