From: ernest@pundit.cithep.caltech.edu (Ernest Prabhakar)
Subject: Re: Open Letter: Don't get rid of UNIX
Reply-To: ernest@pundit.cithep.caltech.edu (Ernest Prabhakar)
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 23:35:52 GMT

In article <1992Aug31.213400.11617@adobe.com> byer@adobe.com (Scott Byer)  
writes:
> Glenn Reid writes
> 
> [Good reasons for not dumping Unix]
> 
> First off, what's the alternative?  NT?  OS/2?  VMS?  ;-)

Stay calm, people, I think there are a lot of issues being confused here.
There are two fundamental issues:
- presence of Unix
- visibility of Unix

I believe NeXT is mostly concerned about 'hiding' dependence on Unix of the  
AppKit.  This has two effects:
- making life easier on non-Unix weenies
	[Note how Steve has ragged on Windows for not 'hiding' DOS]
- making AppKit more cleanly portable to non-Unix systems (Taligent, NT, etc.)
  where the Unix support is 'external' (i.e., slow, or not always present)
	Of course, NeXT has never indicated interest in doing so.

There are essentially three important things that are 'peculiar' to Unix:
- the shell utilities (scripts and filters)
- the file system (inodes and pathnames)
- the C API (basically POSIX.1)

NeXT is not going to drop the API, epsecially now that they've started  
supporting POSIX.  There are two many neat things in there that apps rely upon.   
If they ever were do it, Unix would be deprecated in 4.0, and removed in 5.0.   
Since that's not until 1995 or so (after IBM has gone bankrupt :-), I wouldn't  
start worrying about it now.

The file system will probably be replaced by an OOFS.  However, the browser,  
POSIX-style API calls, and Unix utilities that use them (e.g. 'ls' and  
friends), should still work.

The shell utilities might very well be part of a separate bundle.  They take up  
a lot of disk space, are not required by the vast majority of NeXTstep apps  
(correct me if I'm wrong, someone), and are *supposed* to be unnecessary for  
the -average- user.  Of course, the 'package' of 'UNIX-shell' should always be  
available for PowerUsers (tm).  Those that don't want it, though, won't need  
it, and won't miss it.  It will be possible to setup and maintain a NeXTtation  
without it.

This, at least, seems to be the most reasonable interpretation of Steve's  
claims of 'removing dependence on Unix' (I believe that is the phrase that  
started it all).  There is absolutely no reason to believe that 4.0 will have  
zapped all the Unix stuff into La-la-land.  (If there is, someone please tell  
me, but nothing I've heard as indicated that).  If that was what NeXT intended,
I'm sure they would have to told us to 'not rely on it being there.'  As it is,  
they've only talked about what they are doing with THEIR software, not what we  
should do with ours.

Anyway, this is pure speculation on my part.  I don't know Steve's mind.   
Still, my thoughts seem to fit the facts (facts? what facts?  have you seen any  
facts? :-) as well as anyone elses, so I don't see why we should panic  
prematurely.  If NeXT really is planning on something that drastic, I'm sure we  
will have plenty of time to panic after we know the facts.

- Ernie P.
Confirmed Unix weenie
--
Ernest N. Prabhakar                  Caltech High Energy Physics
Member, League for Programming Freedom (league@prep.ai.mit.edu)
CaJUN President        NeXTMail:ernest@pundit.cithep.caltech.edu
"...and ourselves, your servants for Jesus sake." - II Cor 4:5b
#import <std/disclaimer.h>