Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!rutgers!lll-lcc!mordor!sri-spam!sri-unix!hplabs!cae780!leadsv!esl!mac From: mac@esl.UUCP (Mike McNamara) Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions Subject: Re: why learn UNIX Message-ID: <383@esl.UUCP> Date: Tue, 13-Jan-87 13:51:24 EST Article-I.D.: esl.383 Posted: Tue Jan 13 13:51:24 1987 Date-Received: Wed, 14-Jan-87 02:39:48 EST References: <1993@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu> Reply-To: mac@esl.UUCP (Mike McNamara) Organization: ESL, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA. Lines: 63 ->>In a recent article bzs@bu-cs.BU.EDU (Barry Shein) wrote: ->>From: alan@herman.UUCP (Alan Kiecker) ->>>One of our directors is on an advisory board to one of our state colleges. ->>>Currently the college is using a VAX VMS system, but is considering moving ->>>over to UNIX... ->>... ->> ->> 6. Manuals - The full set of UNIX manuals is readily available ->> and inexpensive (a very complete set should cost around $100, ->> a more than adequate set probably less half that.) ... ->> VMS manual sets are several times more... ->> expensive and not readily available. I've never seen a tutorial ->> or self-help type book on VMS in the popular press... ->> -> And Garry Wiegand (garry%cadif-oak@cu-arpa.cs.cornell.edu) commented: ->>Not fair. The Unix manuals are cheap because they: ->> ->> 1) Are cryptic and obscure, ->> 2) Are not kept up-to-date, ->> 3) Contain no examples, ->> 4) Contain no index, ->> 5) Assume that you're a wizard. ->> ->>DEC publishes a number of "tutorial and self-help" books -- there aren't ->>the popular press books partly because the original manufacturer has acted ->>responsibly and published them itself. After all, would you prefer to buy ->>a "Guide to programming in Fortran on XXX" or "Guide to Text Editing" from ->>the manufacturer or from some unknown hacker author? ->> -> One of the best things Hewlett Packard & Sun Microsystems have done -> for Unix is rewrite and add to the documentation set. The -> particularily valuable additions these companies have made is to -> write beginners' guides. I have recommended these guides to new users -> of machines like Valids, or other unix based systems. -> -> Perhaps the strongest need that exists in unix, however, is not another -> round of "Introduction to the Unix Shell", but rather a complete -> rewrite of the Manual set, so that users can find those utilities -> we are always seeing source code poping up for in net.sources; RTFM -> is just too difficult. -> -> Of course, I personally, would be much more interested in working on -> implementing Unix on a heterogeneous collection of processors... -> -> So, ATT, Berkeley, get together a bunch of Technical writers and -> document the d**m thing!! -> ->> 10. UNIX has better games :-) ->> ->>true -> -Barry Shein, Boston University ->> ->>garry wiegand (garry%cadif-oak@cu-arpa.cs.cornell.edu) ->> Michael Mc Namara ESL Incorporated ARPA: mac%esl@lll-lcc.ARPA -- Michael Mc Namara ESL Incorporated ARPA: mac%esl@lll-lcc.ARPA