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From: gwyn@brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn )
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: Size of SysV "block"
Message-ID: <6132@brl-smoke.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 16-Jul-87 16:01:12 EDT
Article-I.D.: brl-smok.6132
Posted: Thu Jul 16 16:01:12 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 18-Jul-87 08:26:52 EDT
References: <218@astra.necisa.oz> <142700010@tiger.UUCP>
Reply-To: gwyn@brl.arpa (Doug Gwyn (VLD/VMB) )
Organization: Ballistic Research Lab (BRL), APG, MD.
Lines: 9

In article <142700010@tiger.UUCP> rjd@tiger.UUCP writes:
>A byte IS eight bits!!!

No, that started with IBM's System/360 and gained further support from
the PDP-11.  Before that time, and since, many architectures have either
had other fundamental address unit sizes (e.g. 6 or 9 bits) or have
supported variable-sized bytes (e.g. CDC).  An 8-bit byte is simply not
a suitable unit of measure for systems whose fundamental memory unit
size is not an integral multiple of 8 bits.