Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!elroy!cit-vax!ucla-cs!sdcrdcf!trwrb!ucla-an!remsit!stb!michael From: michael@stb.UUCP (Michael) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: GaaaK! Unix networking called "GOOD"?!? Message-ID: <10227@stb.UUCP> Date: 5 May 88 18:30:15 GMT References: <517@viscous> Reply-To: michael@stb.UUCP (Michael) Organization: STB BBS, La, Ca, Usa, +1 213 459 7231 Lines: 44 Keywords: Unix SYSV 4.2 Amiga Summary: Sockets STINK. In article <517@viscous> brianm@sco.COM (Brian Moffet) writes: that he would like to see unix on amiga's, and mentions all sorts of "good" things about unix. (Such as consistent devices (YEA!) and "standard networking" (presumably meaning sockets.) My rebuttal: Unix? Isn't that the thing that limits you to 16 files per process? In Chaos (Commodore's Home-made Amiga Operating System), there is no limit to the number of message ports or file handles you can have open. In sockets, you are heavily limited to only 16 total. In Chaos, you can have one message port to talk to everyone, simplifying all your communications In Sockets, you have one message port for making connections, and you must have another port for each person you are currently talking to. (16 max). In Chaos, you can easily wait for a message on any port, including getting software interrupts, or even running as the task that sent you the message (undocumented, but it's there in 1.2) In sockets, you can only select(), and then you have to actually poll to see which one said hi. If you poll in order (1-2-3-4-5-etc), it is possible for a message to come in on 2 after you've check it. In Chaos and V7-ATnT, pipes are atomic. In sockets, pipes are completely unguaranteed for multiple writers. Michael p.s. "Give me a good multitasking system with decent networking, or give me death (a model 1 in good working order)". p.p.s. I have no complaints with sockets as a user interface to a better, lower level raw interface. I'll use the raw, and programs that I want to port will use sockets. (This, in fact, is my biggest complaint with sockets-- datagrams are almost impossible to rip out for non-networked machines, and streams provide almost no added functionality over named pipes (and if that extra functionality is used, they too become un-removable)). -- : Michael Gersten uunet.uu.net!ucla-an.ANES\ : ihnp4!hermix!ucla-an!denwa!stb!michael : sdcsvax!crash!gryphon!denwa!stb!michael : "This signature is too tame; anyone got some gasoline? "