From mboxrd@z Thu Jan  1 00:00:00 1970
Message-Id: <200305181536.h4IFag525170@augusta.math.psu.edu>
To: 9fans@cse.psu.edu
Subject: Re: [9fans] Re: Free Plan 9 "shell" accounts?
In-Reply-To: Your message of "Sun, 18 May 2003 16:02:21 BST."
             <3EC7A07D.7000900@proweb.co.uk>
From: Dan Cross <cross@math.psu.edu>
Date: Sun, 18 May 2003 11:36:41 -0400
Topicbox-Message-UUID: afbeedd4-eacb-11e9-9e20-41e7f4b1d025

> >I see what you're saying, but I think you missed my point.  It might
> >help if you reviewed a book on operating systems basics; it's pretty
> >clear you don't have much of a formal background here.  I can recommend
> >a titles, if you'd like.
>
> can you recommend them anyway 8)

Sure.  I think the new edition of Tanenbaum's, ``Modern Operating
Systems'' is quite good, as is Avi Silberschatz's, ``Operating Systems
Concepts,'' now in it's 6th Edition.  Silberschwatz also has a another
book, in it's first edition: ``Applied Operating System Concepts'' that
is similar in nature to his earlier book, but targeted to a slightly
different audience.  It's my impression that the former concentrates a
little more on theory, while the latter talks about applications of
that theory.  Either is probably fine if you don't have a lot of
background in OS's.

Also, there are at least two books that talk about operating system
implementation in great detail: Tanenbaum's, ``Operating Systems:
Design and Implementation,'' in it's second edition, and John Lions's,
``Lions' Commentary on Unix 6th Edition, with Source Code.''  The
former is the famous (infamous?) Minix book; the latter is the infamous
(famous?) Lions' Papers, which go through the Unix kernel line by
line.  Both of these books provide great insight into operating system
internals.  The Lions book is obviously dated; Tanenbaum updated the
Minix book a few years ago.

Of course, Nemo's tome on the Plan 9 kernel will give you a lot of
insight into Plan 9, in a manner similar to how Lions' papers gave
one insight into Unix.

Those will get people started.  After that, there are a few other
decent books, but it's probably more fruitful to go directly to the
research literature.

> and anyone else while we're on the subject
>
> I can't find any decent books at my local bookstores that I can buy and
> read for the sake of it i.e. not for reference
>
> the only book on my current list is "Life With Qmail" and that doesn't
> sound too exciting

Well, I recommend, ``A Farewell to Arms'' and ``Of Mice and Men,'' two
of my favorite books.  Also, ``We'', if you can get a hold of one of
the modern translations is a fantastic read (a pre-cursor to the
prototypical Orwellian novel).  If you mean computer books....  Don't
ask me; computer books put me to sleep.

	- Dan C.

(Though I have managed to get through, ``The Elements of Programming
Style,'' ``The Practice of Programming,'' ``Programming Pearls,''
``The Pragmatic Programmer,'' and a few others.  The first three I
recommend to anyone serious about programming computers.)