From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.2 (2018-09-13) on inbox.vuxu.org X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-1.0 required=5.0 tests=HEADER_FROM_DIFFERENT_DOMAINS, MAILING_LIST_MULTI,RCVD_IN_DNSWL_NONE autolearn=ham autolearn_force=no version=3.4.2 Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (minnie.tuhs.org [45.79.103.53]) by inbox.vuxu.org (OpenSMTPD) with ESMTP id 53c4fd08 for ; Mon, 29 Apr 2019 14:54:10 +0000 (UTC) Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id 948189B617; Tue, 30 Apr 2019 00:54:09 +1000 (AEST) Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 3A292948F1; Tue, 30 Apr 2019 00:53:48 +1000 (AEST) Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id D3209948F1; Tue, 30 Apr 2019 00:53:46 +1000 (AEST) Received: from mcvoy.com (mcvoy.com [192.169.23.250]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTPS id E2D3C948F0 for ; Tue, 30 Apr 2019 00:53:45 +1000 (AEST) Received: by mcvoy.com (Postfix, from userid 3546) id 88DCE35E0AC; Mon, 29 Apr 2019 07:53:45 -0700 (PDT) Date: Mon, 29 Apr 2019 07:53:45 -0700 From: Larry McVoy To: Clem Cole Message-ID: <20190429145345.GO2212@mcvoy.com> References: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline In-Reply-To: User-Agent: Mutt/1.5.24 (2015-08-30) Subject: Re: [TUHS] MASSCOMP MC-500 Guide to Writing a Unix Device Driver X-BeenThere: tuhs@minnie.tuhs.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.26 Precedence: list List-Id: The Unix Heritage Society mailing list List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Cc: The Eunuchs Hysterical Society Errors-To: tuhs-bounces@minnie.tuhs.org Sender: "TUHS" I used to carry around some Masscomp doc, I believe it was about networking. Masscomp had some great tech writers. On Mon, Apr 29, 2019 at 10:45:50AM -0400, Clem Cole wrote: > Warner, > > I should have copies of it, I'm also in email contact with both Tom T. (aka > tjt - who is someone I reference often on this list) and Janet (Tom often > weekly). > > As for history, until Janet created that document for Masscomp, nothing > existed other than a short paper I believe Dennis wrote for V6 and updated > for V7. Cliff and Tom A had spent hours in Tom and my shared office > picking our brains. What they came up with was not quite right (to be > polite) and tjt attempted to fix it - which at least was technically > correct. Janet has the head of Masscomp's documentation group, re-wrote > Tom's version to make it easier to understand. I should have the version > in my files [Janet might even have the original troff sources]. > > When Tim O'Reilly (who had been writing a lot of our doc under contract and > started to do the original 'nutshell' series) cut a deal to take the > documentation he was writing for us 'out of Masscomp' and publish it (thus > creating the original X-Windows documentation and the first real hit for > ORA), precedent had been set. > > Shortly after, Tom and I had left for Belmont, ney Stellar, and Janet and > Tom decided to redo it as a book. > ??? > > On Mon, Apr 29, 2019 at 9:50 AM Warner Losh wrote: > > > Greetings, > > > > I'm trying to find the predecessor to "Writing a UNIX Device Driver, J. > > Egan & T. Teixeira, 1st ed, 1988". In the preface, it says: > > > > "This book is based on a MASSCOMP manual, Guide to Writing a Unix Device > > Driver. The first version that MASSCOMP published as part of the > > documentation set for the MC-500 was based on preliminary drafts prepared > > for MASSCOMP by Cliff Cary and Tom Albough of Creare R&D." > > > > I checked bit keepers and found nothing. > > > > I was wondering if people on this list know of this manual, have a copy, > > etc. In general, I'm looking for pre-SysV driver manuals. I can find all > > kinds of SysV driver books (some of which cover 4.2BSD or 4.3BSD as well), > > but nothing for System III or V7 unix. There were a lot of early systems > > that were based on ports of V7 to different architectures that were then > > updated to System III or System V (at least according to the big chart of > > unix history and some wikipedia entries, which may be just repeating > > marketing schlock and not reflect actual reality). > > > > As part of a talk I'm putting together on the 40th anniversary of V7, I > > wanted to have a bit of history for things we still have in unix today > > (like strategy) and things that successors to unix have added or left > > behind (like the packet mux in V7 that was tossed aside for either STREAMS > > or netinet from BSD, though packet muxing to userland is back with DPDK). > > > > Warner > > -- --- Larry McVoy lm at mcvoy.com http://www.mcvoy.com/lm