From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on inbox.vuxu.org X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.8 required=5.0 tests=DKIM_INVALID,DKIM_SIGNED, HTML_MESSAGE,MAILING_LIST_MULTI,RCVD_IN_DNSWL_NONE autolearn=ham autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 Received: (qmail 22612 invoked from network); 11 Mar 2021 15:07:48 -0000 Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (45.79.103.53) by inbox.vuxu.org with ESMTPUTF8; 11 Mar 2021 15:07:48 -0000 Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id 435049B598; Fri, 12 Mar 2021 01:07:46 +1000 (AEST) Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id EF06F9B550; Fri, 12 Mar 2021 01:06:56 +1000 (AEST) Authentication-Results: minnie.tuhs.org; dkim=fail reason="signature verification failed" (2048-bit key; unprotected) header.d=dartmouth.edu header.i=@dartmouth.edu header.b="iNUrymd2"; dkim-atps=neutral Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id 3E84F9B550; Fri, 12 Mar 2021 01:06:53 +1000 (AEST) Received: from mail-wm1-f48.google.com (mail-wm1-f48.google.com [209.85.128.48]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTPS id 2C41E9B54E for ; Fri, 12 Mar 2021 01:06:49 +1000 (AEST) Received: by mail-wm1-f48.google.com with SMTP id d191so1500306wmd.2 for ; Thu, 11 Mar 2021 07:06:49 -0800 (PST) DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=dartmouth.edu; s=google1; h=mime-version:from:date:message-id:subject:to; bh=7H2gFQYyVa/gmRF0gAxDr2/sNbDwXp9DsulItZ9X1VE=; b=iNUrymd2A4G/hyEClcM+F97DKl7E4OhIWcq3zWzIgV+doNY5yRGegiSnQViz/SPqi7 v3T9wT62B6NhqKN2nmvc89/Rn9uAN9yZ3Xsy0Bd94o8vEtIKHT28iAduzoNnIxDKfmyu 2dHl9jV+5PUd0JZr8Vr67xFSELka7GyCf9bm8kEQWmNlZ+JRd3kTnLym9XOnu819n5hT WplbPAvxVuKJq50mHZiEbpO6o1xz3Ng5UKl2SOKeyhVdrHWfNzhQS2ovEqNfF2XyEGRq RibYE76vu872pnhh1ohn4D977SsS9WR8H3JTMNP3ctCKSXsD6W2g9ZgFckI5alMM6sAB eSsA== X-Google-DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=1e100.net; s=20161025; h=x-gm-message-state:mime-version:from:date:message-id:subject:to; bh=7H2gFQYyVa/gmRF0gAxDr2/sNbDwXp9DsulItZ9X1VE=; b=i0xpNBlXrd98X9tssk7UmQ/n0TptVrM6x5dRxPuKY+iDNIJXrM4ZVZNJ6ew5udLMWq TY+e879RgN+CgpyAxEpJQgm7GFDY5xxppVe5yuuXdySg24jzbgx/pPq5ix/0UIwRk0w0 FNUyfzrR7OcLWjW0/QzRrASC6oa0ug+kguNZ9VYyvk3BL3nzIdFU/cWHF/KsR4U76Grp 0MtYEJ1Pib/jphpXp/QZHVEpEN6rw63Jp3QuiEL6HpcIxVVpJ1DZtRIB6WYR+vcP2ArY 8U4TpDwHsUEdxD0juR8aKG3YSE1QuBA4u35Lgvak5AF1Xz0IE7xiCN4i3zrCbjv9+H6z o3Eg== X-Gm-Message-State: AOAM533m5t4QNLt7A8FK38x69RNA5I6O7AlF6E7xIj1Eb6pTPmTr+dTv 5lnqIT3lDpLpea9u/kW6tlq1Gl8o6fPgTf+1eATK0gajiSlEBQ== X-Google-Smtp-Source: ABdhPJwF7JZmXEPcjJnh/olrgDPeRX5pK8fi8VtazYTENbqYp5JJ14nzuFKxHlx+6b+1F7umUWiQodKAb9U2xGbxP4s= X-Received: by 2002:a7b:c409:: with SMTP id k9mr8598035wmi.151.1615475207094; Thu, 11 Mar 2021 07:06:47 -0800 (PST) MIME-Version: 1.0 From: M Douglas McIlroy Date: Thu, 11 Mar 2021 10:06:32 -0500 Message-ID: To: tuhs@minnie.tuhs.org Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="000000000000dcd9be05bd44213e" Subject: [TUHS] Fred Grampp 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: , Errors-To: tuhs-bounces@minnie.tuhs.org Sender: "TUHS" --000000000000dcd9be05bd44213e Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" In all that's been written about the Research Unix players, Fred Grampp has gotten far less coverage than he deserves. I hope to rectify that with this post, most of which was written soon after his death. Doug During Fred's long career at Bell Laboratories, his coworkers were delighted to work with him, primarily because of his innovative and often surprising ways of attacking problems. Fred's unique approach was by no means limited to work-related matters. Fred arranged an annual canoe-camping trip on the Delaware River replete with nearly professional grade fireworks. He also arranged a number of trips to New York City (referred to as culture nights) which included, among other things, trips to the planetarium and visits to various tea rooms. To his friends at Bell Labs, Fred Grampp was a true original. He knew the urban community of small, scrabbling business as well as the pampered life of industrial research in the country's greatest industrial research lab. And he brought the best of each to his approach to work. In his father's hardware store, Fred learned on the front line what "customer-oriented" meant--a far cry from the hypothetical nonsense on the subject put forth by flacks in a modern PR department, or by CEO Bob Allen thinking big thoughts on the golf course. Fred ran the computing facilities for the Computer Science Research Center. He had his finger on the pulse of the machinery at all hours of day and night. He and his colleague Ed Sitar rose early to pat the hardware and assure that everything was in order just as had been done at the hardware store. The rest of us, who kept more nerdish hours, could count on everything running. Packed with equipment, the machine room depended on air conditioning. Fred saw this as a threat to dependable service. As a backup, he had big galvanized barn fans installed in several windows--incongruous, but utterly practical. And they saw actual use on at least one occasion. Fred cooked up ingenious software to sniff the computers' health and sound alarms in his office and even by his bed when something was amiss. When a user found something wrong and popped into Fred's office to report the trouble, more often than not he'd find Fred already working on it. With his street smarts, Fred was ahead of the game when computer intrusion began to become a problem in the 1970s. He was a real white-hat marshall, who could read the the bad guys' minds and head them off at the pass. With Bob Morris, Fred wrote a paper to alert system administrators to the kinds of lapse of vigilance that leave them open to attack; the paper is still read as a classic. Other sage advice was put forth by Fred in collaboration with G. R. Emlin, who would become an important adjunct member of the lab, as several TUHS posts attest. Quietly he developed a suite of programs that probed a computer's defenses--fortunately before the bad guys really got geared up to do the same. That work led to the creation of a whole department that used Fred's methods to assess and repair the security of thousands of computers around Bell Labs. Fred's avocations of flying and lock-picking lent spice to life in the Labs. He was a central figure of the "computer science airforce" that organized forays to see fall colors, or to witness an eclipse. He joined Ken Thompson, who also flew in the department air force, on a trip to Russia to fly a MIG-29. Ken tells the story at cs.bell-labs.com/ken/mig.html. Fred's passion for opera was communicated to many. It was he who put the Met schedule on line for us colleagues long before the Met discovered the World Wide Web. He'd press new recordings on us to whet our appetites. He'd recount, or take us to, rehearsals and backstage visits, and furnish us with librettos. When CDs appeared on the scene, Fred undertook to build a systematic collection of opera recordings, which grew to over two hundred works. They regularly played quietly in the background of his office. To Fred the opera was an essential part of life, not just an expensive night on the town. Fred's down-to-earth approach lightened life at Bell Labs. When workmen were boarding up windows to protect them from some major construction--and incidentally to prevent us from enjoying the spectacle of ironworkers outside. Fred posted a little sign in his window to the effect that if the plywood happened to get left off, a case of Bud might appear on the sill. For the next year, we had a close-up view of the action. Fred, a graduate of Stevens Institute, began his career in the computer center, under the leadership of George Baldwin, perhaps the most affable and civic-minded mathematician I have ever met. At the end of one trying day, George wandered into Fred's office, leaned back in the visitor chair, and said, "I sure could use a cold one about now." Fred opened his window and retrieved a Bud that was cooling on the sill. Fred lived his whole life in Elizabeth, New Jersey. At one point he decided that for exercise he could get to the Labs by train to Scotch Plains and bike from there up to Bell Labs--no mean feat, for the labs sat atop the second range of the Watchung Mountains, two steep climbs away from Scotch Plains. He invested in a folding bike for the purpose. Some days into the new routine a conductor called him out for bringing a bicycle onto the train. Fred had looked forward to this moment. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a timetable and pointed to the fine print: bicycles were prohibited with the exception of folding bikes. Originally dated October 25, 2000. Lightly edited and three paragraphs added February 22, 2021. --000000000000dcd9be05bd44213e Content-Type: text/html; charset="UTF-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
In all that's been written about= the Research Unix players,
Fred Grampp has gotten far less cover= age than he deserves.
I hope to rectify that with this post, most= of which was
written soon after his death.

<= div>Doug

During Fred's long career at Bell Lab= oratories, his coworkers
were delighted to work with him, primari= ly because of his
innovative and often surprising ways of attacki= ng problems.

Fred's unique approach was by no = means limited to work-related
matters. Fred arranged an annual ca= noe-camping trip on the
Delaware River replete with nearly profes= sional grade fireworks.

He also arranged a number = of trips to New York City (referred
to as culture nights) which i= ncluded, among other things,
trips to the planetarium and visits = to various tea rooms.

To his friends at Bell Labs,= Fred Grampp was a true original. He
knew the urban community of = small, scrabbling business
as well as the pampered life of indust= rial research in the
country's greatest industrial research l= ab. And he brought
the best of each to his approach to work.

In his father's hardware store, Fred learned on th= e front line
what "customer-oriented" meant--a far cry = from the hypothetical
nonsense on the subject put forth by flacks= in a modern PR
department, or by CEO Bob Allen thinking big thou= ghts on the
golf course.

Fred ran the co= mputing facilities for the Computer Science
Research Center. He h= ad his finger on the pulse of the machinery
at all hours of day a= nd night. He and his colleague Ed Sitar
rose early to pat the har= dware and assure that everything was
in order just as had been do= ne at the hardware store. The rest
of us, who kept more nerdish h= ours, could count on everything
running.

Packed with equipment, the machine room depended on
air conditio= ning. Fred saw this as a threat to dependable
service. As a backu= p, he had big galvanized barn fans installed
in several windows--= incongruous, but utterly practical. And
they saw actual use on at= least one occasion.

Fred cooked up ingenious soft= ware to sniff the computers'
health and sound alarms in his o= ffice and even by his bed when
something was amiss. When a user f= ound something wrong and
popped into Fred's office to report = the trouble, more often
than not he'd find Fred already worki= ng on it.

With his street smarts, Fred was ahead o= f the game when
computer intrusion began to become a problem in= =C2=A0the 1970s.
He was a real white-hat marshall, who could read= the the bad
guys' minds and head them off at the pass. With = Bob Morris,
Fred wrote a paper to alert system administrators to = the kinds
of lapse of vigilance that leave them open to attack; t= he paper
is still read as a classic. Other sage advice was put fo= rth
by Fred in collaboration with G. R. Emlin, who would become a= n
important adjunct member of the lab, as several TUHS posts atte= st.

Quietly he developed a suite of programs that = probed a
computer's defenses--fortunately before the bad guys= really
got geared up to do the same. That work led to the creati= on
of a whole department that used Fred's methods to assess a= nd
repair the security of thousands of computers around Bell Labs= .

Fred's avocations of flying and lock-picking= lent spice to
life in the Labs. He was a central figure of the &= quot;computer
science airforce" that organized forays to see= fall colors,
or to witness an eclipse. He joined Ken Thompson, w= ho also
flew in the department air force, on a trip to Russia to = fly
a MIG-29.=C2=A0 Ken tells the story at cs.bell-labs.com/ken/mig.html.
Fred's passion for opera was communicated to many. It was
he who put the Met schedule on line for us colleagues long
before the Met discovered the World Wide Web. He'd press new
recordings on us to whet our appetites. He'd recount, or take
<= div>us to, rehearsals and backstage visits, and furnish us with
l= ibrettos. When CDs appeared on the scene, Fred undertook to
build= a systematic collection of opera recordings, which grew
to over = two hundred works. They regularly played quietly in the
backgroun= d of his office. To Fred the opera was an essential
part of life,= not just an expensive night on the town.

Fred'= ;s down-to-earth approach lightened life at Bell Labs. When
workm= en were boarding up windows to protect them from some major
const= ruction--and incidentally to prevent us from enjoying the
spectac= le of ironworkers outside. Fred posted a little sign
in his windo= w to the effect that if the plywood happened to
get left off, a c= ase of Bud might appear on the sill. For the
next year, we had a = close-up view of the action.

Fred, a graduate of S= tevens Institute, began his career in
the computer center, under = the leadership of George Baldwin,
perhaps the most affable and ci= vic-minded mathematician I have
ever met. At the end of one tryin= g day, George wandered into
Fred's office, leaned back in the= visitor chair, and said,
"I sure could use a cold one about= now." Fred opened his window
and retrieved a Bud that was c= ooling on the sill.

Fred lived his whole life in E= lizabeth, New Jersey. At one
point he decided that for exercise h= e could get to the Labs by
train to Scotch Plains and bike from t= here up to Bell Labs--no
mean feat, for the labs sat atop the sec= ond range of the
Watchung Mountains, two steep climbs away from S= cotch Plains.
He invested in a folding bike for the purpose. Some= days
into the new routine a conductor called him out for bringin= g
a bicycle onto the train. Fred had looked forward to this
=
moment. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a timetable
a= nd pointed to the fine print: bicycles were prohibited with
the e= xception of folding bikes.

Originally dated Octobe= r 25, 2000.=C2=A0 Lightly edited and three
paragraphs added Febru= ary 22, 2021.

--000000000000dcd9be05bd44213e--