[TUHS] Re: v6 Unix Documents

[Jonathan Gray <jsg@jsg.id.au>]

On Sun, Oct 20, 2024 at 01:23:23AM -0400, Dan Plassche wrote:
> 
> On Sat, 19 Oct 2024, Jonathan Gray wrote:
> 
> > PWB was an early external distribution with troff.
> > 
> > Documents for the PWB/UNIX Time-Sharing System
> > https://datamuseum.dk/wiki/Bits:30007124
> > https://bitsavers.org/pdf/att/unix/PWB_UNIX/
> > 
> > NROFF/TROFF User's Manual
> > October 11, 1976
> > datamuseum.dk, pp 325-357
> > bitsavers, pp 217-249
> > 
> > Addendum to the NROFF/TROFF User's Manual
> > May 1977
> > datamuseum.dk, p 358
> > bitsavers, p 250
> > 
> > fonts described in:
> > Administrative Advice for PWB/UNIX
> > 23. PHOTOTYPESETTING EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES
> > datamuseum.dk, p 647
> 
> Thank you Jonathan.  I was previously not sure where to place the 
> PWB documentation in the timeline but a clearer picture is 
> emerging.
> 
> Based on the v6 "NROFF User's Manual" revised in 1974 and 
> published in 1975, I can now see that the PWB documentation with 
> the "NROFF/TROFF User's Manual" from 1976-77 has most of the 
> content that later appears in v7.  The major change immediately 
> beforehand was the rewrite of troff into C.[1] Some clear 
> differences are the combination of nroff and troff manpages and 
> the addition of troff specific features like the special fonts 
> into the user's manual.
> 
> [1]. Apparently in 1976: 
> https://www.tuhs.org/Archive/Distributions/USDL/unix_program_description-troffsrc.tar.gz

"It was rewritten in C around 1975"
Kernighan in CSTR 97, A Typesetter-independent TROFF

I've seen references to
"Documents for Use with the Phototypesetter (Version 7)"
which was likely distributed with the licensed phototypesetter tape in 1977.

What may have been the manual distributed with that tape is also close to v7.

https://www.tuhs.org/cgi-bin/utree.pl?file=Interdata732/usr/source/troff/doc
https://www.tuhs.org/Archive/Distributions/Other/Interdata/

tuhs Applications/Spencer_Tapes/unsw3.tar.gz
usr/source/formatters/troff/doc/