[TUHS] Re: Typesetter C Compiler and Troff (Re: Re: v6 Unix Documents)

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

On Sun, Oct 20, 2024 at 08:30:47PM -0400, Dan Plassche wrote:
> 
> On Sun, 20 Oct 2024, Jonathan Gray wrote:
> 
> > 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/
> 
> Looks we have the files from 1977!
> 
> There are 3 distributions on TUHS that have the same general name 
> and number of source files for the "typesetter c" compiler and 
> the "new" troff in C:
> 
> https://www.tuhs.org/Archive/Applications/Spencer_Tapes/unsw3.tar.gz
> 	./usr/source/c_compiler
> 	./usr/source/formatters/

same contents in
Distributions/UNSW/7/record0.tar.gz
source/formatters/

> 
> https://www.tuhs.org/Archive/Distributions/USDL/spencer_pwb.tar.gz
> 	./sys/c/c
> 	./type/croff
> 	./sys/source/s7/croff
> 
> https://www.tuhs.org/Archive/Distributions/Other/Interdata/interdata_v6.tar.gz
> 	./usr/source/c
> 	./usr/source/troff

Applications/Usenix_77/ug091377.tar.gz
3/ken/nroff_manual/ 'NROFF/TROFF User's Manual'
same as interdata troff doc, without some files

> 
> The Spencer PWB tape appears to be 1.0.  Dates on files from 
> sccsid comments on nroff/troff and throughout the system are from 
> early to mid-1977 making this the earliest set.[1]  The files 
> under the ./type/croff directory and ./sys/source/s7/croff are 
> the same.
> 
> The UNSW AUSAM tape has the same files as PWB.  An initial check 
> shows some feature flags and structs from PWB are missing for 
> [nt]roff here.  However, there are extra notes on the c changes 
> and the October 1976 NROFF/TROFF manual source for content 
> published in the PWB documentation.  The latest dates on other 
> files are from early to mid-1978.[2]
> 
> The Interdata files have lots of added comments and changes with 
> a late 1978 date listed in some files[3].  It does have extra 
> READ_ME files confirming that this was pre-release v7 c compiler 
> for v6, which helps validate the PWB and UNSW content.
> 
> I'll work from the PWB and UNSW files with the plan to send troff 
> details to the groff list and rebuild the compiler in the 
> process.  Glad to confirm if the build succeeds and I find out 
> any further details about the compiler if relevant for TUHS.

I adapted Tim Newsham's v6 install scripts for PWB if you'd
like to run it on simh.

https://github.com/jonathangray/pwb/

Base system from the Bostic tapes, troff installed from
the Spencer tape.

> 
>  1. Examples: ./usr/man/man0/introduction: May 1977 and 
>     ./usr/man/man0/documents: August 1977
> 
>  2. As printed in the copy available at: 
> 
>  http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/att/unix/PWB_UNIX/Documents_for_the_PWB_UNIX_Time-Sharing_System_Edition_1.0_197710.pdf
> 
>     Updates like the January 1978 changes to the dz serial code 
>     provided by Dennis at ./usr/sys/dmr/dz.c.
> 
>  3. Such as ./usr/doc/cman/cman1: June 1978.
> 
> 
> Best,
> 
> Dan
>