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=-0.8 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 dfc4e162 for ; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 12:00:44 +0000 (UTC) Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id 021139B925; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 22:00:43 +1000 (AEST) Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 35B0B93D48; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 22:00:13 +1000 (AEST) Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id B4DE593D48; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 22:00:10 +1000 (AEST) Received: from pio-pvt-msa3.bahnhof.se (pio-pvt-msa3.bahnhof.se [79.136.2.42]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTPS id 5113893D1B for ; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 22:00:08 +1000 (AEST) Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by pio-pvt-msa3.bahnhof.se (Postfix) with ESMTP id 78E843F536 for ; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 13:00:06 +0100 (CET) X-Virus-Scanned: Debian amavisd-new at bahnhof.se Received: from pio-pvt-msa3.bahnhof.se ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (pio-pvt-msa3.bahnhof.se [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with ESMTP id sXm9IQMCJ5Sr for ; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 13:00:04 +0100 (CET) Received: from localhost (unknown [94.254.51.200]) (Authenticated sender: mc469656) by pio-pvt-msa3.bahnhof.se (Postfix) with ESMTPA id 8BFA63F535 for ; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 13:00:04 +0100 (CET) Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by localhost (Postfix) with ESMTPS id 0EDB32E02C1 for ; Mon, 28 Oct 2019 13:00:04 +0100 (CET) Date: Mon, 28 Oct 2019 12:00:02 +0000 From: Michael =?utf-8?B?S2rDtnJsaW5n?= To: tuhs@minnie.tuhs.org Message-ID: References: <201910272031.x9RKVSem124842@tahoe.cs.Dartmouth.EDU> <51f2d838-d097-a93f-b44d-9c670d206d2b@tnetconsulting.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Content-Disposition: inline Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit In-Reply-To: Subject: Re: [TUHS] UNIX Backslash History 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" On 27 Oct 2019 21:11 -0400, from usotsuki@buric.co (Steve Nickolas): > On Sun, 27 Oct 2019, Grant Taylor via TUHS wrote: >> Is there any relation between Multics' use of ">" as a directory >> separator and MS-DOS's default use of ">" at the end of the command >> prompt? > > I can't imagine there's any such connection. MS-DOS got it from CP/M, which > didn't even have the concept of subdirectories until after MS-DOS did. If there was such a relationship, it would probably make more sense for the command prompt termination character to be ":", not ">", as DOS labelled devices as [whatever]: (like "A:" or "NUL:"). So I agree with Steve; I imagine it's unrelated. They just had to use _something_ as a default to indicate that the computer is waiting for a command, and ">" is as good a character as any. In either case, since MS-DOS/PC-DOS did what CP/M already did in that regard, the question would probably need to be posed to Kildall where he got it from. Unless Kildall wrote it down, getting a first hand account on the reasoning behind that particular choice would be... nontrivial. -- Michael Kjörling • https://michael.kjorling.se • michael@kjorling.se “The most dangerous thought that you can have as a creative person is to think you know what you’re doing.” (Bret Victor)