*BSD News Article 11921


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Newsgroups: comp.os.386bsd.questions
Path: sserve!manuel.anu.edu.au!munnari.oz.au!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!hubcap!ncrcae!ncrhub2!ncrgw2!psinntp!panix!tls
From: tls@panix.com (Thor Lancelot Simon)
Subject: Re: 386BSD Posix Compliance
Message-ID: <C31DH5.3n3@panix.com>
Organization: Panix Public Access Internet & Unix, NYC
References: <1me016$4j8@agate.berkeley.edu> <C2z38u.3BA@panix.com> <1993Feb25.080612.16553@gmd.de>
Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1993 03:24:39 GMT
Lines: 41

In article <1993Feb25.080612.16553@gmd.de> veit@fanoe.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (Holger Veit) writes:
>In article <C2z38u.3BA@panix.com>, tls@panix.com (Thor Lancelot Simon) writes:
>|> In article <1me016$4j8@agate.berkeley.edu> wjolitz@soda.berkeley.edu (William F. Jolitz) writes:
>|> >Just to reassure people, 386BSD will remain POSIX compliant.
>|> >Extensions to the system are "experimental" and will be justified
>|> >over time. 
>|> >
>|> >However, 386BSD development remains focussed on novel research and
>|> >development issues. Compatibility with commercial systems
>|> >is not a primary goal. Commercial companies which wish to
>|> >slip-stream 386BSD development work instead of competing 
>|> >in the commercial market and spending their own dollars
>|> 
>|> 
>|> With all due respect, I think you're misunderstanding the issue!
>
>*I* think *you* are misunderstanding what POSIX is, and what Bill (Lynne?)
>meant with compatibility and interface. See below.

Excuse me?  I know perfectly well what POSIX is.  I also know at least enough
about the kernel to write simple device drivers, so I think I have at least
an advanced layman's notion of both.  I would like to be able to use, in the
future, kernel extensions (device drivers, vfs file systems and the like)
which were written for other Net2 derivatives.  As I understand it, a
number of these *kernel* interfaces are going to change.  That's what
bothers me.

I got a nice note from Lynne about my previous post; I still think we're
sort of talking to our own idea of what each other are saying, though. 
Just for the record:  What disappoints me about the prospect of kernel
interfaces changing is the ability to use other _free_ software (kernel
extensions, obviously) which is now or might in the future be written by
the users of other _free_ operating systems, or _free_ software written by
users of commercial systems.  A commercial system I'm _not_ after.


-- 
Thor Lancelot Simon	 tls@panix.COM

"Better be careful there.  John might decide to start taking legal action
against people who refuse to buy stuff from him."  --Kevin McBride