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UNIX Uniplexed Information and Computing System or A pun on Multics?
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Pronounced yoo-niks, a popular multi-user, multitasking operating system developed at Bell Labs in the early 1970s. Created by just a handful of programmers, UNIX was designed to be a small, flexible system used exclusively by programmers. Although it has matured considerably over the years, UNIX still betrays its origins by its cryptic command names and its general lack of user-friendliness. This is changing, however, with graphical user interfaces such as MOTIF. UNIX was one of the first operating systems to be written in a high-level programming language, namely C. This meant that it could be installed on virtually any computer for which a C compiler existed. This natural portability combined with its low price made it a popular choice among universities. (It was inexpensive because antitrust regulations prohibited Bell Labs from marketing it as a full-scale product.) Bell Labs distributed the operating system in its source language form, so anyone who obtained a copy could modify and customize it for his own purposes. By the end of the 1970s, dozens of different versions of UNIX were running at various sites. After its breakup in 1982, AT&T began to market UNIX in earnest. It also began the long and difficult process of defining a standard version of UNIX. To date, there are two main dialects of UNIX; one produced by AT&T known as System V and one developed at Berkeley University and known as BSD4.x, x being a number from 1 to ?. Due to its portability, flexibility, and power, UNIX has become the leading operating system for workstations. Historically, it has been less popular in the personal computer market, but the emergence of Linux is revitalizing UNIX across all platforms. Think UNIX, Jon Lasser, 2000, ISBN 0-7897-2376-X TUTORIALS: UNIX Tutorial | LUPG | Matloff’s UNIX | BigNoseBird | Caltech and many more. UNIX Commands http://wise-old-blogger.com/tutorial.htm http://www.kb.indiana.edu/data/afsk.html DOS to UNIX http://www.mcsr.olemiss.edu/unixhelp/DOStoUNIX.html History & Documentation UNIX: Dennis Ritchie, Bell Labs | FreeBSD Handbook Computer Development timelines vary somewhat, here are
two examples: Linux: Developed by Linus Torvalds while a student at the University of Helsinki Debian: Developed by Ian Murdock Resources: Oldies, but goodies… UNIX for the Impatient, Paul W. Abrahams & Bruce R. Larson (Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1992, ISBN 0-201-55703-7). (A current favorite. Recommended in the CIS Department for Unix beginners.) UNIX in a Nutshell for BSD 4.3: A Desktop Quick Reference For Berkeley (O'Reilly & Associates, Inc., 1990, ISBN 0-937175-20-X). (A handy reference for BSD.) UNIX in a Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference for System V & Solaris 2.0 (O'Reilly & Associates, Inc., 1992, ISBN 0-56592-001-5). (A handy reference for SysV and Solaris 2.) The UNIX Programming Environment, Brian W. Kernighan & Rob Pike (Prentice Hall, 1984). (A classic. For serious folks.) When You Can't Find Your UNIX System Administrator, Linda Mui (O'Reilly & Associates, Inc., 1995, ISBN 1-56592-104-6). UNIX Power Tools, Jerry Peek, Tim O'Reilly, and Mike Loukides (O'Reilly & Associates, 1993, ISBN 0-679-79073-X). Also recommended: A Student's Guide to UNIX, Harley Hahn. (McGraw-Hill, 1993, ISBN 0-07-025511-3). Tricks of the UNIX Masters, Russell G. Sage (Howard W. Sams & Co., Inc., 1987, ISBN 0-672-22449-6).
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