Why Plan-9?

Jim Choate ravage at ssz.com
Fri Oct 26 20:45:28 PDT 2001



On Fri, 26 Oct 2001, Karsten M. Self wrote:

> The problem I've got with this response is that Unix and GNU/Linux
> aren't computers, they're operating systems.  Unix was written to run on
> those computers "that didn't exist", largely the PDP 7 and 11.

An OS without a computer is worthless. What drives the architecture of
OS'es (other than mental mastrubation) is applications and applications
environments. In the very late 60's there was a growth in the
computers::person ratio coupled with a great increase in #_computers as a
whole. This led to a problem of scale and scope. Problems that Unix was
able to resolve in a usable way (as 30 years of use will attest). Most
other OS'es weren't. Not that Unix was the only alternative (eg C/PM).
However, the sorts of problems used in a day to day business/activity
creates a 'natural' schism. That is based around the distinctions between
design/engineering and business-home/industry. Unix found a first home in
the first. The 'smaller' OS'es found homes in the second. Each expanded
into the others realm until today. Whence we have several set of originaly
niche market solutions. These solutions have now saturated the market.
However, there are forces that are changing the market radicaly. Moving
from a real 'network is the computer' model. The reality is that the four
horsemen of the network (software, hardware, infrastructure, law) are
going to be replaced in the next 5 or so years with an almost completely
different model. These differences will serve to amplify the current
stresses and schisms in our societies.


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