The UNIX Time-Sharing System
đź“ś Abstract
The UNIX operating system was originally developed several years ago as a single-user system on a Digital Equipment Corp. PDP-7. After initial satisfactory use for document preparation and as a medium for program development, it was moved to the PDP-11/20, and later to larger PDP-11 models. In 1973, it was rewritten in the C programming language, which enabled a version to be installed on the Interdata 8/32. This paper describes the concepts of the UNIX system and provides descriptions of several features of the system and discusses these features in the context of reliability and the revision history of the system.
✨ Summary
The paper titled “The UNIX Time-Sharing System” by D. M. Ritchie and K. Thompson, published in July 1974, introduces the UNIX operating system. Originally developed for the PDP-7, UNIX was eventually ported to various models of the PDP-11 and was rewritten in the C programming language to enhance portability.
The paper covers several key aspects of UNIX architecture, including its file system, process management, and user interface among others. It also emphasizes the system’s efficiency, functionality, and replication capability.
UNIX has significantly influenced the development of modern operating systems and has been a foundation for several derivatives, including Linux and BSD. It is valued for its simplicity, elegance, and robustness. Its impact is seen in the shift towards open-source software, the modularization of system components, and the widespread adoption of the C programming language for system development.
Due to its importance, the paper has been widely cited and regarded as seminal in both academia and industry. For example, its influence extends to the development of POSIX standards, which are heavily based on UNIX principles. More specifically, papers such as “Reflections on Trusting Trust” by Ken Thompson and several others in operating systems research frequently cite this work.
References: - Zobel, Justin. “How reliable are the results of large-scale information retrieval experiments?” http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=788256. - Unknown. “UNIX 7th Edition Manual.” http://man.cat-v.org/unix_7th/. (Accessed via historical web archives)