OS Chauvinism

Most modern operating systems include a “shell” of one form or another, sometimes text-based, sometimes graphical. The first shell was written by Louis Pouzin. It dates to 1963 or 1964. He even wrote a paper about it.

A long time ago, I worked at a company that has since merged with another large company. Back in the day, my employers kept a technical reference library that included back issues of a magazine, Software: Experience and Practice. A few of the earliest issues of that magazine had a “Computer Recreations” column. Volume 2, pages 397-400 had a column on self reproducing programs.

When working with Linux (BSD or Unix, or even MacOS) command line programs, you often work with file names.

We use incredibly weak language around smartphones and point-n-click computer interfaces. It’s embarrassing.

I had been hosting this blog on a $5 a month VPS from Host the Best, but they have been shut down by the data center they’re renting from. Host the Best is apparently not dealing with abusive customers effectively.

There’s no projected service restoration date.

Unix, and now Linux, have included a wc command for a very long time. Most explanations of its use are misleading fluff and garbage, and do not give you an appreciation of its true value.

I’ve written before about how much I despise baby talk descriptions of operating system abstractions as promoted by Microsoft.

The use of “folder” is particularly pernicious.

Microsoft Windows is a hideous mess.

It’s often said that DEC operating systems influenced the design of the CP/M microcomputer OS. Let’s examine that assertion by looking at how a process was laid out in memory.