[77] in linux-announce channel archive
New Book: The UNIX Philosophy (HOT!!!)
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Lars Wirzenius)
Thu Jan 19 06:28:09 1995
Date: Thu, 19 Jan 1995 12:05:55 +0200
From: Lars Wirzenius <wirzeniu@cc.helsinki.fi>
To: linux-activists@niksula.hut.fi, linux-announce@vger.rutgers.edu
X-Mn-Key: announce
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.announce,comp.unix.advocacy,comp.unix.programmer,comp.unix.questions,comp.unix.wizards
From: gancarz@zk3.dec.com (Mike Gancarz)
Subject: New Book: The UNIX Philosophy (HOT!!!)
Summary: New book describes UNIX philosophy in detail
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation
Keywords: commercial
Approved: linux-announce@tc.cornell.edu (Lars Wirzenius)
Followup-to: comp.os.linux.misc,comp.unix.advocacy,comp.unix.programmer,comp.unix.questions
This is a shameless plug for my new book, The UNIX Philosophy. I wrote this
book to set the record straight on what a UNIX system *really* is. A lot of
systems out there claim to be UNIX systems, but not every one adheres to the
gut-level concepts that constitute a UNIX system.
Brian Kernighan once remarked that there are "a lot of crappy UNIXes out
there these days." I share his perception. Just because it looks like UNIX,
smells like UNIX, and tastes like UNIX, it doesn't mean that it's a UNIX
system. It has to have the UNIX heart and soul, that ethereal characteristic
that at once befuddles the novice and satisfies the intellect of the UNIX
guru. It must fulfill one's desire to be in control of the computer instead
of the other way around--but only if you're willing to pay the price.
You can easily find hundreds of books on how to use UNIX, how to write device
drivers, how to write shell scripts, and so on. The UNIX Philosophy is the
first book that answers the question "why UNIX?" in the first place. You can
show everyone how cool it is to write Tcl scripts and play with all the other
fun stuff on a UNIX system, but some people still won't get it. You need to
show this book to them and say, "THIS is why we do this!"
Here are a few passages from the book to whet your appetite:
"The UNIX philosophy is like a giant water slide at an amusement park. You
cannot decide part way into the ride that you'd like to skip a few
curves--you'll only wind up on the ground bruised and bleeding. As many have
discovered the hard way, the UNIX philosophy doesn't work if you employ it
piecemeal."
"Good programmers write good code; great programmers 'borrow' good code."
"Design with portability in mind...When the 1,000,000 MIPS machine arrives
on your desktop--and this may be sooner than you think--be sure your software
will be ready for it."
"Look for the 90 percent solution....That is part of the reason for UNIX's
success. While it avoids trying to be everything to everyone, it meets the
needs of most. The rest can write their own operating system."
UNIX-haters (take note, Garfinkel and friends) are going to *love* this book
because it will give them plenty to debate about. The early reviewers of
the manuscript, some of whom were UNIX-haters themselves, always had to admit
that "yeah, he makes some good points." Unlike some UNIX implementations out
there, the UNIX philosophy itself is rock solid. If you're a UNIX-hater,
The UNIX Philosophy will challenge your beliefs and it pulls no punches.
Here are the publishing details:
'The UNIX Philosophy' by Mike Gancarz. Published by Digital Press, an
imprint of Butterworth-Heinemann. ISBN #1-55558-123-4. 174 pgs.
$19.95 list.
The book has sold over 1,000 copies since its debut in Anaheim in December.
This is pretty good as UNIX books go and is a testimony to its appeal. Read
it and you'll see why.
Contact info:
1-800-366-2665 (U.S.) To order the book over the phone
dp-catalog@bh.com To get the publisher's catalog (the book is
featured on the cover)
gopher gopher.std.com Look under "Book Sellers-DIGITAL PRESS"
to view the book catalog online. The UNIX
Philosophy is under the new books section.
You'll find a chapter listing and description
there as well.
Regards,
Mike Gancarz
Digital Equipment Corp.
Nashua, New Hampshire
gancarz@zk3.dec.com
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