AIX vs standard unix

[Chuck Karish]

In article <1991Jun7.173343.21209 at alchemy.chem.utoronto.ca>
system at alchemy.chem.utoronto.ca (System Admin (Mike Peterson)) writes:
>In article <30757 at hydra.gatech.EDU> richd at prism.gatech.EDU
>(Richard Dellaripa) writes:
>>jsalter at ibmpa.awdpa.ibm.com writes:
>>>I don't understand.  Just add a stanza in /etc/xlf.cfg, and make a link
>>>from /bin/f77 to /bin/xlf, and now you have a f77.  If you want to get into
>>>the deeper aspects of why xlf isn't the 4.3 BSD f77, you'll have to fight
>>>it out with one of the compiler folks.
>>
>>If it's so easy to do (and I don't see why it wouldn't be), why didn't
>>IBM do it themselves?

Because xlf is NOT f77.  It is a completely different compiler.
The BSD documentation describing f77 does not apply to xlf.  The
BSD manuals describing their FORTRAN support libraries do not apply
to xlf.  This is called `truth in labeling'.

>>This illustrates the major problem I personally
>>have with AIX...its developers seemed to have often changed things from
>>the de facto Un*x standards for no (percieved at least) real reason.

For that matter, BSD is not the only UNIX environment.  Its
universality as a de facto standard is much less profound than many
of the whining BSD chauvinists we hear here would have us believe.
That said, IBM has their own share of NIH syndrome.  AIXv3 is more
compatible than AIXr2 (RT aix) was, thanks at least in part to a
lot of agitation from BSD beleivers in the development team.

>This is of course exactly what we did, ONCE WE FIGURED OUT WHAT HAD TO
>BE DONE. I agree 100% with Richard Dellaripa's comments.

What has to be done is to put the proper conditionals at the
beginnings of your makefiles.  Then your programs will be easier to
compile on non-UNIX systems, too.
-- 

	Chuck Karish		karish at mindcraft.com
	Mindcraft, Inc.		(415) 323-9000