System N history correction (dmr quoted)

[Ian F. Darwin]

[This topic started when Geoff Collyer (geoff at utcs) claimed that
System III/V derive not from V7, as AT&T now seems to claim,
but from a pre-v7 system. He listed many features which are
in v7 and 4.1 that never were in System III because that system
derived from something before v7. Comment in this newsgroup
has been interesting but has not produced any new evidence.
Here is an authoratative quote on the original question.]

In the October 1984 issue of Microsystems is an interview with
Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie. Dennis, I think, has the final 
word on the `System N history':

	Dennis: ``... the split between us [Research] and the
	development area [USG/USDL] -- in the sense that
	they stopped following us and actively taking
	everything we did -- that happened *before* the
	7th Edition [emphasis in original]. So that the
	actual branch in the tree was not only before
	[System] III, but before [Version] 7. It's not
	that we've stopped talking to each other; it's just
	that the very active collaboration stopped...'' (page 54).

I hope this will lay to rest any doubts that System III historically did 
derive from a pre-v7 version of Research UNIX.

In fairness to all, Dennis also says of the *current* situation
(remember that the pre-v7 split occurred before 1979),

	Microsystems: ``What is your relationship with them [USG/USDL]?''
	Dennis: ``Organizationally, practically none at all.
	We're in the research area, they're in the computer
	line of business -- the development area. As far
	as relations are concerned, there's a *lot* of
	exchange... (page 51)''

The interview touches on several topics of interest to
readers of this newsgroup. Since Microsystems has been terminated
with extreme prejudice by Ziff-Davis, you will have to go to the
library or find a friend who subscribed if you want to read the
rest of the article; I don't have it online and my fingers are
not up to typing the whole thing in (nor would it be prudent
for me to do so...).

-- 
Ian Darwin, Toronto
{ihnp4|decvax}!utcs!ian