Facts?

[David Klann]

In article <1990Sep22.022723.3098 at mccc.uucp>, pjh at mccc.uucp (Pete Holsberg) writes:
|> I am editing a book in which a couple of statements appear that are at
|> odds with what I know about UNIX.  Please feel free to comment.
|> 
|> 1)  Ken Thompson was writing a "computerized space-wars game as a part
|> of a reseach project" when he wrote what was to become UNIX.

Thompson wrote a game, yes, but it was a space *travel* game,
not a space wars game.  Paraphrased from BLTJ, Vol 63 No. 8
Part 2 October 1984 - article by D. M. Ritchie -
"The Evolution of the UNIX Time-sharing System"

``Space Travel'' was first written on Multics, then moved to GECOS under FORTRAN.  It was nothing less than a simulation of the movements of the planets of the Solar System.  The player guided a spaceship around, and attempted to land on various planets and moons.

|> 
|> 2)  "Thompson designed the C programming language and he and Dennis
|> Ritchie implemented the first compiler."

>From the same article:
Thompson set out to implement a FORTRAN compiler for the PDP-7,
but ended up with a new language named ``B.''  Work began in 1971
on what was to become the ``C'' language.
I would say that it is accurate that Thompson and Ritchie implemented
the first (``C'') compiler.

|> 
|> Thanks,
|> Pete
|> -- 
|> Prof. Peter J. Holsberg      Mercer County Community College
|> Voice: 609-586-4800          Engineering Technology, Computers and Math
|> UUCP:...!princeton!mccc!pjh  1200 Old Trenton Road, Trenton, NJ 08690
|> Internet: pjh at mccc.edu	     Trenton Computer Festival -- 4/20-21/91

Hope this helps.
-- 
David Klann
dklann at heurikon.heurikon.com
Heurikon Corporation