Should ``csh'' be part of the System V distribution?

[Bruce G. Barnett]

|	Anyone out there have an opinion?

Well - since you asked -

I think sh, csh and ksh should be standard .
	(okay - you could rename ksh to sh)

I also think the new make, awk, and pic/ditroff should be standard.
What else? - maybe plot(5).
And the -mm, -ms and -me macro package while we are at it.

If these programs Are standard -  forgive my ignorance. We don't have any
V.3 systems here.

The idea of unbundling improvement/upgrades to standard utilities seems silly
to me. 

It is difficult enough to keep source code portable between Unicii

But it would be nice to have script and documentation compatibility also.

Points to consider:

	o Licensing 'common utility' software per machine
	  is difficult to enforce in an network/NFS environment unless
	  the software is CPU locked.

	  (ditroff is on machines a, b and c. C also has the new make.
	  A has ksh. B has the new awk. D has ksh, make and awk but no pic.
	  Now let's see - you have a makefile that needs all four.
	  And it uses the -mm and -me macros for different sections?

	  Nope - you can't run it. Sorry.)

	o Some people will be hesitant to use a new feature unless
	  it will always be available. How many AWK scripts use
	  functions? I wouldn't publish any such scripts because
	  I don't think many sites have the new awk.

	  If I knew that all V.4 systems had the new awk/make/sh/roff
	  features I would not hesitate to use them.

	  (Will the Open System Foundation version have them? - who knows?)

One more point:

	I think the C-shell should be standard. 

	Why?

	Productivity.

	NOT because one shell is better than the other.

	But because someone whom only knows csh can use the system 
	WITHOUT any learning curve. 

	ksh may be the best shell in the world. I haven't learned it
	because I Don't Have Time.

	This is like telling someone who uses troff to switch to LaTeX.
That may be fine in theory, but when I have to get a paper out by the
end of the week I don't really care how 'superior' one program is over
another. I have to get my work done NOW!
-- 
	Bruce G. Barnett 	<barnett at ge-crd.ARPA> <barnett at steinmetz.UUCP>
				uunet!steinmetz!barnett