Subject: Re: definitions
From: Arthur Corliss (arthur@corlissfamily.org)
Date: Thu Mar 14 2002 - 17:56:08 AKST
> What is a nice short answer to 'what is Posix, and why is it important'.
>
> So far:
>
> "Stands for Portable Operating System for Unix, and is a
> specification [from whom?] that attempts to standardize the API
> between programs and the Operating System. Originally targetted at
> *nix systems, it has been adopted, with mixed success, by non-unix
> style OSes, notably Microsoft NT/2000. "
POSIX is much more than APIs, it also defines standards for shell
environments, source compatibility, etc., as well.
Depending on the class of POSIX compliance an OS claims, you'll be able to
tell what functionality the OS provides (from filesystem features like hard
and symbolic links, to process methodologies, like forking and threads),
whether there's source compatibility for fully compliant POSIX applications,
and even what tools will be available in the user environment (vi's part of
the spec, for instance).
All in all, POSIX is a pretty big beast.
----Arthur Corliss Bolverk's Lair -- http://arthur.corlissfamily.org/ Digital Mages -- http://www.digitalmages.com/ "Live Free or Die, the Only Way to Live" -- NH State Motto
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