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Date:      Mon, 18 Sep 2000 16:50:03 -0700 (PDT)
From:      Mark Ovens <marko@freebsd.org>
To:        freebsd-doc@freebsd.org
Subject:   Re: docs/21057: Little correction of hier(8)
Message-ID:  <200009182350.QAA72214@freefall.freebsd.org>

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The following reply was made to PR docs/21057; it has been noted by GNATS.

From: Mark Ovens <marko@freebsd.org>
To: freebsd-gnats-submit@FreeBSD.ORG
Cc: doc@freebsd.org, Salvo Bartolotta <bartequi@inwind.it>
Subject: Re: docs/21057: Little correction of hier(8)
Date: Tue, 19 Sep 2000 00:47:37 +0100

 On Fri, 08 Sep 2000 08:56:17 GMT, Salvo Bartolotta wrote:
 
 > Dear FreeBSD doc'ers,
 >        
 > In my quest for the Holy Grail, ahem, for the origin of the /usr
 > "acronym", I received the following letter from Chris Coleman:
 >        
 > --------------------- Forwarded Message -------------------------
 >        
 > At the moment, I cannot recall where I got that tid bit of
 > information. Regardless of whether it originally stood for "user" or
 > not, calling it "User" would confuse new users..  Currently, the Unix
 > System Resources live there and that is what it should be called.
 > (IMHO)
 >        
 > I may be alone in this definition, but that definition is at least 4
 > years old. I never questioned it.  (Although, I may not be alone,
 > because I have been propigating that definition for the last 3-4
 > years.)
 >        
 > I found this definition in my searching, which may be more correct.
 >        
 > Mount point for sharable user commands, libraries, and documentation.
 > http://www.kelley.iu.edu/shyu/hpguide.html#files
 >        
 > Still, I'd prefer to keep using the Unix System Resources as a good
 > acronym to help people remember and distinguish between "user" files
 > and "system" files.
 >        
 > Feel Free to forward this to -doc if it helps any.
        
 I prefer Unix System Resources as well, however, in The Unix
 Programming Environment by Kernighan & Pike (1984) I find:
 
 p22:	    "On many systems, /usr is a directory that contains the
 	     directories of all the users of the system."
 
 p48:	    "/usr is often the top directory of the user filesystem
 	     (user is abbreviated to usr in the same spirit as cmp,
 	     ls, etc.)."
 
 p64 (Table 2.1):
 
 	     /usr	user file system
 
 p65:	     "/usr is called the `user file system', although it may
 	      have little to do with the actual users of the system."
 
 So, what is the correct answer? Should I commit this PR, or just close
 it. It shouldn't be left lying around.
 
 > Chris Coleman
 > Daemon News
 > http://www.daemonnews.org
 > Bringing BSD together
        
 > ------------------- End of Forwarded Message -------------------------
        
 > Best regards,
 > Salvo
        
 -- 
 		4.4 - The number of the Beastie
 ________________________________________________________________
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