Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!floyd!harpo!seismo!hao!hplabs!sri-unix!gwyn@brl-vld From: gwyn%brl-vld@sri-unix.UUCP Newsgroups: net.unix Subject: none Message-ID: <16414@sri-arpa.UUCP> Date: Sat, 4-Feb-84 23:06:14 EST Article-I.D.: sri-arpa.16414 Posted: Sat Feb 4 23:06:14 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 9-Feb-84 02:49:38 EST Lines: 43 From: Doug Gwyn (VLD/VMB)Here is a brief review of "The UNIX Programming Environment" by Brian W. Kernighan & Rob Pike (1984, Prentice-Hall, ISBN 0-13-937681-X {PBK}). (The authors work at Bell Labs and are well known to the UNIX community.) This is the best book I have ever seen for UNIX programmers. The first few chapters can be read profitably by any intelligent first-time UNIX user, but the book overall is targeted for professional programmers who are encountering UNIX for the first time. I must say that many old- timers could learn something from this book, too. The chapter titles are: UNIX for Beginners The File System Using the Shell Filters Shell Programming Programming with Standard I/O UNIX System Calls Program Development Document Preparation Epilog with appendices Editor summary "hoc" Manual "hoc" Listing "hoc" is an interpreter for a programmable calculator language, used as a real-world example of program development. This book is not just a description of features available on UNIX; instead, the authors explain what is going on and why. Anyone familiar with "Software Tools" will recognize the approach. Roughly half the book emphasizes the use of existing tools in shell programs. This is as it should be; it is perhaps the single greatest contribution of UNIX to program development. It is remarkable how little dependency on the particular version of UNIX there is. The few variations that matter are dealt with as needed. I would recommend this book as THE book for all UNIX programmers.