[mod.std.unix] Access to UNIX-related organizations, standards, and publications

std-unix@ut-sally.UUCP (07/04/86)

This is a rewrite and update of an earlier mod.std.unix article.
Comments are solicited.

Access information is given for the following:
user groups:	USENIX, /usr/group, EUUG
newsletters:	;login:, commUNIXations, EUUG
standards:	IEEE 1003.1 (POSIX), 1003.2 (shell/tools), 1003.3 (verification)
		X3J11 (C language), /usr/group Standard,
		System V Interface Definition, X/OPEN PORTABILITY GUIDE
magazines:	UNIX REVIEW, UNIX/WORLD


A slightly later version of this article will probably appear in
";login:  The USENIX Association Newsletter".  That newsletter is sent
free of charge to all members of the USENIX Association, whose address is

	USENIX Association
	P.O. Box 7
	El Cerrito, CA 94530
	415-528-8649
	{ucbvax,decvax}!usenix!office

USENIX sponsors two USENIX Conferences a year, featuring technical papers.
The next one is in Washington, D.C., 20-23 January 1987.

I am the Institutional Delegate from USENIX to the IEEE 1003 committee
(see below) and one of my functions as such is to get comments from
the USENIX membership and the general public to the committee.
One of the ways I try to do that is by moderating this newsgroup.
I'm also currently on the USENIX Board of Directors.


Another large group related to the UNIX System is /usr/group,

	/usr/group
	4655 Old Ironsides Drive, Suite 200
	Santa Clara, California 95054
	408-986-8840

They publish a newsletter called CommUNIXations.  The May/June 1986
issue contains a report by Heinz Lycklama (the /usr/group Institutional
Delegate to IEEE 1003) on the /usr/group Technical Committee working
groups which met in February 1986 on the areas of Networking,
Internationalization, Graphics, Realtime, Database, Performance,
and the proposed new group on Security.  I will post contact
information for these working groups as taken from that article
in a later mod.std.unix article.

The annual Uniforum Conferences are sponsored by /usr/group
and feature a large trade show.  The next one is in D.C.
at the same time as the next USENIX Conference.  USENIX
and /usr/group have held several concurrent conferences
in the past and will probably do so in the future.


Both USENIX and /usr/group also have tutorials at their
conferences and both sponsor other meeting activities
in addition to their regular conferences.


In Europe there is the European UNIX systems Users Group,
who have a newsletter and hold two conferences a year.

	EUUG secretariat
	Owles Hall
	Buntingford
	Herts SG9 9PL
	England
	seismo!mcvax!euug


The IEEE 1003 Portable Operating System for Computer Environments Committee
is sometimes known colloquially as the UNIX Standards Committee.
They have recently produced the 1003.1 "POSIX" Trial Use Standard.
According to its Foreword:

	The purpose of this document is to define a standard
	operating system interface and environment based on the
	UNIX Operating System documentation to support application
	portability at the source level.  This is intended for
	systems implementors and applications software developers.

Published copies are available at $19.95,
with bulk purchasing discounts available.  Contact:

		IEEE Service Center
		445 Hoes Ln.
		Piscataway, NJ 08854
		714-821-8380

Ask for "IEEE 1003.1 Trial Use Standard" - stock number SH10546 (Book #967).

The Trial Use Standard will be available for comments for a period
such as a year.  The current target for a Full Use Standard is Fall 1987.
IEEE has initiated the process to have the 1003.1 effort brought into
the International Standards Organization (ISO) arena.

There is a paper mailing list by which interested parties may get
copies of drafts of the standard.  To get on it, or to submit comments
directly to the committee, mail to:

		James Isaak
		Chairperson, IEEE/CS P1003
		Charles River Data Systems
		983 Concord St.
		Framingham, MA 01701
		decvax!frog!jim

Sufficiently interested parties may join the working group.
The next scheduled meetings of the working group of the committee are

	17-19 September 1986	Palo Alto, CA	hosts: Amdahl, HP and Sun
	9-11 December 1986	Atlantic City NJ with X3J11
	2-6 March 1987		Toronto, ON
	    June 1987		Phoenix, AZ	the week of USENIX
	    September 1987	New Orleans, LA

There is also a balloting group (which intersects with the working group).
This is more difficult.  Contact the committee chair for details.
I will repost them in this newsgroup if there is sufficient interest.

Related working groups are
	group	subject		co-chairs
	1003.2	shell and tools	Hal Jesperson (Amdahl), Don Cragun (Sun)
	1003.3	verification	Roger Martin (NBS), Carol Raye (AT&T)

Both will meet concurrently with 1003.1 in Palo Alto in September,
and inquiries should go to the same address as for 1003.1.


The Abstract of the 1003.1 Trial Use Standard adds:

	This interface is a complement to the C Programming Language
	in the C Information Bulletin prepared by Technical Committee X3J11
	of the Accredited Standards Committee X3, Information Processing
	Systems, further specifying an environment for portable application
	software.


X3J11 (C Standards Committee):

		Thomas Plum
		Vice Chair, X3J11 Committee
		Plum Hall Inc.
		1 Spruce Avenue
		Cardiff, New Jersey 08232

There is frequent discussion of X3J11 in mod.std.c, which see.


The /usr/group Standard is the principle ancestor of P1003.1:

		/usr/group Standards Committee
		4655 Old Ironsides Drive, Suite 200
		Santa Clara, California 95050

It was $15.00 as of January, 1985.


The System V Interface Definition (The Purple Book).
This is the AT&T standard and is one of the most frequently-used
references of the IEEE 1003 committee.

	To purchase the System V Interface Definition, write to:

		System V Interface Definition, Issue 2
		Select Codes 320-011 (Volume 1) and 320-012 (Volume 2)
		AT&T Customer Information Center
		2833 North Franklin Road
		Indianapolis, IN 46219

	Be sure to include the address the document should be shipped to
	and a check or money order made payable to AT&T.

	or call

			1-800-432-6600

	and ask for operator 77. Give the operator the Select Code
	307-127. (You must have a major credit card to order by phone.)

The price is about thirty U.S. dollars.


The X/OPEN PORTABILITY GUIDE (The Green Book)
is another reference frequently used by IEEE 1003.

X/OPEN is "A Group of European Computer Manufacturers" who have produced
a document intended to promote the writing of portable facilities.
(They now have member computer manufacturers from outside Europe.)
Their flyer remarks (in five languages), "Now we all speak the same
language in Europe."

The book is published by

	Elsevier Science Publishers
	Book Order Department
	PO Box 211
	1000 AE Amsterdam
	The Netherlands

or, for those in the U.S.A. or Canada:

	Elsevier Science Publishers Co Inc.
	PO Box 1663
	Grand Central Station
	New York, NY 10163

The price is Dfl 275,00 or USD 75.00.  According to the order form,
"This price includes the costs of one update which will be mailed
automatically upon publication."  They take a large number of credit
cards and other forms of payment.


The two main general circulation magazines about the UNIX system are

	UNIX REVIEW			UNIX/WORLD
	Miller Freeman Publications Co.	Tech Valley Publishing
	500 Howard Street		444 Castro St.
	San Francisco, CA 94105		Mountain View, CA 94041
	415-397-1881			415-940-1500


Corrections and additions to this article are solicited.
Oh, yes:  "UNIX is a registered Trademark of AT&T."

Volume-Number: Volume 6, Number 21

std-unix@ut-sally.UUCP (Moderator, John Quarterman) (07/29/86)

Date: Wed, 23 Jul 86 15:13:37 cdt
From: ihnp4!attunix!sfsup!djk (Don Kretsch)

Your article summarizing all the players in the UNIX* standards
area was full of info and to the point. I liked it.

Since you asked for comments, I thought I would point out an
additional, although minor piece of info missing from your article.
You mentioned that P1003 frequently discusses C language issues
and the pointer to C standards info is Tom Plum. This is correct.
However, for completeness, you might also mention that I am the
C Standards liaison (institutional rep?) to the P1003 committee.

	Thanks,
	Don Kretsch
	AT&T
	190 River Road
	Summit, NJ 07901

[ Not minor at all.  Sorry about that.  -mod ]

Volume-Number: Volume 6, Number 39