brnstnd@kramden.acf.nyu.edu (Dan Bernstein) (10/15/90)
I think of POSIX calls as system calls, even if they aren't implemented inside the kernel. There's no way for a conforming program to tell whether something's a kernel call or not; and POSIX calls feel like system calls in every other way (they're guaranteed to be around and work correctly, no matter what libraries you have). Any differing opinions? Followups to comp.unix.misc. In article <1990Oct14.122854.17433@virtech.uucp> cpcahil@virtech.UUCP (Conor P. Cahill) writes: > In article <21628:Oct1400:12:2990@kramden.acf.nyu.edu> brnstnd@kramden.acf.nyu.edu (Dan Bernstein) writes: > >and BSD > >stat() might not be implemented inside the kernel either. (It can be > >written in terms of lstat() and readlink(), for example.) > Actually, to maintain binary compatibility with earlier code it has > to be implemented in the kernel. Grasping at straws. Binary compatibility is not a requirement for a UNIX system. It's hardly even important for most people. I stand by my statement. ---Dan