The Unix Acronym List (updated version)
Wolfram Roesler
THE UNIX ACRONYM LIST
Compiled by Wolfram Roesler <w...@bara.oche.de>
Additional contributions by:
Marcel Waldvogel <Marcel.W...@nice.usergroup.ethz.ch>
Martin P. Ibert <mar...@heaven7.in-berlin.de>
Oliver Laumann <n...@cs.tu-berlin.de>
Peter Funk <p...@artcom0.north.de>
Volker Lausch <vo...@cs.tu-berlin.de>
Ulf Moeller <u...@ulf.mali.sub.org>
Stefan Stapelberg <ste...@rent-a-guru.de>
Christopher J. Calabrese <c...@ulysses.att.com>
Chris Siebenmann <c...@hawkwind.utcs.toronto.edu>
Casper H.S. Dik <cas...@fwi.uva.nl>
Ken Keys <kk...@ucsd.edu>
Peter da Silva <pe...@nmti.com>
Michael P Urban <ur...@sideshow.jpl.nasa.gov>
Drew Sullivan <dr...@lethe.hades.gts.org>
Last change: 01-Jun-93
All comments are welcome.
All mail comments are subject to be included in the list without further
asking for permission. Please include a note if you object.
Does not include names that are no abbreviations, like `basename' or `sort'.
"?" indicates guesses.
C command
B shell built-in
D directory
E shell/environment variable
S special file
O other
NAME TYPE MEANING
------- ------- ------------------------------------------------------------
adb C algol _or_ absolute _or_ assembly _or_ advanced debugger
ar C archiver
as C assembler
awk C Aho, Weinberger, Kernighan (program authors)
bash C Bourne again shell
bin D binaries
bsh C Bourne shell (program author)
bc C better calculator
c89 C 1989 Ansi-C compiler
cal C calender
cat C concatenate
cc C C compiler
cd B change directory
chgrp C change group
chmod C change mode
chown C change owner
ci C check in
cmp C compare
co C check out
cp C copy
cpio C copy (archive files) in and out
cpp C C pre-processor
cron C Chronos (greek god)
csh C C shell
...d C daemon (e.g. inetd = internet daemon)
dbx C extended debugger (?) _or_ dbx (=extended decibel, noise reduction system)
dc C desk caculator
dd C (opinion 1) Dataset Definition (named after the OS/3x0 JCL DD command
who's syntax it also ripped off as a joke)
dd C (opinion 2) copy and convert (called `dd' because `cc' is the C compiler)
dd C (opinions 3-n) data, device, disk, dump in various combinations
dev D devices
df C disk free
diff C difference
dirname C directory name
du C disk usage
ed C editor
egrep C extended grep
elm C electronic mail
emacs C editing macros
Sometimes: Eight megabytes and constantly swapping
_or_: Escape Meta Alternate Control Shift
_or_: Emacs makes any computer slow
env B environment
eqn C equation
esac B case (reversed)
etc D et cetera
ex C extended editor (?)
expr C expression
fd S floppy disk
fd D file descriptors (as in /dev/fd)
fgrep C fixed-string grep
fi B if (reversed)
fmt C format
fsck C file system check
ftp C file transfer protocol
g... C GNU (e.g. gawk = GNU awk) (GNU = "GNU is not Unix)
getty C get tty
grep C global regular expression print (from the ed subcommand "g/RE/p"
where RE is a regular expression)
hd S hard disk
id C identity
IFS E internal field seperators
inode O index (or indirection) node
irc C internet relay chat
jsh C job-control shell
kmem S kernel memory
ksh C Korn shell (program author)
LANG E language
ld C link editor _or_ loader
lex C lexical analyser
lib D library
ln C link
lp S line printer
lpp D licensed program products
lpq C (display) line printer queue
lpr C line print
ls C list
mem S memory
mkfs C make file system
mv C move
mvdir C move directory
nawk C new awk
nfs O network file system
nm C names
nn C no news
nohup C no hang-up
nroff C new roff (roff = program's ancestor)
od C octal dump
passwd C password
pcc C portable C compiler
pg C pager
pr C prepare (for printing)
ps C process status
PS1 E prompt string 1 (same for PS2 etc.)
pty S pseudo teletype
pwd C print work directory
qdaemon C queue daemon
r... S raw (e.g. rfd0 = raw floppy disk 0)
r... C remote (e.g. rsh = remote shell)
rm C remove
rmdir C remove directory
rmt S raw magnetic tape
rmt C remote magnetic tape
roff C run-off (similar program)
sdb C symbolic debugger
sed C stream editor
sh C (Bourne) shell
stty C set tty
su C superuser
tar C tape archive(r)
tbl C table
tcsh C Tenex C shell
tee C T pipe fitting (plumbing device)
telnet C telephone network
tex C tau epsilon chi
tmp D temporary
tr C translate
troff C typesetter roff
tsh C trusted shell
tty S teletype
TZ E time zone
rcp C remote copy
rcs C revision control system
rlogin C remote login
rm C remove
rmdir C remove directory
rsh C remote shell _or_ restricted shell (sometimes Rsh)
sccs O source code control system
termcap D terminal capability
terminfo D terminal information
u D user
ucb D University of California at Berkeley
uniq C unique
usr D user
uucp C unix-to-unix copy
vi C visual (from the ex subcommand "vi" that switches into visual mode)
wall C write all
wc C word count
xargs C extended arguments
yacc C yet another compiler compiler
yp O yellow pages
SELECTED COMMENTS
(| at beginning of line indicates translation by w...@bara.oche.de)
From: Peter Funk <p...@artcom0.north.de>
To: w...@bara.oche.de (Wolfram Roesler)
> dd C direct data (?)
Eigentlich `Copy and Convert' und nur zu `dd' umbenannt, weil
`cc' schon durch den `C-Compiler' belegt war ! Das ist
jedenfalls die authentische Auskunft, die ich damals den
Man-Pages unseres UNIX-V7 auf unserer Uni PDP-11 entnommen
habe.
| In fact, it stands for "Copy and Convert" and was renamed to `dd` only
| because `cc' was reserved for the C compiler! This is the authentic
| information I got from the man pages of our Unix-V7 on our university
| PDP 11.
-=*=-
From: n...@cs.tu-berlin.de (Oliver Laumann)
Newsgroups: de.comp.lang.c
`su' steht fuer `Super-User'. Das Kommando hat urspruenglich
ausschliesslich dazu gedient, root zu werden. Die Moeglichkeit, eine
andere User-ID anzugeben, kam erst spaeter hinzu.
Die UNIX-Geschichte hat nicht mit XENIX oder Linux angefangen; merkt
Euch das mal :-)
Fuer die Unglaeubigen hier der Anfang von su.c aus UNIX V6 (es hat
also keinen Sinn, weiter zu spekulieren):
| `su' stands for `Super User'. Originally, the commands's only purpose
| was to become root. The possibility of adding a different user id was
| added later.
| Keep in mind that the history of Unix did not begin with Xenix or Linux :-)
| For the unbelieving here is the beginning su.c from Unix V6 (so there
| is no sense in further speculation):
$ cat su.c
/* su -- become super-user */
char password[100];
char pwbuf[100];
int ttybuf[3];
main()
{
register char *p, *q;
extern fin;
if(getpw(0, pwbuf))
goto badpw;
(&fin)[1] = 0;
p = pwbuf;
while(*p != ':')
if(*p++ == '\0')
goto badpw;
if(*++p == ':')
goto ok;
-=*=-
From: ur...@sideshow.jpl.nasa.gov (Michael P Urban)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.misc
>I thought 'dd' was for 'device dump'.
("You young whippersnappers. When I was your age...") Anyway, dd
stands for `data definition', if it can be said to stand for anything,
because the name, and its horrifying command-line syntax, are derived
from the IBM OS/360 JCL command of the same name.
//GO EXEC PGM=IEFBR14
//SYSIN DD RECFM=FB,DISP=(NEW,,KEEP),DSN=FOOFILE
(or something like that. You think I remember _details_ of this stuff?)
I hear that people still do this sort of thing. But not on cards.
-=*=-
From: Ken Keys <kk...@ucsd.edu>
Newsgroups: comp.unix.misc
>>I thought 'dd' was for 'device dump'.
>I thought it stood for 'device-to-device'.
I heard it was 'death and destruction', for what happens if you screw up
the options. :)
-=*=-
From: c...@ulysses.att.com
To: w...@bara.oche.de
dbx is a compression/expansion scheme (roughly) similar to Dolby S.
It's put out by dbx laboratories (I believe the db is for decibel,
and the x is for expansion), which is in the bay area not too far from
Berkeley.
But what does `dd' stand for on the mainframe?
I talked to Griff Smith (g...@ulysses.att.com),
who wrote the System V Release 3 version of dd, about this today.
He's not sure if it was ever actually called cc in UNIX, but he is
_certain_ that the name dd comes from the jcl dd command (so does the
wreched syntax).
As far as what that's named after, neither of us has a clue.
It's possible that it was the jcl command which was originally named
'cc', and not the UNIX one.
-=*=-
From: Drew Sullivan <dr...@lethe.hades.gts.org>
Newsgroups: comp.unix.misc
If you are going to get your history correct, then you have to know why
Bourne was at Bell Labs. He was trying to build an algol-68 compiler.
The project didn't complete in the sence that there is no algol compiler
but the tools that he built live on. That is why the Bourne shell has
case ... esac, if ... fi, do ... done, These are all from algol-68.
Lastly the the adb was the algol debuger. The 'a' is for algol!!!!
-=*=-
--
Wolfram Roesler Augustastr. 44-46 W-5100 Aachen
w...@bara.oche.de Maus: @AC2 0241-534596
peter da silva
> r... S raw (e.g. rfd0 = raw floppy disk 0)
> r... C remote (e.g. rsh = remote shell)
--
Peter da Silva `-_-'
Network Management Technology Incorporated 'U`
12808 West Airport Blvd. Sugar Land, TX 77478 USA
+1 713 274 5180 "Na sema Jambo mbwa kali yake leo?"
peter da silva
> In article <id.R3...@nmti.com> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
> >In article <1ulg5a$i...@urmel.informatik.rwth-aachen.de> w...@bara.oche.de writes:
> >> r... S raw (e.g. rfd0 = raw floppy disk 0)
> >> r... C remote (e.g. rsh = remote shell)
> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
> Peter, you've been hanging around those little SYSV boxes too long :-)
Yep, and I'll be so glad when we get to Solaris on our Sparcs so I can use
a functional version of "init" instead of that Version 7 retread BSD uses.
> "Berkeley Forever"
We got to move these microwave networks,
Custom system, deliveries...
That's not hacking, here's the way to do it,
Software for nothing, and the source is free...
(refrain) I want my Bee Ess Dee...
Wolfram Roesler
> r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
except rsh?
peter da silva
> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
> Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
> except rsh?
I've seen red.
Jim Driscoll
>In article <wr.739800048@cip-s03> w...@cip-s03.informatik.rwth-aachen.de (Wolfram Roesler) writes:
>> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
>
>> Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
>> except rsh?
>
>I've seen red.
And I have rksh (restricted ksh), and rmail (a restricted mail program, for
transport). This on SVR4.
--
ma...@olias.linet.org
"If a little knowlege is a dangerous thing, they're training us to be the most
dangerous men on the planet" - me at military computer school
Tim Peoples
>In article <id.7G...@nmti.com> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>In article <wr.739800048@cip-s03> w...@cip-s03.informatik.rwth-aachen.de (Wolfram Roesler) writes:
>>> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
>>
>>> Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
>>> except rsh?
>>
>>I've seen red.
>
>And I have rksh (restricted ksh), and rmail (a restricted mail program, for
>transport). This on SVR4. ^^^^^
>
Sorry, but on every unix system that I have seen "rmail" is **remote**
mail - or - part of the mail transport system of uucp.
Bzzzzzzzzt, thanx for playing and please try again.
--
+-------------------------+-------------------------------------+
| Timothy E. Peoples | RazorByte Software Systems |
| t...@rzrbyte.fay.ar.us | On The Cutting Edge of Technology |
+-------------------------+-------------------------------------+
| Intellectual Philanthropy is our greatest gift; support GNU |
+---------------------------------------------------------------+
Tom Gillman
>ma...@olias.linet.org (Jim Driscoll) writes:
>>In article <id.7G...@nmti.com> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>>In article <wr.739800048@cip-s03> w...@cip-s03.informatik.rwth-aachen.de (Wolfram Roesler) writes:
>>>> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>>> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
>>>
>>>> Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
>>>> except rsh?
>>>
>>>I've seen red.
>>
>>And I have rksh (restricted ksh), and rmail (a restricted mail program, for
>>transport). This on SVR4. ^^^^^
>>
> Sorry, but on every unix system that I have seen "rmail" is **remote**
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
You obviously haven't seen enough Unix systems, or you would have known better
>mail - or - part of the mail transport system of uucp.
>Bzzzzzzzzt, thanx for playing and please try again.
Bzzzzzzzzt, thanx for playing and please try again.
--
Tom Gillman, Systems Programmer | "If nobody else was violent, I could
Wells Computer Center-Ga. State Univ. | conquer the whole stupid planet with
(404) 651-4503 sys...@gsusgi2.gsu.edu | a butter knife" -- Dogbert
GSU doesn't care what I say on the Internet, why should you?
richard.b.dell
>ma...@olias.linet.org (Jim Driscoll) writes:
>
>>In article <id.7G...@nmti.com> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>>In article <wr.739800048@cip-s03> w...@cip-s03.informatik.rwth-aachen.de (Wolfram Roesler) writes:
>>>> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>>> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
>>>
>>>> Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
>>>> except rsh?
>>>
>>>I've seen red.
>>
>>And I have rksh (restricted ksh), and rmail (a restricted mail program, for
>>transport). This on SVR4. ^^^^^
>>
>
> Sorry, but on every unix system that I have seen "rmail" is **remote**
>mail - or - part of the mail transport system of uucp.
>
>Bzzzzzzzzt, thanx for playing and please try again.
These history questions are interesting, and indeed I suspect
it all boils down to how far back a particular person can go.
And, if possible, cite a reference, so we can tell how far
back your reference is.
According to the "Unix System User's Manual", release 5.0,
June 1982, on the man pages for the mail commend: "_Rmail_ only
permits the sending of mail; _uucp_(1C) uses _rmail_ as a
security precaution."
Feel free to interpret the r as you wish, I certainly draw my own
conclusions.
--
RIchard Dell -- personal opinion only, of course.
Jim Driscoll
>
>>In article <id.7G...@nmti.com> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>>In article <wr.739800048@cip-s03> w...@cip-s03.informatik.rwth-aachen.de (Wolfram Roesler) writes:
>>>> pe...@nmti.com (peter da silva) writes:
>>>> > r... C restricted (e.g. rsh = restricted shell)
>>>
>>>> Well I featured rsh seperately. Are there eny other restricted programs
>>>> except rsh?
>>>
>>>I've seen red.
>>
>>And I have rksh (restricted ksh), and rmail (a restricted mail program, for
>>transport). This on SVR4. ^^^^^
>>
>
> Sorry, but on every unix system that I have seen "rmail" is **remote**
>mail - or - part of the mail transport system of uucp.
>
>Bzzzzzzzzt, thanx for playing and please try again.
From the Unix system V/386 Release 4 Users Reference Manual, under mail(1):
" rmail only permits the sending of mail; uucp(1C) uses rmail as a security
precaution. Any application programs that generate mail messages should
be sure to invoke rmail rather than mail for message transport and/or
delivery."
Sounds pretty restricted to me. In fairness, this means that it is
also for remote mail, but I would argue on the basis of this paragraph
that it is restricted mail, since this implies that I could replace it
with mail without any lossage. In fact, they are the same program on my
system, linked with different names (/usr/bin/mail and /usr/bin/rmail).
Bzzt indeed.
Kay Schulz K8/IVA Tel. ++49-7121-35-1341
Hi
I am looking for a calendar manager for X
The manager who is included is not my choice.
Like the sun calendar manager or something similar is what I am looking for.
Please email
Thanks in advance
/***************************************************************************/
/* Kay Schulz, Rheinstr. 24, 72768 Reutlingen, Germany */
/* 07121 / 601961 privat */
/* 07121 / 35 1341 geschaeftlich */
/*ksc...@iva.k8.rt.bosch.de WORKING Address */
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