Is Minix 2 easier to study than Minix 3?
541 views
Skip to first unread message
nvangogh
Jun 20, 2015, 1:32:33 PM6/20/15
to min...@googlegroups.com
If I understand things right, minix 2 was created just to teach people how the operating system worked while minix 3 is meant to be an operating system with complexity like any other.
So if I am new to operating system, am i better off confining my study to minix 2? I noticed that there are still online communities of people with an interest in minix 2.
Marcelo Mauro de Oliveira
Jun 21, 2015, 4:05:49 AM6/21/15
to min...@googlegroups.com
Good question! I'm also a newbie!
2015-06-20 14:14 GMT-03:00 nvangogh <neilsu...@gmail.com>:
If I understand things right, minix 2 was created just to teach people how the operating system worked while minix 3 is meant to be an operating system with complexity like any other.So if I am new to operating system, am i better off confining my study to minix 2? I noticed that there are still online communities of people with an interest in minix 2.
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "minix3" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to minix3+un...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
--
"O tempo é algo incrível... que precisa de tempo para se entender. Não fique, entretanto, só pensando no tempo que perdeu! Aproveite o que ainda tem e todos os dias crie mais algum!"
Jean-Baptiste Boric
Jun 22, 2015, 11:13:16 AM6/22/15
to min...@googlegroups.com
Disclamer : I never looked at or used Minix 2.
The book Operating Systems Design and Implementation, 3rd edition by A. Tanenbaum uses Minix 3.1.0 as a practical example. I read the whole book on my free time and I can say that it's totally fine to study the book and/or Minix 3.1.0 for learning.
What has changed between Minix 2 and Minix 3 are the goals : Minix 1 and 2 were only intended to be used for teaching purposes, Minix 3 is also intended to be a serious operating system usable for high-reliability embedded systems.
On the other hand, a lot of things changed between Minix 3.1.0 and now (virtual memory, virtual file system server, NetBSD userland...). One way of achieving reliability is through simplicity, and Minix 3.3.0 still keeps things simple, but documentation has been lacking for the time being. It's still doable to study Minix 3.3.0, but it won't be nearly as easy than Minix 3.1.0.
You can stick with Minix 2 if you wish, but we probably won't be able to help you much here if you decide so.
The best course of action in my opinion is to study Minix 3.1.0 first with the excellent book by Tanenbaum and then transfer your knowledge onto the latest Minix release if you wish so (you'll feel right at home). If you feel the need to start with something simpler first, try xv6 (pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/xv6) and then come back to Minix 3.1.0.
The book Operating Systems Design and Implementation, 3rd edition by A. Tanenbaum uses Minix 3.1.0 as a practical example. I read the whole book on my free time and I can say that it's totally fine to study the book and/or Minix 3.1.0 for learning.
What has changed between Minix 2 and Minix 3 are the goals : Minix 1 and 2 were only intended to be used for teaching purposes, Minix 3 is also intended to be a serious operating system usable for high-reliability embedded systems.
On the other hand, a lot of things changed between Minix 3.1.0 and now (virtual memory, virtual file system server, NetBSD userland...). One way of achieving reliability is through simplicity, and Minix 3.3.0 still keeps things simple, but documentation has been lacking for the time being. It's still doable to study Minix 3.3.0, but it won't be nearly as easy than Minix 3.1.0.
You can stick with Minix 2 if you wish, but we probably won't be able to help you much here if you decide so.
The best course of action in my opinion is to study Minix 3.1.0 first with the excellent book by Tanenbaum and then transfer your knowledge onto the latest Minix release if you wish so (you'll feel right at home). If you feel the need to start with something simpler first, try xv6 (pdos.csail.mit.edu/6.828/xv6) and then come back to Minix 3.1.0.
Antoine LECA
Jun 24, 2015, 11:04:06 AM6/24/15
to min...@googlegroups.com
On 2015-06-20 17:14Z, nvangogh wrote:
> So if I am new to operating system, am i better off confining my study to
> minix 2?
No. Minix 3.1 (the version in line with the book) is as easy to learn as
> So if I am new to operating system, am i better off confining my study to
> minix 2?
Minix 2 was. And since it is slightly more modern, it should probably be
even easier.
For a beginner, what IMHO is important is to have the support of the
book. So since we are still lacking a 4th Ed. of OSDI, I guess the best
option so far is to stick with 3.1.2a and the current 3rd Ed.
> I noticed that there are still online communities of people with
> an interest in minix 2.
kept on-line with only a very modest spend of energy; furthermore in the
case of MINIX and similar slowly-evolving subjects, the information is
still (mostly) relevant.
This does not mean that there are a lot of live communities, though.
Antoine
nvangogh
Jun 25, 2015, 4:22:26 PM6/25/15
to min...@googlegroups.com
I had issues getting the version of minix to work that was included with the book. In the end I installed the latest minix 3 from the website. Running in Qemu, I installed it easily and downloaded all of the current available software as I have plenty space. I was surprised that I have a live internet connection when running through Qemu. When I tried to install minix direct on the metal, as my network card is not supported I could not do this.
So I am good to go - only it's too bad I could not get an earlier version working that would reflect exactly what's in the 3rd Edition of the book.
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages