jim writes: > Way back when (in the olden days), unix would exec a program by copying > it into swap and then allowing the page mechanism to page it into memory > for execution.
Way, way back in the *really* olden days (that is, five years ago when I was still running System III on my Onyx) there was no paging. "Swapping" meant copying the entire process to the swap device. There was shared text, though. This saved memory, and also time for programs like sh which are always in use. But what about vi or ls? Silly to overwrite it when somebody is going start it up sgain any minute now. Thus the "save swapped text" bit, also known as the "sticky bit": swap the instruction segment out once only, and leave it on the swap device (or in memory, if it didn't get swapped) even after the process terminates. -- John Hasler This posting is in the public domain. [EMAIL PROTECTED] Do with it what you will. Dancing Horse Hill Make money from it if you can; I don't mind. Elmwood, Wisconsin Do not send email advertisements to this address. -- TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS MAILING LIST: e-mail the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] . Trouble? e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] .
