the philosophy of fork/exec

[sgordon at kenan.com (Seth Gordon)]

> ...The recent
> description of unix's file-linking scheme as "strange" is an
> example
> of  how  even  experienced  unix  users  and programmers don't
> always
> understand the reasons behind the design.  The unix fork+exec
> scheme
> is another.

Can you expand on this?  What do other OSs do for spawning a process
that don't fit the fork+exec model, what are the consequences of those
alternative techniques, and what problems does fork+exec solve?

--
"The big dig might come in handy ... for a few project managers
 whom I think would make great landfill."  --Elaine Ashton
== seth gordon == sgordon at kenan.com == standard disclaimer ==
== documentation group, kenan systems corp., cambridge, ma ==


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