> McIlroy's maxims are explicating the Unix philosophy
This is why I used the quote, not for this reason:
> but I don't read him as saying that systems which historically count as Unix aren't really Unix if they fall short in following his maxims.
I'd say yes, a port of v7 is fine, because it's not meaningfully more complex. It can still be comprehended by a single individual (unlike FreeBSD, Linux, everything currently called Certified Commercial UNIX trademark symbol, etcetera).
> I'd say yes, a port of v7 is fine, because it's not meaningfully more complex
I think AT&T's port of V7 (or something close to V7, I guess it was probably actually a variant of PWB) to run on top of TSS/370 really is meaningfully more complex because in order to understand it you also have to understand IBM TSS/370 and the interactions between TSS/370 and Unix.
This is why I used the quote, not for this reason:
> but I don't read him as saying that systems which historically count as Unix aren't really Unix if they fall short in following his maxims.
I'd say yes, a port of v7 is fine, because it's not meaningfully more complex. It can still be comprehended by a single individual (unlike FreeBSD, Linux, everything currently called Certified Commercial UNIX trademark symbol, etcetera).