While a final version of the Advanced Computing Environment’s hardware specification is now being printed, more interesting, hears Electronic News, is that the common application programming interface for Unix System V.4 and OSF/1 operating systems should be completed this month. Although a binary interface for various Unix System V.4 implementations is also being put together, plans for an OSF/1 binary interface have been dropped, apparently due to technical difficulties. However, following Santa Cruz Operation Inc’s departure from the consortium, OSF/1 has been relegated to the status of an unofficial ACE operating system. OSF/1 was ACE’s primary Unix focus when the initiative was launched amidst much fanfare last year, but over the following months it became clear that Digital Equipment Corp was the only major ACE member committed to using the operating system. DEC’s recent Windows NT-on-the Alpha RISC agreement with Microsoft Corp only drove the nail further into ACE’s OSF/1 coffin.
