You can find most of the Tru64 UNIX documentation you need on the Documentation CD-ROM that comes with the Tru64 UNIX product and also on the World Wide Web. Most of this documentation is provided on line in HTML and PDF formats and is also available as printed books.
Your Web browser gives you access to the HTML format, and the Adobe Acrobat Reader lets you view and print the PDF versions. The printed books are packaged in kits that you can purchase from Compaq.
Additional documentation is included on the Tru64 UNIX Operating System CD-ROM and on the Associated Products CD-ROMs.
This chapter can help you to find the documentation you need, in the
format that is most convenient to you.
1.1 Defining the Documentation Set
The following list describes some of the terms used to categorize documentation that is provided with the operating system or used in conjunction with utilities and applications that run on the operating system:
Consists of books and reference pages that help you to use the Tru64 UNIX operating system, including the components provided when you install the system's optional and mandatory subsets. Most of this documentation was created by Compaq writers who worked closely with the developers of the operating system to document the system's various components. The books that make up the core documentation are described in Chapter 2.
On line, the Tru64 UNIX reference pages are available as optional subsets of the operating system and in HTML form on the Documentation CD-ROM. They are also available in printed format in a 22-volume kit. For information about the reference pages, see Chapter 4.
Documentation to aid program developers in writing device drivers for Tru64 UNIX was produced by Compaq writers working closely with the device driver engineers. This documentation is packaged in a separately orderable kit that also includes driver development tools, device driver examples, and X Consortium code. For information about the device driver documentation, see Chapter 5.
Tends to be less formal in structure than the core documentation. This category includes many different types of documents, such as Software Product Descriptions (SPDs), release notes for some components of the Tru64 UNIX operating system, and industry reference material and white papers that come from Compaq engineers and other sources. Supplementary documentation exists only on line, so it is not available in any of the printed Tru64 UNIX documentation kits. For more information, see Chapter 3.
Layered products documentation
Consists of books and other documents that aid in the use of separately licensed products, such as Compaq's C++ product and the TruCluster Server products. For more information, see Section 1.6.
1.2 Changes to the Version 5.0A Documentation Set
With this release of the Tru64 UNIX, the following documentation has been updated:
Compaq C Language Reference Manual (formerly DEC C Language Reference Manual)
Guide to the POSIX Threads Library (formerly Guide to DECthreads)
Other noteworthy changes to the documentation are as follows:
The following documentation is new with this release:
Both documents are packaged in the Startup Documentation Kit. See Section 2.1.1 for information about these documents.
The Glossary of Common UNIX and General Computer Terms, once included in this manual, is now in the Technical Overview, where many of the terms defined in the Glossary are discussed in the text. Also, the Glossary is now accessible directly from the General User shelf of the Documentation CD-ROM and on the Tru64 UNIX documentation Web site. (See Section 1.4.1 for an overview of the Documentation CD-ROM and Section 1.4.2 for an overview of the Tru64 UNIX documentation available on the Web.)
The Ladebug Debugger Manual is no longer available in a printed format, and is therefore no longer part of the Developer's Documentation Kit. It is, however, still available on line on the Programming Guides shelf.
The online version of the Master Index was revised with this release; the printed version was not revised.
The documentation that you receive from Compaq depends upon the purchase you make:
If you purchase a Tru64 UNIX media kit, you receive all of the online documentation, as well as printed versions of the Startup documentation described in Chapter 2.
If you purchase the Tru64 UNIX Documentation Kit, you receive printed versions of the books described in Chapter 2.
If you purchase an Update Contract for the media, you receive the most current version of the Documentation CD-ROM, and printed versions of the books in the Startup documentation that were revised.
If you purchase an Update Contract for the documentation set, you receive printed versions of the books that have been updated.
If you purchase a system with the Tru64 UNIX operating system preinstalled (often called a FIS system, for factory installed software), online versions of the following books are installed on the system:
Documentation Overview (the book you are reading)
The documentation for the Tru64 UNIX operating system, including the reference pages, is available on the Tru64 UNIX Documentation CD-ROM in a format that is readable with a Web browser or with the Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Most of this documentation, as well as documentation for associated applications, is also available on the World Wide Web (see Section 1.4.2). The features that are available on the Documentation CD-ROM, such as the links to other documentation, are also available on the Web.
If you are working on an Alpha system, the operating system provides a Netscape browser for viewing the HTML documentation. If you want to view the documentation on a Windows PC or Macintosh, you will need a browser that supports frames and Java Script Version 1.1. Compaq recommends using Version 4.0 or higher of Netscape Navigator, Netscape Communicator, or Microsoft Internet Explorer.
To view the PDF files, you need to install Version 3.0 or higher of the Adobe Acrobat Reader or the Reader plug-in to your Web browser. The Documentation CD-ROM provides the Acrobat Reader for Tru64 UNIX systems, Windows PCs, Macintosh, and several other platforms. You can also obtain the latest version directly from the Adobe Systems Inc. Web site:
With Acrobat Reader, you can scroll through books, print selected sections
or entire books, and copy sections to the clipboard.
1.4.1 The Documentation CD-ROM
The Documentation CD-ROM contains HTML and PDF versions of Tru64 UNIX documents, including books, white papers, and the complete set of operating system reference pages. The CD-ROM provides links to these HTML and PDF documents.
You can use the Tru64 UNIX Documentation CD-ROM on a Tru64 UNIX system, as well as on a Windows PC or Macintosh - laptop or workstation - or on any other system that uses the ISO 9660 Level 1 CD-ROM standard. (For additional information, see the information on the Documentation CD-ROM jacket.)
To help you locate specific information in the documentation, the CD-ROM contains a copy of the AltaVista Search CD-ROM software with a complete index of the HTML documents. The AltaVista software runs on an x86-based PC with Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 2000, and Windows NT Version 4.0.
The CD's online Documentation Library is arranged into categories that generally follow the structure of the printed documentation kits. Each category is represented by a bulleted list, with the bullet for each book colored to indicate the documentation subkit to which the book belongs:
A blue bullet indicates General User Documentation.
A purple bullet indicates Programming Documentation.
A maroon bullet indicates the System and Network Management Documentation.
A silver bullet indicates Supplementary Documentation, which is documentation that is not part of any kit and cannot be ordered from Compaq.
A green bullet indicates the Reference Pages.
Books that meet the needs of different audiences appear in several categories. For example, you will find the Security book in the General User, Programming, and System and Network Management categories because it serves each of those audiences. Because it is part of the General User subkit, its bullet is blue in all of the categories in which it appears.
Most cross-references are hot links, so you can follow those references from book to book, from book to reference page, from reference page to book, and from reference page to reference page.
Each book you refer to opens in a separate window so you can easily move from book to book as you gather the information you need. When following links to reference pages, the first reference page opens in a new window, and references to subsequent reference pages will appear in the same reference page window as long as you keep it on your screen.
The Documentation CD-ROM also contains the
webman
viewer, a program you can use with your browser to view reference pages.
For
information about the
webman
viewer, see
Chapter 4.
To mount the Documentation CD-ROM on Tru64 UNIX
systems, PCs, and Macintosh computers, see the inside panels of the Documentation
CD-ROM jacket.
The Tru64 UNIX
Installation Guide
provides an overview
of using CD-ROMs on Tru64 UNIX systems.
1.4.2 Documentation on the World Wide Web
You can find most of the Tru64 UNIX core and supplementary documentation, the reference pages, and other useful documentation on the World Wide Web.
To view this documentation, point your Web browser to the following URL:
http://www.unix.digital.com/faqs/publications/pub_page/pubs_page.html
There you will find documentation sets for Tru64 UNIX versions dating back to Version 3.0. Books for the current and most recent versions are available in HTML and PDF formats. The books for earlier versions of the operating system are available only in PostScript format.
Beginning with the Version 4.0D release, the Documentation Overview lists the documentation changes for each release. You might want to begin with the Documentation Overview in your search for information about the documentation in prior versions.
The Web site also gives you access to the Tru64 UNIX reference pages, as well as to the following documentation:
Tru64 UNIXTru64 UNIXTru64 UNIX Best Practices documentation (See Section 3.2 for details)
Tru64 UNIX Device Driver documentation library (See Chapter 5 for details)
TruCluster Server (including the TruCluster reference pages)
Advanced Server for UNIX
Open Source Internet Solutions for Tru64 UNIX
Tru64 UNIX Porting Guides
Tru64 UNIX POSIX Conformance Documentation
The Web also provides updates to documentation between formal product releases. For example, Compaq maintains online Technical Updates, which provide information about restrictions and problems that have been discovered with specific versions since their release. Visit the following Web site to see the Technical Update for Version 5.0A:
http://www.unix.digital.com/faqs/publications/updates/V50A/TITLE.HTM
Compaq recommends that you view this site periodically to see
if any new information has been added.
1.5 Printed Documentation
When you purchase a Tru64 UNIX media kit, you receive printed versions of various manuals to help you install and begin using the operating system. To receive printed versions of the rest of the core documentation, you must order a Tru64 UNIX Documentation Kit (Figure 1-1) or one or more of its subkits, as described in Chapter 2.
Figure 1-1: Structure of the Tru64 UNIX Documentation Kit
End User Documentation Kit
This kit contains all the information needed to install and use the Tru64 UNIX system. This kit is divided into three subkits as follows:
Startup Documentation Kit
This kit is primarily for the person who installs the Tru64 UNIX operating system. It contains information on how to configure software components and some information (such as the Release Notes) needed by all Tru64 UNIX users.
When you order the Tru64 UNIX operating system, the books in the Startup Documentation Kit are packaged with the distribution media.
System and Network Management Documentation Kit
This kit is for people who are responsible for managing the Tru64 UNIX operating system or network. The manuals in this kit provide information on how to configure, manage, and tune Tru64 UNIX systems.
General User Documentation Kit
This kit provides general information on how to use the Tru64 UNIX operating system. The manuals in this kit are for everyone who uses Tru64 UNIX.
Developer's Documentation Kit
This kit is for software developers who write programs on or for the Tru64 UNIX operating system. The books in this kit include information on tools and programming recommendations.
The printed manuals include a letter icon on the spine to help you quickly find the book you are looking for. The following icons are used:
| G | Indicates books that are in the General User Documentation Kit |
| S | Indicates books that are in the System and Network Management Documentation Kit |
| P | Indicates books that are in the Developer's Documentation Kit (the P is for programmers) |
Although a book's primary audience determines the documentation kit
it is packaged in, some books help meet the needs of several audiences.
For
example, a general user can read the
Programming Support Tools
manual (packaged in
the Developer's Documentation Kit) to get advanced information about using
commands such as
grep
or
awk.
The
Security
manual (packaged in the General User Documentation Kit) provides information
for system administrators and programmers, as well as for general users.
Keep
this in mind when searching for information on specific topics.
1.6 Documentation for Layered Applications
Compaq and third-party vendors produce many applications that
run on Tru64 UNIX systems.
The documentation for most of these products
is included with the individual application software.
The following sections
provide some guidance.
1.6.1 Products Packaged with Tru64 UNIX
The CD-ROMs in the Tru64 UNIX media kit include the software and documentation for several separately licensed products. You do not need a license to view this documentation, which in most cases is provided in both HTML and PDF (or PostScript) formats.
The following separately licensed products are among those included with the kit:
TruCluster Server products
Advanced File System (AdvFS) Utilities
Advanced Server for UNIX
Windows 2000 Single Sign On
Advanced Printing Software
See the
Tru64 UNIX Version 5.0A CD-ROMs
sheet (included in printed form in the Tru64 UNIX media kit and in HTML
form on the Documentation CD-ROM) for a complete list and the location
of the layered applications included with Tru64 UNIX.
See
Section 3.5
for information about the Tru64 UNIX Associated Products CD-ROMS.
1.6.2 Tru64 UNIX Alpha Online Documentation Library
Many of the layered applications produced by Compaq, such as
Compaq's C++ product and the Distributed Computing Environment (DCE), are
included on the Tru64 UNIX Alpha Software Product Library, a collection
of CD-ROMs in a kit that is updated every three months.
The documentation
for these products is included on the companion Tru64 UNIX Alpha Online
Documentation Library CD-ROM.
These software and documentation kits
are separately orderable products; they are not included with the Tru64 UNIX
media kit.
For information about ordering these kits, contact your Compaq
sales representative.
1.6.3 Device Driver Documentation
Documentation for programmers who create device driver software for the Tru64 UNIX operating system is available as a separately orderable kit. See Chapter 5 for more information about the Device Driver Documentation Kit.