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Nathaniel Beaver
2015-08-21 16:38:07 -05:00
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README.rst
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@@ -268,13 +268,25 @@ Filename case-insensitivity.
----------------------------
Linux uses case-sensitive filenames because Unix used case-sensitive filename.
Unix was probably case-sensitive because teletypes and ASCII are case-sensitive,
as were the `keyboards on PDP-11 computers`_,
so `string comparisons were simpler and faster`_ if they didn't occasionally have to convert everything to uppercase or lowercase.
Unix was case-sensitive because Multics was case-sensitive.
Multics was case-sensitive because of ASCII.
.. _keyboards on PDP-11 computers: https://pmf.silvrback.com/pdp-11-keyboard
.. _string comparisons were simpler and faster: http://www.raizlabs.com/graiz/2007/02/11/linuxunix-case-sensitivity/
Everything in Multics is case sensitive; Multics permits use of the full
upper and lower case ASCII character set.
http://www.multicians.org/mgc.html
Since the Multics file system distinguished between upper and lower case,
external names had to be case sensitive, and without much discussion we
chose to have all variable names be case sensitive.
http://www.multicians.org/pl1.html
This has the additional benefits of making
`string comparisons simpler and faster`_
because they don't have to occasionally convert everything to uppercase or lowercase.
.. _string comparisons simpler and faster: http://www.raizlabs.com/graiz/2007/02/11/linuxunix-case-sensitivity/
Bear in mind that it's MUCH more work for a filesystem to be
case-insensitive than -sensitive. A filesystem is case-sensitive by
@@ -289,17 +301,6 @@ so `string comparisons were simpler and faster`_ if they didn't occasionally hav
http://xahlee.info/UnixResource_dir/_/fileCaseSens.html
Everything in Multics is case sensitive; Multics permits use of the full
upper and lower case ASCII character set.
http://www.multicians.org/mgc.html
Since the Multics file system distinguished between upper and lower case,
external names had to be case sensitive, and without much discussion we
chose to have all variable names be case sensitive.
http://www.multicians.org/pl1.html
Strictly speaking, modern Windows filenames could be case-sensitive,
but they aren't because the `Windows API for opening files`_ `is not case-sensitive`_,
i.e. the `default call`_ to ``CreateFile`` does not enable the ``FILE_FLAG_POSIX_SEMANTICS`` option.