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F/OSS Comics #13 tells the history of early BSD Unix, from Bill Joy’s first Berkeley software bundle in 1977 to 3BSD for VAX computers in 1979. The account describes how user feedback, virtual-memory work and distribution to research institutions helped BSD develop beyond a collection of tools for existing Unix systems.
F/OSS Comics #13 recounts how researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, began distributing software for Unix in the late 1970s, a project that grew from a small collection of tools into 3BSD, a Berkeley distribution adapted for VAX computers. The installment follows Bill Joy’s work on the early releases and the addition of virtual memory, tracing a development that helped BSD reach research institutions.
According to the comic’s account, after Ken Thompson returned to Bell Labs in 1976, Berkeley researchers Bill Joy and Chuck Haley explored changes to the Unix kernel. In early 1977, Joy assembled the first Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD), combining a Pascal system with ex, a line editor developed from em. The first BSD was not a standalone operating system: it was software intended for installation on an existing Unix system. About 30 copies went out during the following year.
The comic says Berkeley charged recipients for the tape and distribution, while obtaining BSD still required an AT&T Unix source license. Joy then revised the Pascal system in response to user feedback and assembled a second release, known as 2BSD, with vi, the C shell and other tools. Nearly 75 tapes were shipped over the next year, the installment says. It also describes Joy personally handling requests, copying tapes and mailing them.
The next stage involved a VAX computer that arrived at Berkeley in 1978. Graduate student Ozalp Babaoglu was working on virtual memory for 32/V, Bell Labs’ VAX version of Unix; Joy helped integrate and debug the code. The comic explains that the existing system did not make use of the VAX’s virtual-memory capabilities, limiting programs to physical memory. After months of debugging, Berkeley researchers combined the revised kernel with Berkeley tools and the Pascal system. 3BSD began shipping in December 1979, according to the installment.
How Berkeley’s Tape Releases Grew
The story matters because it shows BSD developing through a practical cycle of research, user feedback and redistribution, rather than appearing fully formed as a standalone operating system. Early users needed an AT&T Unix source license, so the Berkeley tapes extended an existing Unix environment; the software additions and later VAX work expanded what that environment could do.
The account also links Berkeley’s work to a broader research need. Institutions connected through ARPANET used different computers and operating systems, making software sharing and porting difficult. The installment says DARPA took interest in Unix’s portability and Berkeley’s distribution of 3BSD to research institutions. That history helps explain why a small university software release could become relevant beyond its original campus.
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From 2BSD to VAX-Based 3BSD
The installment is the third entry in a series on BSD Unix. Earlier installments cover Unix code reaching UC Berkeley and the development of the vi editor. This episode focuses on the steps between those subjects: the first BSD bundle, the expanded 2BSD release and the work to adapt Berkeley software to a VAX.
Macsyma, a symbolic mathematics system developed at MIT beginning in the late 1960s, provides the immediate reason for the virtual-memory work in the comic’s account. Berkeley professor Richard Fateman’s group needed the VAX system to support Macsyma’s demands. The comic says Joy and Babaoglu worked through debugging into the end-of-year holidays, with most bugs fixed by January 1979. It identifies 3BSD as a combination of the virtual-memory kernel, standard 32/V utilities and Berkeley programs adapted for the VAX.
“Early BSD was not a standalone operating system: it was a collection of software to install on an existing Unix system.”
— F/OSS Comics #13, describing the first BSD release
Limits of the Comic’s Account
The supplied installment gives selected milestones and figures, including about 30 first-release copies and nearly 75 2BSD tapes, but does not provide a full distribution record or independently document each shipment. Those quantities are presented here as figures reported by the comic, not as a complete census.
The account also says Berkeley’s Free Speech Movement, counterculture and antiwar activism are said to have influenced Joy’s low distribution charge. That is presented as an explanation attributed to other accounts, not as a confirmed statement by Joy in the material supplied. The installment does not specify the exact terms or cost of the required AT&T licenses, nor does it detail how DARPA’s interest developed after 3BSD circulated.
The Series’ Next Historical Step
F/OSS Comics frames 3BSD’s circulation among research institutions as a turning point that drew DARPA’s attention to Berkeley’s Unix work. The supplied installment does not announce a future publication date or describe a new BSD release. Its narrative points toward the next stage of the history: how Berkeley’s work connected with research networking and wider efforts to run Unix across different machines.
Readers seeking to verify or follow the history can consult the references listed with the comic, including Marshall Kirk McKusick’s account of Berkeley Unix, the Unix Heritage Society’s 2BSD archive and the ARPANET history from SRI International. The installment does not say when another part of the series will appear.
Key Questions
What is F/OSS Comics #13 about?
It recounts the early development of BSD Unix at UC Berkeley, including the first BSD release, 2BSD and the creation of 3BSD for VAX computers.
Was the first BSD a standalone operating system?
No. The comic says the 1977 release was a collection of software for an existing Unix system, rather than a standalone operating system.
What did Berkeley add in 2BSD?
According to the installment, 2BSD included an updated Pascal system, vi, the C shell and other tools. Nearly 75 tapes were shipped over the following year.
What changed with 3BSD?
3BSD combined Berkeley software with standard 32/V utilities and a virtual-memory kernel integrated and debugged by Ozalp Babaoglu and Bill Joy. The comic says it began shipping in December 1979.
Did Berkeley’s distribution eliminate the Unix license requirement?
No. The installment says recipients still needed an AT&T Unix source license; Berkeley charged for the tape and distribution.
Source: fosscomics.com
