The RSX Multi-Tasker February, 1988 "Ars Longa ... Vita Brevis" Fine Realtime Commentary Since 1975 _____ __ ________ Table of Contents Food for Thought RSX-1 The Editor's Corner RSX-1 Commentary RSX-2 Submitting Articles to the Multi-Tasker RSX- And That's The Way Things Are RSX- Opinions expressed in the editorial section of the Multi-Tasker are those of the Editor. They do not represent the official position of the RSX SIG or that of DECUS leadership in general. Food for Thought "When the ship lifts, all bills are paid. No regrets." - Robert A. Heinlein The Notebooks of Lazarus Long The Editor's Corner Bruce R. Mitchell The Editor apologizes to the readership for the lack of a January issue of the Multi-Tasker. There are extenuating circumstances. Part of the Multi-Tasker editorship is reporting news to the membership of the SIG. Pleasant or unpleasant, regardless of personal opinion, this editor's motto has been - and continues to be - "All the news". Period. As you may know, our SIG Chairman, Dan Eisner, became very sick last year. The illness was eventually diagnosed as abdominal cancer. Dan did not survive. It now becomes my duty to be the first Multi-Tasker editor to write an obituary. I wish it were not so. From time to time, it has been my privilege to know people whose performance I consider "sterling". Dan Eisner was one of those people. From his original "signing on" with the SIG as session notes editor, to his final office as SIG Chair, Dan discharged his duties honorably and well. But to those of us who worked with him and knew him beyond the interface of SIG offices, Dan was a friend. As one of those whose lives were touched by Dan, I cannot express the grief I feel at knowing that he is gone. For me, a little of the light in the world is gone today. At this writing, in late December, the pain and grief of those who knew Dan is still fresh. It is not my intention to reopen those wounds, but to pay tribute to a special friend. The Multi-Tasker now pauses for a moment in its month to month business of reporting and commentary. The March issue will continue with that business as it has in the past, but, for this month ... This issue of the Multi-Tasker is dedicated to Dan Eisner. ----- Submitting Articles to the Multi-Tasker ----- Please submit machine readable media. RX01/2, RX50 and 9 channel 800/1600 BPI magtape are preferred. Almost any medium I can't read can be converted. All RSX volume formats are acceptable, but please don't send VMS Backup or ODS-2 format media. You can also submit articles through the RSX bulletin board system at (612) 777-7664. Send them via MAIL to username MULTITASKER. Submissions which aren't machine readable may take longer to get into print. If you format your submission in RUNOFF, please set page size 58,80; left margin 10; right margin 75; and, when changing margins, use incremental changes rather than absolute. The editor thanks you for the consideration. Send your articles and other submissions to the luxurious Multi-Tasker offices: Bruce R. Mitchell Machine Intelligence and Industrial Magic PO Box 77 Minnesota City, MN 55959 ----- And That's The Way Things Are ----- ... this month in Pool Lowbegone, where our memories of Dan remain strong, his contribution to the RSX SIG is handsome, and the number of glasses raised to his memory in Anaheim was above average. D E C U S - I N T E R O F F I C E M E M O R A N D U M Date: 29-Oct-87 02:06am EST From: Alan Frisbie FRISBIE Dept: RSX SIG Historian TO: See Below Subject: Re: Dan Eisner It is with great sadness that I report the death of our good friend, Dan Eisner. I received the call just minutes after posting the previous note. It can truly be said that Dan did not led death take him easily. He fought to the very end. Dan asked that no flowers be sent, but that donations to the American Cancer Society would be appreciated. He also wished that we not waste time mourning. I will post a message as soon as I know when and where the services are scheduled. Requiescat in pace. Alan Frisbie +---------------+ | +-------+ | | / \ | E U R O P E A N R S X - S I G | / D E C U S \ | | \E U R O P E/ | | \ / | | +-------+ | DIGITAL EQUIPMENT COMPUTER USERS SOCIETY +---------------+ Oss, 2 November 1987. J.H. Belgraver DECUS U.S. RSX SIG Board Organon Int. bv CNS Pharmacology Dept. Bruce Mitchell, Hans Jung, Room RE 1148 Rick Sharpe, Glenn Everhart, P.O. Box 20 Alan Frisbie, Ed Cetron, 5340 BH Oss Dick Day The Netherlands Tel. 04120 - 6 29 43 Telex 37500 ORGA NL Dear Friends, Yesterday I received the sad news that Dan Eisner passed away last Thursday. As the new European RSX SIG chairman I did not yet have the pleasure of meeting him in person, but from my predecessor David Guerlet and others that happened to know him I understood he was a fine guy and highly motivated to keep the U.S. RSX SIG alive, respected by everybody for the way he acted as the SIG chairman. It was at the DECUS Europe Symposium last September that I heard about his illness through Alan Frisbie. At that time Alan was still very hopeful about the results of his treatment. I find it hard to understand why it was not given for Dan to stay with his family and friends and have to die so young. Be sure we are with you in our thoughts these days. On behalf of the European RSX SIG I wish you a lot of strength to recover from this severe blow of live. Yours Sincerely, Jan H. Belgraver European RSX SIG Chairman Dan Eisner RSX SIG Chairman, DECUS US Chapter For the past several years, Dan Eisner was the image of the RSX SIG in the DECUS U.S. Chapter. His friendly manner as well as the competence with which he directed the SIG won him the complete support and respect of all his colleagues. He was one of those people who was always able to work on a project without placing himself in the foreground. Just recently Dan had fully immersed himself in the new communications project for the U.S. membership, DECUServe, and belongs to the progenitors and promoters of this system. Many of us here from Europe, who came to know Dan at U.S. Symposia, had learned to give special value to the receptive- ness he had for our problems here and to his constant willingness to listen to us and to accept us as partners. The news of his serious illness had reached us before the European Symposium in Rome; the concern and empathy of his European colleagues was expressed in many a conversation there. Our wishes and hopes for Dan were unfortunately not fulfilled. In Dan we lose a friend and well-loved colleague. Otto Titze (translation by John Covert) Dan Eisner hat in den letzten Jahren das Bild der RSX SIG in DECUS US geprdgt. Seine freundliche Art aber auch die Souverdnitdt mit der er die SIG geleitet hat, hat ihm die uneingeschrdnkte Sympathie und Wertschdtzung aller Kollegen gewonnen. Er gehvrte zu den Personen, die sich immer in der Sache engagieren konnten, ohne ihre eigene Person in den Vordergrund zu stellen. Dan hatte sich gerade in letzter Zeit voll f|r das neue Kommunikationsprojekt DECUSserve f|r die Mitglieder in den USA eingesetzt und gehvrte zu den Vdtern und Promotern dieser Einrichtung. Viele von uns hier aus Europa, die Dan bei amerikanischen Symposien kennengelernt haben, haben die Aufgeschlossenheit, wie er auf unsere Probleme hier einging und immer ein offenes Ohr daf|r hatte und uns als Partner akzeptierte, besonders schdtzen gelernt. Die Nachricht von seiner schweren Erkrankung hatte uns vor dem Rom Symposium erreicht und schon dort in vielen Gesprdchen die Besorgnis und Anteilnahme der europdischen Kollegen ausgelvst. Unsere W|nsche und Hoffnungen f|r Dan haben sich leider nicht erf|llt. Wir verlieren hier einen Freund und liebenswerten Kollegen. Otto Titze