Different uses of the 5th field of the passwd file.

[Chris Torek]

[Article <27543 at mimsy.umd.edu>, with a backwards answer, has been cancelled]

In article <1990Nov8.060424.1828 at blackbox.lonestar.org>
cbradley at blackbox.lonestar.org (Chris Bradley) writes:
>What is the `real' acronym?  I've seen both `GCOS' (in this thread) and
>`GECOS' (in the docs for C News, I think)?

They are both correct:

>What is the correct expansion of the acronym?

GECOS stands for General Electric Comprehensive Operating System, which
was the name of something that ran on a GE machine.  Then Honeywell
bought in on the deal and tried to etiolate% the E by renaming it the
`General C.O.S.'

Revisionists and lazy people therefore type `gcos'; others use
`gecos'.  You get to guess whether I am being revisionist or lazy when
I use `gcos'. :-)
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% etiolate, v.t. & i. to bleach by lack of sunlight