RSTS: The Early Days

This document provides a personal account of the development of the RSTS (Resource Sharing Time-Sharing) operating system. The presentation covers:

• Background: The role of Nathan Brookwood in the early DEC environment, specifically in marketing and the RSTS project.
• Antecedents: A comparison of RSTS with predecessor systems like TSS/8 and the HP-2000A.
• Team Dynamics: A breakdown of the original development team, including the contribution of external firm EG&H.
• Evolution: The naming history (originally BTSS), the development of various versions (1 through 3), and its transition to RSTS/E.
• Customer Base: Insight into the early beta-test customers.
• Reflections: Personal summaries of the experience, the strengths and weaknesses of DEC's processes at the time, and the transition to later networking initiatives like DECnet.