IBM have created a new developerWorks zone dedicated to AIX and Unix.

This zone was one I had input on, both in terms of the focus and the initial range of articles and tutorials that are being posted up there.

The focus is almost 100% on Unix, rather than Linux, technologies, although it is almost inevitable that some Linux related content will creep in there too.

Quite a few of my recent articles and tutorials at developerWorks were originally designed for this new zone, including:

Retool your Linux skills for commercial UNIX

Examine how to best migrate your Linux(R) skills to take advantage of AIX and Solaris. Linux is all the rage, but what if you have experience in Linux and need to apply it to a commercial UNIX environment? UNIX and Linux are similar, and many of the same principles exist; there is a shell, root is still all powerful, and many of the tools and applications are the same. But how do you cope with understanding the nuances and differences?

Write software for multiple UNIX platforms

If you write software for more than one UNIX platform, you are aware of the difficulty of getting your software to compile on two platforms. This tutorial covers tools and tricks that can make the process of supporting different UNIX platforms significantly easier at the code level. The reason is not the lack of tools or a binary compatibility issue, but rather the problems with the header files and functions that set up a standard UNIX environment.

Make UNIX and Linux work together

Examine how to use the Network Information Service (NIS) to share core databases between Linux and UNIX, and how to use the Network File System (NFS) to share file systems, both with direct links and through the automounter. Although UNIX and Linux are similar, there are some differences between the two that can complicate the process of integrating the two systems. Both, for example, share the same authentication system, but most systems are also standalone. Sharing this authentication information enables you to provide a single sign-on (SSO) functionality to any of the servers in your network.

System Administrators Toolkit: Process administration tricks

Discover how to get the information you want on UNIX processes. Knowing what is running on your UNIX system is one of the most basic requirements of any system administrator. The standard process list is useful, but often the information that it provides is not in the right format or doesn’t contain exactly the processes or information you need. In this article, you’ll examine how to extend that process further to improve the readability of the information, or provide summaries and information that are not easily obtainable elsewhere. You’ll also look at methods for standardizing how to obtain process information across different UNIX platforms.

One of those is new overnight - Make UNIX and Linux work together - and the System Administrators Toolkit: Process administration tricks is part of a new series.

This is going to be a busy little zone for the next few months. If you have a suggestion for an article, or something you would particularly like to see on the topic of Unix, please feel free to contact me and let me know.