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The History of the UNIX® License Plate

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History of the UNIX License Plate

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Why This is Different

In 1983 Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) was ramping up their engineering group to create and ship their first UNIX system product.

One of the stalwarts of the group was Armando P. Stettner. Armando was a UNIX system devotee. He lived and he breathed the UNIX system. When he got his new car, it was natural that he got vanity license plates that said "UNIX" on them. And it only made it better that the state motto of New Hampshire was "Live Free or Die".

Armando often got requests from people along the lines of "When will we be able to get our UNIX system license directly from DEC?" And Armando kept saying "Real Soon Now" (RSN).

Armando was going to a conference and he was dreading having to say "RSN" many more times, so he had a bright idea. Amando went prepared to give out "UNIX licenses". On stage, when the question came up, "When will we be able to get our UNIX system license directly from DEC?", Armando yelled "Right Now!" and produced facsimilies of his license plate, holding it up for all to see. It was an almost perfect likeness of his license plate, with the trademark "UNIX" in the middle of it, but instead of having "Live Free or Die" across the bottom of the plate (as in the real case), it had it across the top. Across the bottom was the trademark acknowledgement.

DEC made UNIX license plates up in small numbers and handed them out at events. They usually ran out. The demand for the license plates never did abate. People saw them on an office wall, or heard about them somewhere, and wanted one of their own.

Armando left the state for the sunny climes of California, and had taken his car and license plate with him. Or so many people thought.

In 1989 Jon 'maddog' Hall was purchasing a new car, a Jeep Wrangler. And of course the license plate had to be relevant. So Jon, a long time DEC employee and UNIX system guru, submitted his application with many variations and the clerk said "I think we can give you your first choice...." and gave him the temporary paper plates (to be used on the car until the metal plates were manufactured) with "UNIX" on them. And so it has been ever since. Jon's Jeep has been the holder of the UNIX license plate.

Of course there are other "UNIX" plates: from Massachusetts, New York, California, and we are sure others exist. If you know of or find another one, please let us know and send us a photo! (if there is enough interest we'll setup a gallery)

Links: How to obtain a License Plate

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Acknowledgements

The Open Group thanks Jon "maddog" Hall for sharing the story of the UNIX license plate.

About The Open Group

The Open Group, a vendor-neutral and technology-neutral consortium, has a vision of Boundaryless Information Flow achieved through global interoperability in a secure, reliable and timely manner. The Open Group's mission is to drive the creation of Boundaryless Information Flow by:

Working with customers to capture, understand and address current and emerging requirements, establish policies, and share best practices;

Working with suppliers, consortia and standards bodies to develop consensus and facilitate interoperability, to evolve and integrate specifications and open source technologies;

Offering a comprehensive set of services to enhance the operational efficiency of consortia; and

Developing and operating the industry's premier certification service and encouraging procurement of certified products.

More information about The Open Group can be found at www.opengroup.org.