Some questions that came up while reading the first paper (Plan 9 from Bell Labs):
a) It seems that the potential of namespaces can be exposed only when using a distributed environment with multiple machines (CPU servers, file servers, terminals, etc.). Can I get a feeling about what a namespace is in practice if I only own a single system installed on a virtual machine? b) I know that Limbo is mostly used in Inferno, but is Alef or Limbo used in any parts of the native Plan 9? According to wikipedia (http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alef_%28programming_language%29) the Alef parts were rewritten in C.
