Not Richard, but Dick
I’ve worked with this monstrosity, it’s not unlike other mainframe operating systems like IMB’s “System i”
I believe there’s still developers out there working on modern versions of it
https://www.rocketsoftware.com/sites/default/files/2025-09/universe-feature-release-matrix.pdf
The whole OS is essentially a really big nosql database, the filesystems are journaled and you have “files” but you also have dynamic files called “print queues” and executables are “jobs” that run queries and output into queues.
I know at least two of the major hotel chains use them still in their core network.
Funny thing, where I come from pikk is slang for dick. So Dick Pick could as well be Richard Penis
Yeah, no, I’m not duckduckgoing that.
well i searxng it and i can confirm its real
There are GIRLS in the article!
I’ve administered this OS, which for us was used to develop images on plates for printing. It ran atop ATT UNIX and had to be “defragged” every now and again to regain contiguous space back. This process involved backing up the system to 250MB QIC tapes (twice for two sets of tapes), wiping the disks and then restoring the data from tape. This was an all-weekend process and really sucked if a tape broke, but that’s why there were two sets and scotch tape can work in a pinch when the other tape is bad.
I worked for a company that still supports a critical healthcare system that runs on Rocket U2 on AIX which is an evolution of PICK.
It is so funny to hear about “critical” systems that run ancient OSes and I’ve supported my fair share of those environments. I did love AIX as well. Smitty (and F6) teaching me UNIX commands early in my career was a great help.
Was Rocket U2 still written in Pick Basic?
Wait, it’s an OS, but it runs on top of Unix?
Iirc some mainframe OSes, like z/OS or whatever, support running different OSes atop them.
Yes. Same as Windows 3.1 running atop DOS. I would say it doesn’t truly qualify as an operating system because of its dependence on a parent OS. Perhaps it’s more of an operating environment.
Sounds like a dream job! How long ago was this?
Veritably, a lifetime ago.
Although I can almost guarantee someone is still doing things that way even today.
Nah, anything like that is at least a virtual tape at this point.
Considering how the entire semiconductor and storage markets shat themselves, tape might still be the cheapest per gb.
It’s the read times that kill ya
Fun fact: Richard Head was the assistant Attorney General for the State of New Hampshire
He was and is also a dickhead. Now he makes money giving talks
It used to be the Generalized Information Retrieval Language System, but for some reason Dick didn’t like GIRLS.
wtf this is real
I’m gonna need to know your familiarity with this machine, op
I feel like this would have been more interesting if they used Richard.
If it makes you feel any better the manuals had his name as Richard Pick.
