[virtmach] Definition a virtual machine ?

[Ehud Lamm]

This is a very intersting thread, since it contarsts two views of VMs. On
the one hand a VM is one of the kinds of abstractions used when dealing
with software construction, along things like processes, trees etc. On the
other hand, many use the term to refer to a specific kind of VM, and
usually have in mind a specific model. This kind of thinking usually
results i thinking about a smaller class of VMs, which are much closer to
actuall machines. They usually have a set of instrctions, possibly
addressing, and the Vm is basically an interpreter.
For my tastes, the broader definition is more interesting, but both are
commonly used, so it seems impossible to say that one is right, the other
wrong.

Some of my views about VMs and software abstractions in general, in a very
rough draft from can be found here:
http://www2.cybercities.com/e/ehud/elist/mfc.doc

Ehud Lamm mslamm@mscc.huji.ac.il
http://purl.oclc.org/NET/ehudlamm <== My home on the web 
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