What is the etymology of the term "cots" (common off the shelf).

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 08 May 2005 13:07 PDT

khoskin-ga,


I found this use of the term dating back to 1974:


"The comparator then feeds the corresponding element in the
ferroelectric plate through its shift register....These devices are
common off-the-shelf devices, usually solid state electronics
(Motorola, Texas Instruments), but can also be a fluidic device
(Corning)..."


I have no reason to suppose the above quote was the actual origin of
the phrase.  Though I must say, it crops up suddenly in numerous
places after 1974, but I do not see any other earlier uses of this
exact phrase.

I'd be glad to post the citation for the above quote, as an answer to
your question, if you think it would meet your needs.

Let me know.


pafalafa-ga

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Clarification of Question by khoskin-ga on 08 May 2005 17:28 PDT

Thankyou pafalafa-ga - for your attention.  In one of my earlier
comments you'll find a link that references the following:

 "The acronym was devised in 1972 by Bob Costello, then the Deputy
Director of Defense, at an early stage of the US initative to decrease
costs and shorten development cycles for military and non military
systems" (pdf from www.armada.ch)

This is a 1972 reference - and is earlier than yours - but I would be
very very interested in finding yours because it may lead us closer -

I still stand by the idea that Doug McIlroy has solidified the concept
(1969) but I still can't help feeling that he "cross-pollenated" it
from Military purchasing approaches.  (did purchasing base it on
system engineering approaches?)

In addition I am looking more for the roots of the term than the
earliest occurance.

Never the less is there a way I can reward you for the lead?  Should I
post a question that asks the question "How can we move this question
forward?"

Once again - any attention we can get for this question is much
appreciated.  I see an overlap between COTS / the Internet / Common
Business / Politics.

This is why I am asking.

thanks
Kent

"An important book called Software Components With Ada (Booch, 1987)
illustrated how one might use these new language features to design
software components. The term COTS, for common off-the-shelf,
components, became popular shortly afterward."

http://www.cse.ohio-state.edu/~weide/rsrg/documents/2001/01W2.pdf

I think you are very close to the answer - upon investigating your
link I found the following -

"CBSD embodies the "buy, don't build" philosophy espoused by Fred
Brooks [Brooks 87]." - found at
http://www.sei.cmu.edu/str/descriptions/cbsd.html

When I look into the Brooks reference -  it leads me to ->
http://www-inst.eecs.berkeley.edu/~maratb/readings/NoSilverBullet.html

the second reference in here is G. Booch - "G. Booch, "Object-Oriented
Design," Software Engineering with Ada, 1983, Menlo Park, Calif.:
Benjamin/ Cummings."

Is it possible that Brooks provided the "Commercial Off the Shelf"
bent to Booch's "Common of the Shelf"?

Contacted Bruce Weide (fellow who wrote the origional article
referenced - Component Based Systems)

Professor Weide wondered about it going further back to perhaps Doug
McIlroy in the late 60's.

Continuing to dig.  Its interesting that such a prevelant term is so elusive <g>.

Kent

It is not unusual for terms of this sort to be difficult to trace.
You'd think that the recentness of the coinage would make the source
of such a term easy to identify, but sometimes even a recent usage is
tough to track to its origins. Finding the first use of a common
phrase can be like trying to nail Jell-O to the wall.

Another reference that I couldn't nail down ... several pages look
like they are jsut referencing each other -

But it does sound close ...

http://www.armada.ch/02-5/complete_02-5.pdf

"the acronymn was devised in 1972 by Bob Costello (Robert B) then the
US Deputy Director of Defense.

Kent

I got a couple of hits from 1985 for the phrase, although they don't
make use of the acronym, COTS.  Still the usage in 1985 certainly
suggests that the term was already a familiar one to the authors and
readers.  I'm inclined to agree with Pinkfreud's comment that the 1987
book reference is probably what propelled the phrase into the
vernacular.


PERSONAL COMPUTING 
Wang revives the concept of single-purpose machines 

8 February 1985
The Globe and Mail 

...Wang's recently introduced Office Assistant products are examples
of both the newest and the oldest trends in office automation...

...Deep down inside, word processors, microcomputers, and the Wang
Office Assistant are essentially the same product. All use common,
off-the-shelf microprocessors, memory chips and disc drives...



pafalafa-ga

Thanks for contributing pafalafa-ga - 

But I don't agree -Booch may have helped the term but I don't think he
is the source. An Ada programming book would take along time to impact
the vernacular.  In addition you'll see (further up) I contacted Bruce
Weide the person who wrote the quote.  ->

"An important book called Software Components With Ada (Booch, 1987)
illustrated how one might use these new language features to design
software components. The term COTS, for common off-the-shelf,
components, became popular shortly afterward."

He did not intend to infer that Booch coined the term (although it did
become increasingly popular post 1987) He pointed me to a Nato
conference on software development and a fellow named Doug McIlroy.

This does appear to be the stronegest link I have been able to find. 
But I also wonder that it is likely that McIlroy linked the component
and "off the shelf" thinking to software - Is it possible he was
drawing from another source the idea?

I did find some circular references to Bob Costello the
US Deputy Director of Defense 1972 - but haven't been able to
strengthen that.  Very clearly  1994 William J Perry (US Defense
Secretary) drove "COTS" usage further.

If you search for Mr. Lynn Mohler you should find a retirement
announcement that seems to validate something happening with 1972
Costello.

The McIlroy lead is earlier though.

Whats interesting to me is the continual flirtation with this being a
militairy economic source - reinforced (and perhaps created) by an
information systems thread.

I am going to increase the reward for someone to answer this - 

cheers
Kent

I paid money and dug through the Toronto Star back to 1900 - what I
realized when searching for common off the shelf - was that "off the
shelf" goes quite far back in the text of articles.

Think of "off the shelf" as opposed to "on the shelf".

Off the shelf sometimes was used to say "dust it off and it bring it
back onto the agenda" - often used in political terms.

Off the shelf was also on occasion used in the following manner "the
item flew off the shelf" - meaning had great demand or create great
demand.

In addition "off the shelf" was sometimes literal - ie "the bottle
fell off the shelf and broke"

If we consider shelf more carefully - look here :
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=shelf&searchmode=none

Its interesting that it has roots in the notion of "split or cleave"
pulling it back to our origional questions about "common off the
shelf" - the phrasing in some our early software design contexts
pointed towards components or reusable "parts".  It is in this that I
see common off the shelf having a linguistic background that is social
and understood without being aparent to the current users of the
phrase.

Here are some numbers from my search of the toronto star for "off the shelf"- 
("common off the shelf" found very few hits  - all after 1980")

6	hits	between	1/1/1900	and	12/31/1904
0	hits	between	1/1/1905	and	12/31/1909
4	hits	between	1/1/1910	and	12/31/1914
2	hits	between	1/1/1915	and	12/31/1919
6	hits	between	1/1/1920	and	12/31/1924
2	hits	between	1/1/1925	and	12/31/1929
22	hits	between	1/1/1930	and	12/31/1934
26	hits	between	1/1/1935	and	12/31/1939
28	hits	between	1/1/1940	and	12/31/1944
10	hits	between	1/1/1945	and	12/31/1949
22	hits	between	1/1/1950	and	12/31/1954
18	hits	between	1/1/1955	and	12/31/1959
12	hits	between	1/1/1960	and	12/31/1964
26	hits	between	1/1/1965	and	12/31/1969
42	hits	between	1/1/1970	and	12/31/1974
46	hits	between	1/1/1975	and	12/31/1979	
128	hits	between	1/1/1980	and	12/31/1984	
132	hits	between	1/1/1985	and	12/31/1989	
64	hits	between	1/1/1990	and	12/31/1994	
132	hits	between	1/1/1995	and	12/31/1999	
68	hits	between	1/1/2000	and	12/31/2002	(3 years)

*** the earliest quote close to the use of "common off the shelf" that
we are seeing now - is an article about a President Kennedy
announcement about the purchase of planes January 11 1962 - "The long
range transport planes needed for the job, he added, would have to be
_bought off the shelf_: there isn't time to design and build entiely
new ones." (Toronto Star Jan. 11, 1962).

It is interesting he mentions design and build - that it is a military
purchase and it is a technology related discussion. This is very close
to the "common off the shelf" terminology.

Oh well more clues and no answer <g>.  Is it posible this phrase is
not coined by anyone in particular but instead has grown as part of
the social text?

Kent

The first thing I thought of when I looked at the question is TQM.  It
seems to me that COTS is a Total Quality Management principle or
supporting concept.  If this is the case, then you will probably have
the most luck in looking for COTS origins and its first use by doing a
cross-search of COTS(or related TQM concept) with W. Edwards Deming
(post WWII through the 1980's) who is considered to be the father of
the TQM system in Japan during its rebuilding after WWII.  I believe
this is why you keep getting references to military and economic
subjects.  Our current day Quality Management principles are derived
from Mil specs that were concerned with the economic rebuilding of
Japan after WWII.
An older and more rare (and therefore harder to find) reference may
also be found in relation to a Walter Shewhart (TQM work between
1920's-1940's).

I hope this helps in some way.