This book investigates the fundamental conceptual differences between the MS-DOS and UNIX operating systems to facilitate a smooth transition for experienced developers. Steven Mikes utilizes his technical background to bridge the gap between these two environments, providing a structured framework that maps familiar MS-DOS commands and logic onto the more complex architecture of AT&T's UNIX. The text serves as a comparative guide, leveraging the reader's existing knowledge base to demystify UNIX functions.

Experts and readers from the late 1980s recognized this text as a highly practical bridge for developers migrating from single-tasking environments to multi-user systems. The prose is noted for its direct, instructional clarity, making it a standard reference for the era's professional software engineers.