diff --git a/basis/unix/groups/groups-docs.factor b/basis/unix/groups/groups-docs.factor
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..ef2631ae3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/basis/unix/groups/groups-docs.factor
@@ -0,0 +1,108 @@
+! Copyright (C) 2008 Doug Coleman.
+! See http://factorcode.org/license.txt for BSD license.
+USING: help.markup help.syntax io.streams.string kernel quotations sequences strings math ;
+IN: unix.groups
+
+HELP: all-groups
+{ $values
+    
+     { "seq" sequence } }
+{ $description "Returns a sequence of " { $link group } " tuples that are platform-dependent and field for field complete with the Unix " { $link group } " structure." } ;
+
+HELP: effective-group-id
+{ $values
+    
+     { "string" string } }
+{ $description "Returns the effective group id for the current user." } ;
+
+HELP: effective-group-name
+{ $values
+    
+     { "string" string } }
+{ $description "Returns the effective group name for the current user." } ;
+
+HELP: group
+{ $description "A platform-specific tuple corresponding to every field from the Unix group struct including the group name, the group id, the group passwd, and a list of users in each group." } ;
+
+HELP: group-cache
+{ $description "A symbol containing a cache of groups returned from " { $link all-groups } " and indexed by group id. Can be more efficient than using the system call words for many group lookups." } ;
+
+HELP: group-id
+{ $values
+     { "string" string }
+     { "id" integer } }
+{ $description "Returns the group id given a group name." } ;
+
+HELP: group-name
+{ $values
+     { "id" integer }
+     { "string" string } }
+{ $description "Returns the group name given a group id." } ;
+
+HELP: group-struct
+{ $values
+     { "obj" object }
+     { "group" "a group struct" } }
+{ $description "Returns an alien group struct to be turned into a group tuple by calling subsequent words." } ;
+
+HELP: real-group-id
+{ $values
+    
+     { "id" integer } }
+{ $description "Returns the real group id for the current user." } ;
+
+HELP: real-group-name
+{ $values
+    
+     { "string" string } }
+{ $description "Returns the real group name for the current user." } ;
+
+HELP: set-effective-group
+{ $values
+     { "obj" object } }
+{ $description "Sets the effective group id for the current user." } ;
+
+HELP: set-real-group
+{ $values
+     { "obj" object } }
+{ $description "Sets the real group id for the current user." } ;
+
+HELP: user-groups
+{ $values
+     { "string/id" "a string or a group id" }
+     { "seq" sequence } }
+{ $description "Returns the sequence of groups to which the user belongs." } ;
+
+HELP: with-effective-group
+{ $values
+     { "string/id" "a string or a group id" } { "quot" quotation } }
+{ $description "Sets the effective group name and calls the quotation. Restors the effective group name on success or on error after the call." } ;
+
+HELP: with-group-cache
+{ $values
+     { "quot" quotation } }
+{ $description "Iterates over the group file using library calls and creates a cache in the " { $link group-cache } " symbol. The cache is a hashtable indexed by group id. When looking up many groups, this approach is much faster than calling system calls." } ;
+
+HELP: with-real-group
+{ $values
+     { "string/id" "a string or a group id" } { "quot" quotation } }
+{ $description "Sets the real group name and calls the quotation. Restores the current group name on success or on error after the call." } ;
+
+ARTICLE: "unix.groups" "unix.groups"
+"The " { $vocab-link "unix.groups" } " vocabulary contains words that return information about Unix groups."
+"Listing all groups:"
+{ $subsection all-groups }
+"Returning a passwd tuple:"
+"Real groups:"
+{ $subsection real-group-name }
+{ $subsection real-group-id }
+{ $subsection set-real-group }
+"Effective groups:"
+{ $subsection effective-group-name }
+{ $subsection effective-group-id }
+{ $subsection set-effective-group }
+"Combinators to change groups:"
+{ $subsection with-real-group }
+{ $subsection with-effective-group } ;
+
+ABOUT: "unix.groups"
diff --git a/basis/unix/groups/groups.factor b/basis/unix/groups/groups.factor
index 5a33bfe072..7f3aa9ae98 100644
--- a/basis/unix/groups/groups.factor
+++ b/basis/unix/groups/groups.factor
@@ -3,7 +3,8 @@
 USING: alien alien.c-types alien.strings io.encodings.utf8
 io.unix.backend kernel math sequences splitting unix strings
 combinators.short-circuit byte-arrays combinators qualified
-accessors math.parser fry assocs namespaces continuations ;
+accessors math.parser fry assocs namespaces continuations
+unix.users ;
 IN: unix.groups
 
 QUALIFIED: grouping
@@ -61,14 +62,22 @@ PRIVATE>
 : >groups ( byte-array n -- groups )
     [ 4 grouping:group ] dip head-slice [ *uint group-name ] map ;
 
-PRIVATE>
-
-: user-groups ( string -- seq )
+: (user-groups) ( string -- seq )
     #! first group is -1337, legacy unix code
     -1337 NGROUPS_MAX [ 4 * <byte-array> ] keep
     <int> [ getgrouplist io-error ] 2keep
     [ 4 tail-slice ] [ *int 1- ] bi* >groups ;
 
+PRIVATE>
+    
+GENERIC: user-groups ( string/id -- seq )
+
+M: string user-groups ( string -- seq )
+    (user-groups) ; 
+
+M: integer user-groups ( id -- seq )
+    username (user-groups) ;
+    
 : all-groups ( -- seq )
     [ getgrent dup ] [ group-struct>group ] [ drop ] produce ;