kurt@fluke.UUCP (Kurt Guntheroth) (02/13/85)
Bugs are legendary in the micro business. How many people remember
bugs like the 6800 not being able to do certain instructions if the
parity (parity for god's sake) of the preceeding instruction was odd.
The 6502 doing strange memory accesses during certain instructions.
The iAPX 188 bugs that prevented the 8087 from working with it (which
was fixed I believe). The list is endless. Needless to say, all
processors have bugs the manufacturers consider too inconsequential to
repair. The bug list usually finds its way out by word of mouth and
many designers just remember the bugs and design around them. There was a
disgusting and extensive list of 68000 bugs circulated around this newsgroup
last year that had been found by designers, not reported by Motorola, I
believe.
(flame warning)
There is no point in complaining if you can't get a sample part in
full speed with no bugs. The 32000 is new enough, and production is low
enough, and demand is high enough, that NSC doesn't find it in their best
interest to give you one. I'd do the same if I was them. They know the
bugs aren't very serious, and if you find one you will probably be able to
work around it. They know you can check out your design with a slower
part. By the time you go into production there will be faster parts with
fewer bugs. (You are going to make more than one of whatever-it-is aren't
you?) Why don't you try to use the part you have and post the results of
your attempt. I am sure we would all be glad to see how serious the bugs
you encountered were. More interested than we are in your complaint.
PS: My National Rep didn't have any trouble coming up with a bug list.
That was a year ago so it probably isn't interesting now. I am not
connected in any way with National Semiconductor, except as a fan
of the 32000.
--
Kurt Guntheroth
John Fluke Mfg. Co., Inc.
{uw-beaver,decvax!microsof,ucbvax!lbl-csam,allegra,ssc-vax}!fluke!kurt