daveh@marob.MASA.COM (Dave Hammond) (09/09/88)
A few weeks ago I posted an article requesting information about
acquiring machines for software porting purposes. I've gotten
several requests for copies of the info received, so a summary follows.
The user and organization names have been stripped to protect the innocent.
Where relevant, <VENDOR> replaces a vendor's company name, and <PRODUCT>
represents their software package.
- From a popular software vendor --------------------------------------------
I am the manager of technical support at <VENDOR>, and therefore am responsible
for all porting, product creation, support, in general, everything technical.
I have 9 or so boxes here, some on perma-loan, some in and out. We own ONE.
Suggestions:
1. Decide what machines you want to support. A good USG box
(System V), BSD box, and Xenix Box will do fine.
2. Decide where the product is going to be sold. If it's a
big market (i.e. THE GOVERNMENT) you'd be surprised at how
many Hardware companies will let you use their machines.
3. So, you can "borrow" a machine, either at the Hardware site
or at your place for porting purposes. Check with the
Sales Managers at these places, and let them know there's
big $$$ in it ;)
4. If you're really lucky, and can get a fairly large sale,
then you can justify a machine request based on being able
to support the product.
5. Once a port is done, and they are MUCH easier now that 3 or
4 years ago when everyone had their own version of Unix, the
only problem is being able to reproduce the product. For this
you can use just about any QIC-24 machine, and just swab or
unswab bytes. Cpio is also a good idea, it's portable when
the -c option is used...
i.e:
Honeywell XPS 100
AT&T 3B2/600 and some 400's
CT Mightyframes
NCR Towers (Sperry 50XX) SWABBED
Most Xenix Tape drives
IBM RT Tape, etc.
*** all the same ***
Floppies:
IBM-RT can read/write Xenix floppies in cpio fmt
all *86 machines are same floppy wise
Problem Machines:
Old 3B2 400's w/ formattable tape
HP9000 de-gaussed wierdo-tape
Microvaxen TK50 ARRGHH!!!!
6. Who to talk to:
* Companies without much software, and new machines.
Honeywell/Olivetti/IBM :( come to mind...
Remember, you're doing them a favor...
7. Borrowing machines:
After a bit of this you will end up knowing every unix
techhie in the neighbourhood, and borrowing is usually OK.
8. Trading machines:
It would be quite possible to get together with another small
(or whatever) non-competitive company and trade machine usage.
- From a consultant/software developer --------------------------------------
For me the routine is that a manufacturer decides that he wants the
software on his machine so badly (he realises that having <PRODUCT>
software ported will help him shift more boxes) that he is prepared
to part with lots of money to persuade us to do it. Since they are
paying us for the service, a loan machine is usualy forthcoming
(because otherwise we would add the cost to their bill). Of course,
on top of the porting charge, we then charge for each copy of the
software.
Even if things are the other way round for you and *YOU* need the port
in order to shift your obscure software (as opposed to them needing the
port in order to shift their obscure boxes) I would suspect that you could
note on your price list:
Other machines also available - Please see your salesman for details.
And get away with borrowing the customer's (or manufacturers) machine
to do the port!
- From a major hardware vendor ----------------------------------------------
I have some experience with this problem from the other side of the
table, i. e., as a hardware vendor trying to get third party software
ported to a <VENDOR> machine. Typically, we negotiate a contract in
which, among other things, we agree to supply a porting machine free of
charge to the software vendor. The term of the loan may be limited (if
we intend to support the software ourselves) or indefinite (if the
software vendor will be providing support and/or updates).
- From a communications product vendor --------------------------------------
[...] wait until someone with a particular machine is interested. In dealing
with a world that was running 4.2bsd and my bosses did not like it and we
were running 4.1bsd (not my current job), to get software packages, the
company we were buying them from had to deem it worth it to go through
the porting project. Once they said it was ok, they adjusted the charges
for consulting time in porting it, then reduced the charges so they can
use our machine (under our restrictions, or course) to compile it. The
net result was that we got the software and they got a copy compiled
on (in this case) a Vax running 4.1bsd so they can resell it to another
chum... :-) err... company running this version.
The alternative is license source! It makes price gouging(sp) more
tolerable by saying "but you have the source!" :-)
- From another popular software vendor --------------------------------------
[.....................] <VENDOR> has benefitted by an association with a
university, providing them with several platforms to compile <PRODUCT> on
without having to buy them. <PRODUCT> ports to the Pyramid, for example, are
done by sending a tape to Pyramid, and dialing in to one of their machines.
When I worked for <VENDOR>, I ported a package to the Apollo by walking down
to the other end of the block to the local Apollo office and using one
of their machines. Some vendors are cooperative like this. I think Sun
now has a concept of porting centers, just for this purpose. If you've got
other businesses that you're on good terms with, offer them your software
in return for the use of their machines. Prime actually *gave* <VENDOR>
a 9950 so they could port <PRODUCT> to it. Universities are also a good shot
for a deal -- part of the arrangement between CMU and <VENDOR> was that
CMU got a site license for <PRODUCT>, and <VENDOR> got the use of pretty much
anything they wanted to use there -- that's how <PRODUCT> runs on the Gould,
for example.
----
My sincere thanks to all who took the time to respond.
Dave Hammond
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