baer@uwovax.uwo.ca (07/26/90)
I was recently told by a systems hardware salesperson (trying to push 386 DX systems over 386 SX systems) that there are software compatibility issues for 32-bit software and SX-based systems. He implied that OS/2 2.0 will probably not run on an SX, and 32-bit applications most certainly will not, because of the memory addressing limitations of the SX (he said that software developers *could* rewrite 32-bit applications to make them run on the SX, but software designed for DX-based systems could crash on SX systems. Could anyone provide information on this issue? I understood the 386sx chip to be completely compatible (except for slower memory addressing due to the 16-bit path), but is there a limitation around the amount of memory the SX is capable of addressing, or how it addresses this memory? --------------------------------------------------------------------- Douglas Baer, Dept. of Sociology, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada N6A 5C2 Internet: BAER@UWO.CA Bitnet: BAER@UWOVAX
mlord@bwdls58.bnr.ca (Mark Lord) (07/27/90)
In article <6533.26ae1cf6@uwovax.uwo.ca< baer@uwovax.uwo.ca writes: <I was recently told by a systems hardware salesperson (trying to <push 386 DX systems over 386 SX systems) that there are software <compatibility issues for 32-bit software and SX-based systems. <He implied that OS/2 2.0 will probably not run on an SX, and 32-bit <applications most certainly will not, because of the memory addressing <limitations of the SX (he said that software developers *could* rewrite <32-bit applications to make them run on the SX, but software designed <for DX-based systems could crash on SX systems. Could anyone provide A big crock of potent hooved mammal excretions. It is almost impossible for software to even tell the difference between the two processors. I have yet to hear of a program which does, although I do have an idea of how to go about it (I'm not telling, though). It ain't easy for software to distinguish at all, since, except for speed, they are 100% identical. And speed varies depending on other system characteristics, so that is not a reliable indicator at all (my 386sx is faster than a lot of 16-mhz 386dx machines). In hardware, sure, so we can't connect as many megabytes of memory to the 386sx as to a 386dx.. big deal. By the time I can afford that much memory, It'll be time to upgrade to the cheap 486's anyway (since the 586 will likely exist by then, pushing down prices). -- ___Mark S. Lord__________________________________________ | ..uunet!bnrgate!bmerh614!mlord | Climb Free Or Die (NH) | | ..uunet!bnrgate!mlord%bmerh614 | Personal views only. | |________________________________|________________________|
UD157912@NDSUVM1.BITNET (Felix Wong) (08/01/90)
In PC Magazine, July 1990, coloumn Tutor, there is a page about how to detect different CPU (80x86). But it didn't say anything about how to tell the different between 80386DX and 80386SX. Since 80386DX can address more RAM than 80386SX, my guess is to check the address bus (24 bit or 32 bit). Am I guessing it right?