brwk@doc.ic.ac.uk (Bevis King) (09/27/88)
in comp.unix.microport, Jeff Mann (mann@intacc.UUCP) >Is that too much to ask, without having to get some kind of klunky dosmerge >(if there even is one that works)?? Are there any decent applications I can >run? I have spent the last year writing code on it, but I can't do everything! > This is typical of the lack of information about third party UNIX software that has for so long given UNIX a bad press. There are dozens of word processing packages available for UNIX, and to my certain knowledge a number have been ported to Microport/286 (Sorry, SV/AT). For example, I believe Quadratron have ported their Q-Office integrated package to Microport/286 (or so they told me), retailing at the exhorbitant price of 1500 pounds sterling. Their Q-One word processor, on it's own, was arround 600 pounds sterling. This package is a competant word processor which runs under UNIX, and while a normal VDU can't do all the things a package like MS-Word can, it does use line drawing graphics, reverse video, etc where they are available. A good equivalent for Multi-mate or later WordStars. However, if my experience with Q-One is anything to go by, you will need to spend a bit of time getting the termcaps and printcaps to work, especially the printcaps and laser printers. Other packages include such things as Uniplex II+ and Lex from Ace Microsystems (in the UK). Also I believe the Samna Wordprocessor, normally available under DOS, is also ported to UNIX... I don't know about Microport/286. Relational databases and 4GLs are also available. I have used Unify Corp's ports of Unify RDBMS 4.0 and Accell 4GL 1.4 under Microport/286 and both knock spots of any of the DOS based packages I have seen, both in on-screen presentation and operational features and speed. There is a lot of good third party software about.... FLAME ON!!! ... and anyone who says their isn't is a Lying, ill-informed toad... FLAME OFF!! >"there is NO support for ANY kind of networking with V/AT!" What kind of UNIX >can't do networking? The only thing I can think of is to use the KA9Q tcp/ip >package over the serial port, that's really gonna please my MS-Word users! > This is complete bullshit. Microport International's latest catalogue offers two TCP/IP kits for Microport; a Micom based package comprising the Micom NP600A card and software. Also listed is an Excelan based package using the EXOS205T card and software. I also know of a company in Cambridge, England who are porting a third-party TCP/IP package to work on Microport/286 with the 3COM 3C505 card. The price of both the Microport offerings is around the $1400 (US Dollars) mark. Appletalk. Having got Ethernet up and running and talking to any other UNIX machines you have, you can then proceed to talk about Appletalk (no pun intended... well, not much!). Your first problem will be the physical bridge between the EtherNet and AppleTalk... There is a box that will solve this problem. It's called the Kinetics FastPath, and it allows a bi-directional gateway between EtherNet and AppleTalk. The cost here in the UK is approx 1500 pounds sterling... not cheap. I believe there are public domain telnet and ftp packages available for the Macintosh which make use of the FastPath bridge to let you log into UNIX from a Mac. None of these should need any software, other than Ethernet TCP/IP, on the UNIX host. (Even if these Telnet & FTP aren't public domain; we have them, they work, and the must be fairly cheap or we wouldn't have them!.) Above and Beyond FTP and Telnet is a package called AUFS (= Apple Unix File Server) which I believe is public domain and comes from the University of Columbia in the States. This allows you to use any UNIX machine (equiped with TCP/IP and EtherNet, running an apropriate daemon [which you would have to port]) to transparently file serve to Apple Macs. Of course, as well as the Apple Macs, there is always PC/NFS and its ilk which allow you to file serve to DOS machines over EtherNet. In my view, UNIX is the best operating system there is for Networking, and at least in this respect Microport/286 is no poor relation. The only down side is that from a PC users viewpoint, there hardware isn't cheap... from a UNIX viewpoint, the costs of Hardware for Microport/286 costs peanuts. (Check your NCR/Unisys/DEC/What ever price book for the price of an EtherNet card!!) >I want a tape backup. I'm *real* sick of swapping 50+ floppies around, but >I sure as hell can't afford $2000.00 (Canadian) for the ONLY drive supported. >That's more than my whole system is worth! And what about SCSI?????? Yeah, well. All those high capacity floppies aren't cheap; in the UK: 50 x 1.2MB floppies (@ 3 pounds each) = 150 pounds 1 x 60MB Cartridge (@ 20 pounds) = 20 pounds you don't have to have that many sets of backup disks being used in rotation before the 600 pounds for an Archive (for example) tape drive, doesn't seem so much anymore... >| Jeff Mann - Inter/Access, Toronto ...uunet!mnetor!intacc!mann | >| "A picture is worth 256 thousand words" {utzoo, utgpu}!chp!intacc!mann | Regards, Bevis Bevis King, Systems Programmer | Email: brwk@doc.ic.ac.uk Dept of Computing, Imperial College | UUCP : ..!mcvax!ukc!icdoc!brwk 180 Queens Gate, London, SW7 2BZ, UK. | Voice: +44 1 589 5111 x 5085 "Never argue with a computer" ... Avon (Blake's 7)
mann@intacc.uucp (Jeff Mann) (09/30/88)
in comp.unix.microport, I write about running MS-WORD on SV/AT: >>Is that too much to ask, without having to get some kind of klunky dosmerge >>(if there even is one that works)?? Are there any decent applications I can >>run? I have spent the last year writing code on it, but I can't do everything! In article <446@gould.doc.ic.ac.uk> brwk@doc.ic.ac.uk (Bevis King) writes: >This is typical of the lack of information about third party UNIX software >For example, I believe Quadratron have ported their Q-Office integrated >package to Microport/286 (or so they told me), retailing at the exhorbitant >price of 1500 pounds sterling. Their Q-One word processor, on it's own, >was arround 600 pounds sterling. This package is a competant word processor Oh good. >Relational databases and 4GLs are also available. I have used Unify Corp's >ports of Unify RDBMS 4.0 and Accell 4GL 1.4 under Microport/286 and both >knock spots of any of the DOS based packages I have seen, both in on-screen >presentation and operational features and speed. Better... >There is a lot of good third party software about.... > FLAME ON!!! > ... and anyone who says their isn't is a Lying, ill-informed > toad... > FLAME OFF!! >>"there is NO support for ANY kind of networking with V/AT!" What kind of UNIX >>can't do networking? The only thing I can think of is to use the KA9Q tcp/ip >>package over the serial port, that's really gonna please my MS-Word users! > >This is complete bullshit. > >Microport International's latest catalogue offers two TCP/IP kits for >Microport; a Micom based package comprising the Micom NP600A card and >software. Also listed is an Excelan based package using the EXOS205T card >and software. Ok, now we're getting somewhere! I don't know about the Lying toad bit, but ill-informed may be quite applicable to me. Really, I was only able to find two distributors in Toronto that claimed to know anything about uPort; one didn't answer the phone, and the other told me (and I quote) "there is NO SUPPORT for networking... on the 286"! The Ethernet support must be fairly recent, but it's definitely a Good Thing. I would prefer to use, say, a Tops FlashCard with TOPS/uPort, but it doesn't exist. I had heard that Tops was working on porting to UNIXes other than Sun, but when I called them they said they weren't. Anyone know differently? >It's called the Kinetics FastPath, and it allows a bi-directional gateway >between EtherNet and AppleTalk. The cost here in the UK is approx 1500 >pounds sterling... not cheap. I believe there are public domain telnet Kinetics also offers EtherSC which gives you a direct thin Ethernet connection through the Mac's SCSI port; about half the cost of the FastPath. >Of course, as well as the Apple Macs, there is always PC/NFS and its >ilk which allow you to file serve to DOS machines over EtherNet. Ill-informed again - is this available for uPort? >In my view, UNIX is the best operating system there is for Networking, I thought so too, but I was beginning to wonder about *this* UNIX... >Bevis King, Systems Programmer | Email: brwk@doc.ic.ac.uk >Dept of Computing, Imperial College | UUCP : ..!mcvax!ukc!icdoc!brwk >180 Queens Gate, London, SW7 2BZ, UK. | Voice: +44 1 589 5111 x 5085 Thanks for your informative posting. I would certainly appreciate any more (e-mailed) info, especially in regards to an inexpensive system that would allow "transparent" file sharing between the SV/AT and our DOS and Macs, a la TOPS. We run a BBS from the UNIX box which contains an on-line version of a magazine that is also published using Mac DTP stuff, so it's important that we be able to work on the files using both systems simultaneously. Presently we have to keep sending stuff back and forth with X-modem. -- | Jeff Mann - Inter/Access Videotex, Toronto ...uunet!mnetor!intacc!mann | | "A picture is worth 256 thousand words" {utzoo, utgpu}!chp!intacc!mann |