duggan@ecs.umass.edu (05/06/91)
Hello, I have a question. Being a relatively new user into the world of OS/2 by virtue of the fact that these are the systems I am performing some research on. I was wondering about the expected longevity of the OS/2 operating system and if it is possible to place it on a IBM-CLONE. Would a Compaq work well under OS/2? Or is this operating system mainly PS/2 based? I am considering purchasing a machine, but must first consider the operating system. Also, is there any other system that can take advantage of the 32-bit processors? Does IBM PS/2 fully take advantage of them? How compatible/expensive are the peripherals for the PS/2? I attempted to buy a mouse for a system owned by a friend and was told that only the high priced mouses were available. Any information that I can acquire regarding this matter will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, John F. Duggan internet: DUGGAN@ECS.UMASS.EDU bitnet: DUGGAN@UMAECS
d88-pfo@dront.nada.kth.se (Peter Forsberg) (05/08/91)
In article <13565.28258a0e@ecs.umass.edu> duggan@ecs.umass.edu writes:
Hello,
I have a question. Being a relatively new user into the world of OS/2 by
virtue of the fact that these are the systems I am performing some research
on. I was wondering about the expected longevity of the OS/2 operating
system and if it is possible to place it on a IBM-CLONE. Would a Compaq work
well under OS/2? Or is this operating system mainly PS/2 based?
I believe that Compaq sells their own version of OS/2 licensed from MS. IBM
OS/2 is also known to run on several clones, although it is (I think) only
officially supported for the IBM platforms (PS/2 and the old AT).
I am considering purchasing a machine, but must first consider the operating
system. Also, is there any other system that can take advantage of the
32-bit processors? Does IBM PS/2 fully take advantage of them?
I don't quite get what you're after here. The 386-based PS/2's exploit the
32 bit processor because the system bus (Microchannel) supports 32 bit
adapters. This is also true for the various (ugh) EISA-based system units.
As for 32-bit *operating systems* I know of OS/2 2.0 (of course!), various
**IX-implementations and maybe some others (DOS-extenders ?).
Thanks,
John F. Duggan
internet: DUGGAN@ECS.UMASS.EDU
bitnet: DUGGAN@UMAECS
--
Peter A. Forsberg
Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden.
IBM Sweden.
E-mail: d88-pfo@nada.kth.se
#include <standard.disclaimer>tholen@uhccux.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (David Tholen) (05/08/91)
duggan@ecs.umass.edu writes: > Would a Compaq work > well under OS/2? Or is this operating system mainly PS/2 based? I believe Compaq sells a version of OS/2 optimized for their hardware, presumably based on Microsoft's version 1.21. > Also, is there any other system that can take advantage of the > 32-bit processors? Does IBM PS/2 fully take advantage of them? 32-bit UNIX is available for 386 and 486 machines. Those PS/2s with 386 and 486 processors do have 32-bit data paths, so they do take advantage of the 32-bit processors. The question is a little vague, however. > How compatible/expensive are the peripherals for the PS/2? I attempted to > buy a mouse for a system owned by a friend and was told that only the high > priced mouses were available. What do you consider "high priced"? You can get a Microsoft Mouse for $85 mail order that plugs right into the PS/2 mouse port. The IBM mouse, with educational discount, runs about $60, as I recall.
ccmk@lure.latrobe.edu.au (05/08/91)
In article <13565.28258a0e@ecs.umass.edu>, duggan@ecs.umass.edu writes: > ...I was wondering about the expected longevity of the OS/2 operating > system I expect OS/2 2.x will last 2-3 years after release then OS/2 3.x will be the new kid on the block. Apparently version 3 will be compatible, so that shoudln't be too traumatic a change. I think you might be looking at the end of the century before it is totally transmogrified into something else. > and if it is possible to place it on a IBM-CLONE. Would a Compaq work > well under OS/2? Or is this operating system mainly PS/2 based? Compaq uses the OEM version, which means it is about 6 months or more behind IBM's latest version. Microsoft has only just started shipping OEM OS/2 1.3. In any event many clones run IBM's OS/2. This is possible because IBM have to support the zillion IBM ATs out there, which almost all 80286/80386 clones attempt to be compatible with. > I am considering purchasing a machine, but must first consider the operating > system. Also, is there any other system that can take advantage of the > 32-bit processors? Does IBM PS/2 fully take advantage of them? Unix is the other major 80386 player (the other group is probably the "multi-DOS" crowd). There are many Unix implementations. Two that specifically support the IBM PS/2 range are SCO OpenDesktop and IBM's own AIX. At education prices they are still expensive... > How compatible/expensive are the peripherals for the PS/2? I attempted to > buy a mouse for a system owned by a friend and was told that only the high > priced mouses were available. At education pricing (which I presume you can get) IBM's stuff isn't too bad, and competes well with the well-known brands. IBM still can't, nor perhaps should they, compete with the lower-end clones. Peripherals such as disk drives can get expensive, but many 3rd party peripherals are just as good or better than IBM's. The Microsoft Mouse is a good example. Mark Kosten