vsnyder@jato.jpl.nasa.gov (Van Snyder) (03/21/91)
In article <1991Mar12.223746.6287@zip.eecs.umich.edu> heavy@zip.eecs.umich.edu (Richard Scott Hall) writes: >I was just wondering how hard is it to get the source code >for Mach and how hard it would be to port to the TT? I know >that AT&T Unix is being ported, but from what I understand >Mach is a good way to go. Does any one have any info on this ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ >or any comments to share. No flames please. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Just don't be surprised if you get offensive hate-mail from the network.thought.police > >Richard Hall >University of Michigan (I happen to agree about Mach). -- vsnyder@jato.Jpl.Nasa.Gov ames!elroy!jato!vsnyder vsnyder@jato.uucp
dsmythe@netcom.COM (Dave Smythe) (03/24/91)
You can get the Mach 3.0 microkernel via anonymous ftp. It has no UNIX functionality (it has very low-level basic OS functionality, like VM support and such). The UNIX functionality comes from the BSD emulator (server) that comes separately and requires a BSD license. The GNU multiserver will provide a "free" (in the FSF sense) UNIX environment for Mach (but not real soon, from what I understand). D -- ============================================================== Dave Smythe dsmythe@netcom.com N6XLP (also dsmythe@leland.stanford.edu)
mc4c+@andrew.cmu.edu (Mark Choi) (03/28/91)
I would like to cast my vote for someone(s) doing this port. Mach is a NeXT :^) generation operating system, and as such, I would like to see Atari join Steve jobs and CMU on the cutting edge. If we could only get NeXTStep....
hyc@hanauma.jpl.nasa.gov (Howard Chu) (03/28/91)
In article <4bwC1C200Uh742L317@andrew.cmu.edu> mc4c+@andrew.cmu.edu (Mark Choi) writes: > I would like to cast my vote for someone(s) doing this port. Mach is >a NeXT :^) generation operating system, and as such, I would like to see >Atari join Steve jobs and CMU on the cutting edge. If we could only get >NeXTStep.... Bleah. As you may recall, the original NeXT cube used a 25MHz 68030 and MACH. As you may also recall, the original NeXT cube ran at blazing slug-like speeds. Even with 32MHz 68030 in the TT, and assuming 80-90% cache hits, I don't think MACH would be tolerable on the TT. BSD 4.4 would probably be a better choice, it at least is building on a proven base. Steve Jobs is hardly on the cutting edge... As for CMU on the cutting edge - how can you possibly say that with a straight face, with your account on Andrew? Ok, all ribbing aside... Why MACH? OSF has abandoned it. For Unix today, there's only a few main things to consider, and MACH isn't one of them; it doesn't have any major industry support with OSF withdrawing. OSF, whatever that will look like, if it gets done any time soon, SysVR4, which is available now, and 4.4 BSD, which is in the wings. Sun and AT&T are (naturally) really big on SysVR4, current SunOS stuff is trying harder and harder to be SysV instead of BSD based. (And it's annoying as all hell, let me tell you. }-) BSD 4.3, surprise surprise, passes the Sys V validation suite, so it looks like most of the differences (BSD 4.3 vs SysVR4) are mostly academic. BSD 4.4 offers, among other things, native support of the ISO networking protocol stack, which would seem to position it Very Well as the system of the future, as well as the best system for Right Now. Who knows... (Was I trying to sound authoritative there? Ha, fooled you. I just don't believe opinions should be humble... }-) What are the issues? Performance and compatibility. What does "compatibility" mean? Binary compatibility? (Who is there to be compatible with - the Amiga? NeXT? Not the Sun, SunOS isn't enough like any of the standard systems anyway.) Source compatibility? If the various supporters' claims are true, all the contenders are source-code compatible with each other, or more specifically, with BSD 4.3. On another subject... It always makes me laugh when I read about these "real workstations" and their "graphics hardware," with umpteen zillion features and "double-buffered graphics!!!!" Wow! Big deal! A 4 meg ST will let you have *128* buffers, sliced up any way you want! The ol' 8bit let you slice up a screen display on a per-scanline basis. Talk about manipulation power! Geeze, these "Real Computer" makers could learn a thing or two from some "dumb game machines" ... Ah for a hardware smoothscroll on the machines I use at work... -- -- Howard Chu @ Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA Disclaimer: How would I know, I just got here!
pietrzak@skybridge.SCL.CWRU.Edu (John Pietrzak) (03/30/91)
In article <1991Mar28.083305.11888@jato.jpl.nasa.gov> hyc@hanauma.jpl.nasa.gov (Howard Chu) writes: >Bleah. As you may recall, the original NeXT cube used a 25MHz 68030 and >MACH. As you may also recall, the original NeXT cube ran at blazing slug-like >speeds. 'Course, you must remember that most of the time when people were showing off the NeXT, Mach was pushing this little program called display postscript to put absolutely anything at all on the screen. I think this probably put a damper on its top speed... John Pietrzak