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From: utility@quiche.cs.mcgill.ca (Ronald BODKIN)
Newsgroups: comp.os.misc
Subject: QNX information
Summary: in reply to numerous requests
Message-ID: <2642@quiche.cs.mcgill.ca>
Date: 27 Mar 90 05:53:19 GMT
Reply-To: utility@quiche.cs.mcgill.ca (Ronald BODKIN)
Organization: SOCS, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Lines: 28
References:

I have received about 10 requests for information on QNX, or pointers
to such.  Here is my reply (I didn't see that mailing it to a scad of
users would be any better).

	To start with, QNX runs on 80*86 boxes (as mentioned elsewhere),
I'm not sure whether they plan to expand to others or not.  QNX features
a modular kernal, and a highly distributed "virtual machine" approach
(not quite so much as the Amoeba), with intertask communication primarily
accomplished by "messaging".  QNX is technically excellent (fast and small)
and Quantum software (the creator of QNX) gives great technical support.
The OS is moving to a POSIX compatible version this year.
	As for more theoretical publication on QNX, I asked and apparently
there is none yet (this summer the company plans to publish information
on a number of topics relating to QNX).  On a slightly less academic level,
QNX has an article in Dr. Dobbs' June 1988 magazine which ought to give some
idea (there have been a few other magazine articles; I don't have the exact
data for these) and a book which is a fairly gentle introduction to QNX,
more oriented towards DOS people and those desirous of programming, but with
a decent conceptual coverage (I can get the address of the publisher if
people are interested).  Apparently QNX is somewhat like an improvement of
the Thoth OS (I have never used Thoth so I can't vouch for this fact).
Finally, another possible source for QNX information is Quantum itself:
	Quantum Software Systems Ltd.
	175 Terrence Matthews Crescent
	Kanata, Ont., Canada, K2M 1W8

	I hope this helps those interested.
		Ron