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From: mlord@bwdls58.bnr.ca (Mark Lord)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.intel,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware
Subject: Re: 386sx chip
Message-ID: <3841@bwdls58.UUCP>
Date: 26 Jul 90 20:55:58 GMT
References: <6533.26ae1cf6@uwovax.uwo.ca<
Sender: mlord@bwdls58.UUCP
Reply-To: mlord@bwdls58.bnr.ca (Mark Lord)
Organization: Bell-Northern Research, Ottawa, Canada
Lines: 31

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) |
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