Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!gatech!ukma!morgan From: morgan@ms.uky.edu (Wes Morgan) Newsgroups: comp.sys.att Subject: A few comments on supposedly 'ancient' AT&Tware Message-ID: <16403@s.ms.uky.edu> Date: 19 Nov 90 14:22:14 GMT References: <11246@milton.u.washington.edu> Reply-To: morgan@ms.uky.edu (Wes Morgan) Organization: The Puzzle Palace, UKentucky Lines: 42 In article ehopper@ehpcb.WLK.COM (Ed Hopper) writes: > >3B2/300/310/400 - WE 32x00. Introductory small AT&T Mini. Rarely sold anymore > but still orderable (I think). > As far as I know, one cannot order these *systems* from AT&T. Parts, however, are available via AT&T's Parts Center, 1-800-222-PART. This number will also get you a copy of their parts catalog and addition to the mailing list for updates. We run several 3b2/310s as 'niche' machines. One is our electronic mail hub, another is my desktop "development machine", and we're currently attempting to hook several of them into our STARLAN as remote printer servers. Since they run stock SVR3, they're compatible with almost any System V box. >3B2/600 - Discontinued. 18Mhz Again, a great niche machine. Makes a fine DOS server for STARLAN. >3B20 - Few commercial sites. Primarily AT&T and RBOC internal use. Older > technology. Was being built and used by AT&T prior to divstiture. Ah, yes, the 3B20! This machine was available in two configurations: Simplex and Duplex . It started its life as the core of the AT&T ESS switch family, usually as a 3B20D. Some bright soul realized the potential, threw tty support and the full UNIX (it was already running a subset, I think) on board, and presto! A multi-user UNIX system. We've been running a 3B20S for about 8 years now, and the monster, while slow (.95 mips), is remarkably bulletproof. Its UPS consists of 4 large AC Delco vehicle batteries. We recently had a major power problem when the main campus step-down transformer blew. Almost every computer system on campus was unavail- able for about a day and a half. All, that is, except for the "ancient", "archaic", and "obsolete" 3B20S; it barely blinked as it switched to batteries. I like a hardy machine! -- | Wes Morgan, not speaking for | {any major site}!ukma!ukecc!morgan | | the University of Kentucky's | morgan@engr.uky.edu | | Engineering Computing Center | morgan%engr.uky.edu@UKCC.BITNET | Lint is the compiler's only means of dampening the programmer's ego.