Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!helps!bigtex!james
From: james@bigtex.cactus.org (James Van Artsdalen)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.sysv386
Subject: Re: SCO UNIX 3.2.2 and Micronics 486
Message-ID: <52256@bigtex.cactus.org>
Date: 5 Jan 91 02:23:41 GMT
References: <1990Dec30.002048.8203@world.std.com> <298@shograf.UUCP> <1662@svin02.info.win.tue.nl>
Reply-To: james@bigtex.cactus.org (James Van Artsdalen)
Organization: Institute of Applied Cosmology, Austin TX
Lines: 18

In <1662@svin02.info.win.tue.nl>, debra@info.win.tue.nl wrote:

> Since the boot program cannot use real timers or something like that
> to wait for asynchronous events it just loops a while, and on a 33Mhz
> 486 this loop may be over too soon for whatever it is the boot program
> wants to wait for.

First of all, the boot program can use the 8254 timer on an AT to get
an accurate time base for any delay.

Secondly, there are other ways to get a fairly constant time base,
independent of CPU speed.  Remember that only the CPU complex is
running that fast: all of the bus devices run on an 8MHz bus (this
suggests several general solutions).  To fail merely because the CPU
is fast is sloppy programming.
-- 
James R. Van Artsdalen          james@bigtex.cactus.org   "Live Free or Die"
Dell Computer Co    9505 Arboretum Blvd Austin TX 78759         512-338-8789