Xref: utzoo comp.sys.att:11616 unix-pc.general:7437
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!usc!apple!portal!cup.portal.com!thad
From: thad@cup.portal.com (Thad P Floryan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.att,unix-pc.general
Subject: Re: Possible Phoenix Story of 3B1
Message-ID: <38509@cup.portal.com>
Date: 27 Jan 91 02:56:47 GMT
References: <1991Jan20.160020.23406@uhura.neoucom.EDU>
  <8604@gollum.twg.com>
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 46

david@twg.com (David S. Herron) in <8604@gollum.twg.com> writes:

	Namely that Mark Ditto (the guy doing/developing "Amix") ...

Actually his name is Mike Ditto.  :-)

	Almost agreed.  A/UX v2.1 is still a hacked up SysVr2.x isn't it?
	Do you have any idea how ***OLD*** r2.x is?

As much am I'm cringing admitting this in public, I'm (among other things) an
"official" Apple Partner Developer (to the tune of $600+/year).  As such, I
have several A/UX boxes and, as many have read in comp.unix.aux and other
places, I've been blasting A/UX at every opportunity and for GOOD reason.  It
was (and still is) my contention that A/UX is simply a marketing ploy by Apple
to insinuate Macs into the government sector to satisfy certain purchasing
requirements (e.g. multi-tasking).  Supporting my contention, please note that
several members of the A/UX Development Team have recently responded to me in
public (comp.unix.aux) and in email with:

	"If you didn't want the MacOS, why'd you get A/UX?"

Sheesh, I only wanted to run UNIX on some of the hardware I had at my office.

The A/UX is based on SVR2 (circa 1983) and BSD4.2 (circa 1983), and it shows
in MANY ways (esp. if you remember my postings late last year regarding the
manifold deficiences of A/UX compared to even the 3B1's system, esp. in areas
like terminal support, curses, compatibilty with SysV, etc.).  Some tests I've
run at my office show a well-configured 3B1 outperforming my A/UX boxes (but,
the 3B1s I have also outperform my VAX 11/780 systems in some aspects, too)).

The option to use the BSD FFS (Fast File System) is nice with A/UX, but far too
many areas of A/UX 2.* are still ancient and simply not worth the cost of the
system from Apple given there are so many better, more-modern and less costly
systems available from other vendors.

Apple's features of A/UX 2.01 are support for the IIci (BFD; if they designed
their hardware and software correctly there'd be NO compatibilty problems), and
the inclusion of ksh 1988e (whoopee, I can do the same for the 3B1 if I choose
to pay $3,000 for source and $10,000 for binary distribution rights to AT&T's
ToolChest).

For a multi-billion dollar per year company like Apple attempting to pull the
wool over everyone's eyes in 1991 with a "new, improved" product that's really
over 8 years old is the epitome of audacity and arrogance.

Thad Floryan [ thad@cup.portal.com ]