Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!think.com!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!shelby!portia.stanford.edu!rstanton
From: rstanton@portia.Stanford.EDU (Richard Stanton)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware
Subject: PC compatible vs workstation decision - suggestions please
Message-ID: <1991Feb15.075407.28109@portia.Stanford.EDU>
Date: 15 Feb 91 07:54:07 GMT
Sender: rstanton@portia.Stanford.EDU (Richard Stanton)
Organization: Stanford GSB
Lines: 40

I plan to purchase a new computer in the next few months. I want do decide
among the various platforms available, and would appreciate any suggestions
from people who have recently been through the same type of decision.

My criteria, not necessarily in order of priority, with questions I have are:

1) Number crunching power - I run some very numerically intensive estimation
programs that take, for example, up to 3 days of CPU time on a largish VAX
here at Stanford. I want to be able to run these as fast as possible. How do
high end PCs compare with e.g. Next and Sun machines in terms of FLOPS?

2) Memory availability. I program in C, and one problem on my AT compatible
here is that I don't have enough memory to read in all my data for the
estimation. Having more memory wouldn't help, as I'd always exceed the 640k
maximum addressable by DOS without some tricks. Would any DOS machine (with
a different compiler) be better, or do I definitely need another operating
system

3) PC compatibility: I have several PC applications, e.g. Quattro Pro,
PC Tools, that I'd like to have on the larger computer, too. I know
there are PC emulator programs (boards too?) for many workstations. How
well do these work? 

Those are the main criteria. I rather like the new Next machines, but am
rather nervous about the limited amount of software available. Sun
workstations seem to be more "standard", with correspondingly more
software around, but they're expensive. 

Would a 3/486 machine with DOS running under UNIX be a feasible solution,
and how would this compare in terms of price/performance with, say, a 
Nextstation? I'd be thinking of around 8 Mb of RAM, 300MB disk.

I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions. If anyone else is interested, let me 
know. I'll either send you a copy of any responses I get, or post a summary,
depending on the level of interest.

Thanks

Richard Stanton
pstanton@gsb-lira.stanford.edu