Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!crdgw1!uunet!auspex!guy
From: guy@auspex.auspex.com (Guy Harris)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.m88k
Subject: Re: Open Hardware
Message-ID: <7467@auspex.auspex.com>
Date: 27 Apr 91 20:37:26 GMT
References: <16@metran.UUCP>
Organization: Auspex Systems, Santa Clara
Lines: 15

>	SPARC		huge		open hardware and software;
>					formal standard - SPARC International

Really?  I know of no formal standard for "SPARCstation-like" hardware,
from SI or from anybody else.  In fact, whilst Sun's machines, as of
now, use Sun-style MMUs, many of the clones use SPARC Reference MMU
implementations, and those don't look all that much like Sun-style MMUs.
(In addition, not all SPARC Reference MMUs are identical; the Reference
MMU spec nails some stuff down, but not everything.)  In addition, not
all of the J. Random peripheral registers are necessarily the same,
although I suspect most clones use many of the same peripheral chips.

On top of that, of course, not all SPARC machines are workstations; one
can't get much less compatible with the SS1's frame buffer than not to
*have* a frame buffer....