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From: sjl@amdahl.UUCP (Steve Langdon)
Newsgroups: net.micro.68k
Subject: Re: 68vs86 (flame?)
Message-ID: <1700@amdahl.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 20-Jun-85 16:05:30 EDT
Article-I.D.: amdahl.1700
Posted: Thu Jun 20 16:05:30 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 23-Jun-85 03:13:35 EDT
References: <253@kontron.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: Amdahl Corp, Sunnyvale CA
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> 
>             68000 family .vs. 8086 family processors
> 		      One Hackers Opinion
...
> Simply put, comparing the two families is like comparing apples and
> oranges (or Mac's and PC's). The two microprocessor families were
> targeted at different markets. The 8086 family at the business market
> (bean counters) and the 68000 at the scientific market (electron
> pushers).
Followed by more text extending this analogy.

I strongly disagree.  Both were designed to get as much of the total
market as they could.  However, Intel thought that a measure of 8080
compatiblity and a quick design cycle was the correct approach, and
Motorola (with a smaller 8 bit base) choose to do a completely new
design (except for the funny stuff that let you use 6800 peripheral
chips).

Intel's real stroke of genius was to get the 8088 out soon after the
8086.  This allowed a machine with an 8 bit bus to achieve many of the
advantages that would otherwise have required a more expensive 16 bit
bus.  This of course led to the use of the 8088 in the IBM PC, and
the large user base that the 8086 family now enjoys.

Some of us still remember that the 432 was meant to be Intel's high end
micro product.  Fortunately for Intel, the 8086 family was strong enough
to pick up the pieces when the 432 sank like a lead balloon.

I also disagree with the idea that the 68000 was not designed for
operating systems like UNIX (tm).  The 68000 has a reasonably clean
minicomputer style architecture which is precisely the environment that
UNIX was born in.  The importance of good memory management hardware
has only recently become obvious to the microprocessor manufacturers.
Motorola's first attempt (68451) was inadequate and Intel have yet to
offer something suitable for demand paged virtual memory.  This has
left National with the good fortune of being the only supplier of a
chip set that will do most of the things needed for a computer system
that supports virtual memory.

I am happy to see the competition continue, as it will result in better
computers.
-- 
Stephen J. Langdon                  ...!{ihnp4,hplabs,sun,nsc}!amdahl!sjl

[ The article above is not an official statement from any organization
  in the known universe. ]