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From: gnu@l5.uucp (John Gilmore)
Newsgroups: net.micro.atari
Subject: Re: questions : os9,unix,rumors
Message-ID: <213@l5.uucp>
Date: Wed, 23-Oct-85 07:06:34 EDT
Article-I.D.: l5.213
Posted: Wed Oct 23 07:06:34 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 25-Oct-85 01:51:09 EDT
References: <396@ssc-bee.UUCP>
Organization: Nebula Consultants in San Francisco
Lines: 28

In article <396@ssc-bee.UUCP>, ditzel@ssc-bee.UUCP (Charles L Ditzel) writes:
> Does anyone know for a *fact* (as opposed to rumor) if anyone is working
> on porting os9 or some unixlike environment to the ST?

I know for a fact that Atari has a project to port Unix to the ST.
It's not very far along yet but it is real Unix.  Jack Tramiel is
negotiating with AT&T to hack back the arcane licensing requirements
so he can afford to sell it cheap and still make a profit.

> There has been a *rumor* drifting about (especially among sales people)
> that Atari is working on module for the ST that will snap into that side
> expansion slot.  The rumor continues that the module contains : 1) a full
> 32 bit National Semiconductor chip (NS320xx ?) that becomes the main
> processor (?) and 2) the 68000 thereafter is used for i/o only????  Anyone
> know if this is 1)possible and 2)if anything remotely close to this is 
> being worked on?

This is definitely possible but it would be stupid, I think.  If
they're going to a 32-bit CPU they should go 68020 since it would be
software compatible.  Also if they go to a 32-bit version, they should
let it handle the user interface because (if it's a 68020) it's 2-3
times as fast as the 68000.  (Today's buggy National chips are roughly
68000 speed +/- 30%, and their future ones don't touch the 68020.)  If
you let the big chip numbercrunch and leave the 68000 moving bits on
the screen, the user interface runs at the same old speed, and face it
guys, what percentage of the time do you crunch numbers versus moving
screen bits anyway?  If the 32-bit CPU did both, then both would run
quickly...