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From: jg@mit-eddie.UUCP (Jim Gettys)
Newsgroups: net.works
Subject: Re: info on CMU 3M Machine (really X window system)
Message-ID: <99@mit-eddie.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 15-Oct-85 22:54:57 EDT
Article-I.D.: mit-eddi.99
Posted: Tue Oct 15 22:54:57 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 18-Oct-85 20:07:23 EDT
References: <3749@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU> <73@unc.unc.UUCP> <208@ius2.cs.cmu.edu.ARPA>
Reply-To: jg@mit-eddie.UUCP (Jim Gettys)
Organization: MIT, Cambridge, MA
Lines: 35
Keywords: X, Window Systems

In article <208@ius2.cs.cmu.edu.ARPA> ralphw@ius2.cs.cmu.edu.ARPA (Ralph Hyre) writes:
>MIT's project Athena is using mostly DEC hardware, (MicroVaxes, 750's with
>VS-1000 graphics terminals).  They're supporting the CMU window manager
>calls as well as their own.  (This will be a big win, especially if the
>compatibility is extended to other components of the systems.  Unfortunately
>MIT's idea is to provide remote services through a remote procedure call (rpc)
>interface, while CMU is using sockets.  Both systems use Berkeley 4.2 Unix.)
>

	To correct some missimpressions left by Ralph's Article:
1) Our window system (X) uses a protocol ON TOP of a stream, similar in
principle to Andrew, the ITC CMU window system.  It currently runs over
TCP, though we ran it over a DECNET stream one day for interest's sake.
We support a fully heirarchical (sub)window system, and allow
overlapping windows.  X is considerably more powerful than Andrew,
but we have not the applications code that Andrew does.
2) X currently runs on VS100 displays, the VS 2 (uVaxII with QVSS) workstation
and a color display.  Other ports are in progress.
The client programs (since X is a formal network server) have been
ported to a Sun and will talk to a Vax display, but the X server has
not been ported to the Sun (where most of the work lies; we do not have the
manpower to put into it here). (Any suckers, ah, I meant volunteers out there?)
3) The Andrew emulation package is not finished, and I for one will not
count my emulators before programs run under them.  No promises as to
if/when it will be done.  We hope "soon"....
4) the Vs100 implementation of X is available from MIT at nominal ($100)
charge, no license (additional to a Berkeley licence) is required, and X
will be on the 4.3 tape.  An incomplete VS2 implementation is also on the
MIT distribution (soon to be finished as soon as the "last bug" is found).
For information on how to get a distribution, send mail to 
"xrequest@athena.mit.edu" (xrequest@mit-athena.arpa).
				Jim Gettys
				MIT/Project Athena
				Digital Equipment Corporation
				jg@athena.mit.edu (jg@mit-athena.arpa).