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From: shiv@mas1.UUCP (Shiv Haris)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.nsc.32k
Subject: Re: NS32000 Processor
Message-ID: <542@mas1.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 13-Jun-87 04:02:06 EDT
Article-I.D.: mas1.542
Posted: Sat Jun 13 04:02:06 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 20-Jun-87 19:53:32 EDT
References: <266@udcps1.UUCP> <642@umnd-cs.D.UMN.EDU> <6779@g.ms.uky.csnet> <645@umnd-cs.D.UMN.EDU>
Reply-To: shiv@mas1.UUCP (Shiv Haris)
Organization: Measurex Automation Systems, Cupertino, CA
Lines: 37
Keywords: NS32000 Processor


	I have done quite some assembly level programming on the
	32000 and found it very simple. The specific project
	I worked on was porting VRTX kernel to the 32000. We
	adopted it from the 68000 version of VRTX. It was
	much easier to handle registers in a symetrical architecture.

	Thanks to the extra bit in the PSR for independence of user/supervisior
	mode and user/system stack we could do with just one kernel
	stack. Code compactness is also important when speed is
	important. And of course 32000 wins. Speed and compactness
	in such an envirionment is priority one.

	The only problem that National Semi has is not being lucky enough to
	get the blessings of the Big Brother (IBM). Other than that
	National came to the scene of 32 bit chips long ago. It had
	no hangups of upward compatibilty and designed a decent chip.

	I hate to see perfection being lost to upward compatibilty.
	Whoever said MS-DOS was a good operating system. But gained
	popularity because of IBM. There were other OS's good
	for the 8086 but were not popular.

	- Shiv Haris

	(ex-National Semi engineer who ported a 68000 VRTX realtime
	 system to 32000 and now working with the 80386 and yet
	 to find a more decent microprocessor than 32000)

	Most of you deal with higher level
	languages and don't see the architecture at all. You have the
	right to your point of view.

	Perfection Timing and Popularity may not always be in
	Sync.

	All flames welR sdon