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From: wcs@ho95e.ATT.COM (Bill.Stewart)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions,comp.unix.xenix
Subject: Re: Cubix UNIX box???
Message-ID: <1844@ho95e.ATT.COM>
Date: Fri, 6-Nov-87 00:53:23 EST
Article-I.D.: ho95e.1844
Posted: Fri Nov  6 00:53:23 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 11-Nov-87 02:58:22 EST
References: <1009@uhccux.UUCP> <178@nusdhub.UUCP> <8700197@eta.ETA.COM>
Reply-To: wcs@ho95e.UUCP (46133-Bill.Stewart,2G218,x0705,)
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs 46133, Holmdel, NJ
Lines: 43
Summary: AT&T 32XXX series will be aroud a while.
Xref: mnetor comp.unix.questions:4850 comp.unix.xenix:1120

In article <8700197@eta.ETA.COM> lm@eta.UUCP (Larry McVoy) writes:
:I'd be careful about sinking money into the 3b sink hole.  I've heard rumors
:that AT&T is thinking about moving to the Sun SPARC cpu and I don't know
:where that leaves 3b users.  There are additional rumors that they are looking
:at a merge of SunOS & 5.3.  When this all is to happen, if ever, I don't know.
	DISCLAIMER: The following is not an official statement from AT&T;
	it's just my opinion on things.
First of all, the AT&T deal with Sun about the SPARC chip was announced
on Black Monday; while it didn't cause the market crash it got lost in
the shuffle, but the Wall Street Journal can tell you about it.
AT&T has licensed the SPARC technology; that doesn't say who will
actually build the chips; it may be us, Sun, or a silicon foundry.

AT&T is still seriouslly in the computer business; if we planned to
abandon the 32*** processor line we wouldn't have just announced
two major computers based on it.  The 3B4000 is a large multi-processor
system based on the 32200 and 32100; the 3B2/500 is a 32100-based
2.1MIPS machine (it's a scaled-down 3B2/600, cheaper but fewer slots.)

Just because we use SPARC doesn't mean we're abandoning the 32100;
we'll continue to use it, and the new 32200 set we've recently announced,
and the host of Motorola and Intel chips we also use.  The 3B line will
continue to be supported, and supported about as well as we do now.

(Note that even though AT&T couldn't figure out how to market the 7300 box
successfully, they'll still be supporting it for about 5 more years.
You'll get better support for 3Bs, since we make them ourselves instead of OEM.)

In the software area, there are several main activities.  Merging
System V with Sun 4.3BSD will take a couple years.  Some of the things
you'll see early on are a standard System V for SPARC, including a
standard binary format.  You'll see a lot of standardized applications
environments, with X-Windows and OSI Networking, and a lot better
integration than you've been getting from the System V world so far.

It may be that CISC machines like the 32***, 68***, and 80*86 are on
their way out, but they've got a lot of life left before they go.
In 5 years, maybe I'll be able to get a desk-top Cray for $10K.
If you guys at ETA build it, then fine.  But CISC isn't dead yet, and
AT&T's still in that game as well as the RISC game.
-- 
#				Thanks;
# Bill Stewart, AT&T Bell Labs 2G218, Holmdel NJ 1-201-949-0705 ihnp4!ho95c!wcs