Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!seismo!sundc!pitstop!sun!decwrl!labrea!aurora!ames!elroy!mahendo!jplgodo!wlbr!scgvaxd!stb!michael
From: michael@stb.UUCP (Michael)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: More comments on a multiple-port serial.device
Message-ID: <10051@stb.UUCP>
Date: 21 Jan 88 08:22:10 GMT
References: <22505@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Reply-To: michael@stb.UUCP (Michael)
Organization: STB BBS, La, Ca, USA, 90402
Lines: 25

In response to my mail, Bryce writes
>[Fine, but the serial.device is a low-level transport interface.  It
>shoves 'dem bits out the port you want.  If several programs want to
>gang up and multiplex the port, fine.  It is not up to the serial.device
>layer.
>If you were to add multiplexing to this layer, you'd need to pick a
>protocal.  Every multiplexer I have ever seen uses something different.
>-bryce]
>

The point is this: I want to consider existing uses of "Serial.device" not
as a low-level transport, but a medium level transport. A "raw-serial.device"
or something similar, would do multiplexing at the amiga end, and another
copy of it would do the demuxing on the other end.

The point is: When a program opens "Serial.device", they are essentially
getting a one dimensional array of unknown, indefinite length that they
can stick stuff into provided they never stuff out of order or backtrack.
Whether that is a 1-1 correspondence with what goes out the port or not
doesn't matter, as long as its whats read in on the other end.
				Michael
-- 
: Michael Gersten		ihnp4!hermix!ucla-an!remsit!stb!michael
:				uunet!scgvaxd!stb!michael
: "A hacker lives forever, but not so his free time"