Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!mit-eddie!uw-beaver!uw-june!uw-entropy!dataio!pilchuck!ssc!fyl
From: fyl@ssc.UUCP (Phil Hughes)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: 80386 Test Suite?
Summary: gee, we got one that didn't know how to multiply just yesterday
Message-ID: <964@ssc.UUCP>
Date: 14 Jan 88 01:26:52 GMT
References: <16211@watmath.waterloo.edu>
Organization: SSC, Inc., Seattle, WA
Lines: 38

In article <16211@watmath.waterloo.edu>, 221.162.fido!Usenet_area_"Cs.I.Pc"@watmath.waterloo.edu writes:
> From Usenet: watmath!codas!karthur
> From: karthur@codas.att.com (Kurt_R_Arthur)
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
> Subject: Re: 80386 Test Suite?
> Message-ID: <1506@codas.att.com>
> Date: 8 Jan 88 15:11:41 GMT
> References: <2334@tekigm2.TEK.COM>
> Distribution: usa
> Organization: AT&T, Altamonte Springs, FL
> Lines: 33
> Xref: watmath comp.sys.ibm.pc:10371 comp.sys.misc:969
< 
< In article <2334@tekigm2.TEK.COM> timothym@tekigm2.TEK.COM (Timothy D
< Margeson) writes:
< > Having just ordered a QIC 80386 computer, I want (need) a test suite to
< > verify that the installed 80386 is one without the 16 bit limitations.
< 
< According the sources I have read:
< 	3. Intel had the problems very early in the production cycle,
< 	   fixed the chip mask in Spring, 1987, and (supposedly) shipped
< 	   nothing but "good" chips since last April or May.  Therefore,
< 	   the odds are excellent you own a good chip.

Just yesterday we got in a new 386 system with a mother board make by
AMI under license from Mylex (the one with the 64K cache buffer.)
Tried to load Xenix and it puked with the multiply bug (which Xenix
386 is smart enough to check for.)  I was writing down mask numbers
from the chip so we could harass the supplier and the last line on
the chip package said:
	16 bit S/W only

Consider this a warning.  Looks like Intel decided to sell the old ones
but just mark them.
Also, attempting to load Xenix 386 seems to catch the problem.
-- 
Phil Hughes, SSC, Inc. P.O. Box 55549, Seattle, WA 98155  (206)FOR-UNIX
    uw-beaver!tikal!ssc!fyl or uunet!pilchuck!ssc!fyl or attmail!ssc!fyl