Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!hao!boulder!sunybcs!bingvaxu!leah!itsgw!brspyr1!tim
From: tim@brspyr1.BRS.Com (Tim Northrup)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: The cost of A/ux (Sticker Shock)
Message-ID: <2739@brspyr1.BRS.Com>
Date: 24 Feb 88 16:44:52 GMT
References: <427@sering.cwi.nl>
Organization: BRS Information Technologies, Latham NY
Lines: 38

From article <427@sering.cwi.nl>, by frankk@cwi.nl (Frank Kuiper):
> In article <430018@hpcea.CE.HP.COM> twakeman@hpcea.CE.HP.COM (Teriann Wakeman) writes:
>    > ... the MacII at list price is at the limit of my personal
>    >budget and AUX totally blows any hope away. 
> 
> So, to all you hackers who are trying to get their hands on a unix box
> for their personal satisfaction I say: 
>     "This is the first time ever, that you are even close to buying a
>      unix machine for yourself, all beit still not a cheap one ..."

Sorry Frank, but this is bull!  If you were to restrict your comment to
just the MAC environment, then okay -- you may be correct.  But you
did not, so here come some facts.

IBM came out with PC/IX, a full blown UNIX development system for the
PC roughly 3 years ago, and then it cost around $1000.  Today, you can
get a full blown MicroPort version of System V for the PC at less than
$1000.  And you don't have to buy an 80 meg hard disk to get it.

True, you don't get all of the MAC support software, but you don't have
to pay for it either.  Also, vendors for UNIX on the PC almost all
provide unbundled packages -- you dont *have* to get the development
stuff if you don't want it.

UNIX in the home has been somewhat affordable for quite some time, and
I think the price for A/UX is out of line -- $4000 more than the PC
versions for what?  A bunch of development tools that you may not need,
and the "privilege" of installing a new 80 meg hard drive into your
machine.

(I think the software provided is probably worth having, but is it worth
the additional $$?)

-- Tim
-- 
Tim "The Enchanter" Northrup
----------------------------				   "She's strange,
tim@brspyr1.BRS.Com  or  uunet!steinmetz!brspyr1!tim	    and I like it!"
====================================================		     -- Cameo