Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!ll-xn!mit-eddie!bbn!gatech!mcnc!unccvax!mru
From: mru@unccvax.UUCP (Markus Ruppel)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: PC-MOS....true ???
Message-ID: <923@unccvax.UUCP>
Date: 5 Mar 88 23:47:28 GMT
References: <521@wa3wbu.UUCPo
Organization: Univ. of NC at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC
Lines: 76


in article <521@wa3wbu.UUCPo, john@wa3wbu.UUCP (John Gayman) says:
o 
o 
o      A freind came to me the other day seeking advise to multi-user
o environments. I of course mentioned the various flavors of Unix. He
o needs it to run on an AT-class machine.  
o 
o      Anyway, he kept bringing up PC-MOSS by The Software Link. Apparently
PC-MOS !

o he has written to them and received brochures and has spoken with them
o on the phone. What these guys are saying is too good to be true.
o 
o      Basically they're saying that with PC-MOS you can:
o 
o 1. Have up to 4 users on a XT and 5-9 users on an AT, all running
o simultaneous.

I haven't seen a MU ( multiuser version )  of PC-MOS so far !

o 
o 2. All users can be simultaneously running ANY MS-DOS application on
o    a *dumb* terminal. When they say dumb, they mean even like an ADM-3!!
o    And they dont say just character-based applications, they say ANYTHING.

This is impossible ! On an XT for example there is no way to trap 
direct screen writes of applications, because the 8088/86 doesn't 
support any kind of memory protection levels ( as the - brain damaged
- 80286 and - much better - 80386 do ) .
Furthermore PC-MOS is extremely UNSTABLE. A much better system ( multi-
user and multitasking )  is Concurrent DOS ( CDOS ) by Digital Research.
It is available for 8086/88/286 systems ( where it can be used with
EEMS boards, up to 8 MB of memory transparent to applications ) or
for 386 systems using the normal system memory. The 386 version 
supports trapping of screen writes and on the fall COMDEX in Las
Vegas they had a 386 running with 10 terminals, each of which 
let you play MS flightsimulator.....
 
o 
o 3. They do require that you buy *their* serial card ($500) and their
o    "memory management board" ($500).
o 
 
It might be that you have to buy there hardware, for CDOS you can 
select between a few different third party vendors' serial and memory
boards.

o     I'm at a loss!  I mean, after he read me the information they sent

o it sounds impossible. 

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE !!!!!!!!!!

o                       The ads read like it's Unix and DOS all rolled
o into a happy union.  I can't beleive that if this were truely "God's
o gift to the computer world" that I wouldn't "know" of someone using
o it.  Can anyone in Net-land shed some light on this ??  I mean, is it
o a farce or are there some nasty restrictions that you dont find out about
o till *after* you buy ???   I always assumed from the ads that it was a 
o Windows/Desqview-like environment, but no-holds-bared, true, DOS,
o mutli-user/multi-tasking ??   I say naaaa.   Input please so I can
o save this guy. :-)
o 
o 
o 					John
o 
o 
o -- 
o John Gayman, WA3WBU              |           UUCP: uunet!wa3wbu!john
o 1869 Valley Rd.                  |           ARPA: wa3wbu!john@uunet.UU.NET 
o Marysville, PA 17053             |           Packet: WA3WBU @ AK3P 

Markus

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            above and beyond that.