Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!husc6!uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!lalonde
From: lalonde@nicmad.UUCP (John Lalonde)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: Sun 386i (Road Runner) AT-bus - advice wanted
Message-ID: <2745@nicmad.UUCP>
Date: 27 May 88 13:25:20 GMT
References: <13155@santra.UUCP>
Reply-To: lalonde@nicmad.UUCP (John Lalonde)
Organization: Nicolet Instrument Corp.  Madison, WI
Lines: 24

In article <13155@santra.UUCP> atk@hutcs.hut.fi, atk@finhutcs.bitnet writes:
>I have heard the following (unconfirmed) about the RR AT-bus:
>1. You cannot access it from the Sun OS.

This is definitely false. You can access the AT Bus from SunOS. No tricks or
gimmicks. You can have memory mapped I/O access or I/O port access.

>2. Sun will not supply drivers for any add-on boards.

I believe that currently this is true. However this is also true for Sun VME
based systems as well. Generally it is up to the add-on board manufacturer
to provide the driver(s).

>1. Can we down-load applications from the development system to the board
>   on the AT-bus? If so, do we have to write our own driver? If not, why not?

Yes, you can download applications and Yes, you will probably have to write a
driver, unless you can get the board manufacturer to provide one. The "driver"
could be a Mush-DOS driver or a SunOS driver. The 386i can go both ways.
-- 
John LaLonde
Systems Engineering Group
Nicolet Instrument Corporation
uucp: {ihnp4,rutgers,decvax,harvard}!uwvax!nicmad!lalonde