Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!steinmetz!ge-dab!peora!rtmvax!rob
From: rob@rtmvax.UUCP (Robert Talley)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Powerful machines at home (was Re: R.I.P. BYTE:)
Keywords: BYTE, subscription, letter, fed up, POWER USERS
Message-ID: <1874@rtmvax.UUCP>
Date: 27 Aug 88 13:55:00 GMT
References: <6646@well.UUCP> <5479@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> <4617@fluke.COM> <8214@watdragon.waterloo.edu> <2815@teemc.UUCP> <11704@oberon.USC.EDU> <3144@teemc.UUCP>
Reply-To: rob@rtmvax.UUCP (Robert Talley)
Organization: RTmVax Public Unix System, Orlando FL
Lines: 53

In article <3144@teemc.UUCP> wayne@teemc.UUCP (/\/\ichael R. \/\/ayne) writes:
>In article <11704@oberon.USC.EDU> mlinar@eve.usc.edu (Mitch Mlinar) writes:
>>In article <2815@teemc.UUCP> wayne@teemc.UUCP (I) write
>> [ my bitching and moaning about how Byte has abandonded its readers deleted ]
>>
>->They don't know that some of us feel that a "small system" is a 16Mhz
>->68020 with 4 Meg of RAM, 700 Meg of hard disk, and 16 serial ports running
>->Unix (like my home machine).  
>
>	It depends on what you want to do with your money.  There is also
>used equipment available.  Sun 2 systems are not that expensive.  There 
>was a deal where used Altos systems went up for sale a while back and then
>there was the 3B1 (too slow for my tastes but it's a start).
>
I tend to agree with Michael on this point.  The "second-hand" commercial
market is a great place to get a solid machine at a reasonable price. I
picked up a DEC-MicroVax-I and have less than $3800 invested in the main
system. I have invested much more than that, over time, in peripherals such
as additional disks and modems (telebit).  Second hand computers aren't for
the weak at heart hobbyists though, since one must generally be familiar
with the hardware to tell if you are getting a good deal, but the equipment
is out there, now, more than ever.  My biggest expenditure was getting the
system properly licensed.

Sure, it's only a MV-I, but you can bet I'm always on the lookout for an
upgrade kit to bring it to a MV-II. I think Michael made a very good point
about "what you spend you money on".  Many co-workers/associates of mine
have larger systems (plural) at home instead of boats, sports cars, and
monster sound-systems. It also helps when your work exposes you to such
equipment and justifies ownership of same. I originally got the MV-I to
assist with my work from my home and wound up running a semi-public system
with it when it's not crunching numbers for work.

I don't feel, however, that BYTE or any other journal could even possibly
begin to address users in this category. There are many "vendor" related
journals that help out quite a bit. One in particular (for my case) is
DEC-Professional, which is a free subscription to those qualified. This
publication has also gone somewhat towards the way of BYTE but still
contains many good articles on "what's inside your machine" and also
contains many "classified" ads relating to the vendors equipment etc.

It does take a bit more searching, and a lot more dedication to find
peripherals and expansion hardware that fits into my personal budget, but
the results are generally very rewarding, and the learning process involved
is always enjoyable. 

It may not be for everyone, but for those who are willing to spend the time
and effort, the rewards vastly exceed those obtained by running down to
"Crazy Phillip's" and grabbing something off the shelf.

-- 
Robert Talley: RTmVax Semi-Public UNIX/USENET System Orlando, Florida
         UUCP: {uiucuxc,hoptoad,petsd}!peora!rtmvax!rob