Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!mailrus!nrl-cmf!ukma!rutgers!rochester!pt.cs.cmu.edu!cadre!pitt!darth!liber
From: liber@darth.UUCP (Eric Liber)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Gateway 2000
Message-ID: <417@darth.UUCP>
Date: 13 Dec 88 15:02:01 GMT
References: <138@usl-pc.usl.edu>
Distribution: na
Organization: Darth Software, Allison Park, Pa.
Lines: 51

> -----------
> 
> Has anyone heard of Gateway Computers, or had any personal experience with
> them?  It uses a Pheonix Bios, can one expect trouble with this?  I have
> heard that Phoenix Bios can cause problems.> 
> Any information greatly appreciated.
> 
I recently purchased Gateway's 386 box.  I am very happy with it.  Here is 
a run down of the experience.  I ordered the box with 2 meg of memo, 2 drives
5.25 and 3.5, no hard drive (i had one sitting on the shelf), no video card
and no monitor (i wanted to do my own thing :-) ).  They said that it would
take about three weeks t deliver .. sigh .. 
Low and behold LESS than 3 weeks later it arrives ... with 1 meg of memory..
sigh ...
I called them and they said .. "oops we blew it, we will send it out right
away.. ".  4 days later another meg shows up.  I installed it myself .. no
real trick and everything is rosy...
Well almost .. I tried to run windows 386 .. works fine until you try to 
read the floppies.  hang up ...!  Then i notice that If i type on the keyboard
while trying to read a floppy based file the system dies!!!! Hmmm.. sure 
sounds like an interrupt problem (knowledge gleened from writing my own 
block device drivers).  Wait a minute this thing has an Award Bios ..
yep it comes standard with AWARD ..
I called them and they said .. "Windows works fine here ......(thinking) ...
what bios do you have" and i said .. "Award" and they said (in a low voice),
"oh you need a phoenix bios .. award doesn't like windows 386.. we will send
it right out"..  3 days ! later i have a new bios and Windows works fine.

There is a reason for the Award bios.  Apparently the Phoenix bios does not
get along well with Novell neware networking software and they assume that
you will want to use a 386 machine for a network server so they send Award.

Anyway it now works fine.  It is fast (0 wait state 60ns !!!!! memory - will
be expensive to update)  - rates a 2.55 mip rating on the Chips and tech
test (IBM PS/2 - 80  rates 2.01) - rates a 24.8 on the landmark test.

The response from their technical service and sales people has always been 
quick and informed.  Their documentation sucks and when i asked for tech
manuals on such things as the serial/parallel/gameport board or the
WD1003-WA2 floppy/hard controller I was told that they couldn't release
that information!!! (I suspect a call the Western Digital will elicit great
quantities of documentation on their boards). But I have noted that this is
the norm for dealing with clone makers .. don't expect to have them tell 
you anything more than is absolutely necessary to get it running.

All in all i am very pleased with the machine and the service i have received.

As an asside one of my previous bosses got one of their 286 machines and
had similar success and was satisfied with them.  If i can answer any more 
questions about the gateway 386 just ask .. i love to talk about it.

Eric (the red) Liber