Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!killer!rpp386!ditka!bucket!leonard
From: leonard@bucket.UUCP (Leonard Erickson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Buying a 386 clone -- want advice
Message-ID: <1309@bucket.UUCP>
Date: 16 Mar 89 03:24:27 GMT
References: <3177@imagen.UUCP>
Reply-To: leonard@bucket.UUCP (Leonard Erickson)
Organization: Rick's Home Grown Unix; Portland, OR
Lines: 26

In article <3177@imagen.UUCP> keith@imagen.COM (Keith Rich) writes:
<
<Dylan Mcnamee seems to be asking most of the same questions I have been asking
<around about, but I'd like to add a couple of questions which he skipped.
<
<  1)	What are the issues which determine whether a clone can run OS/2?
<	There seem to BIOS and EGA/VGA dependencies, but it's difficult to
<	identify the specifics.  A recent Byte talks about this, but leaves
<	many unanswered questions.  Although I don't envision heavy OS/2
<	use soon, I'd rather not paint myself in a corner.

The prime factor is this: OS/2 *doesn't use* the BIOS ROMs!!
This means that you can only run a version of OS/2 that has been
"written" for your brand of computer. IBM OS/2 and say, Dell OS/2
aren't interchangeable.

In short, OS/2 is hardware dependent. If you plan on using it, buy a
machine from a vendor that *has* OS/2 available for it *now*. Don't buy
from someone who says "we'll have our OS/2 available in a few months"
unless you want to gamble the they are telling the truth.

-- 
Leonard Erickson		...!tektronix!reed!percival!bucket!leonard
CIS: [70465,203]
"I'm all in favor of keeping dangerous weapons out of the hands of fools.
Let's start with typewriters." -- Solomon Short