Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!mtxinu!sybase!forrest@sybase.com
From: forrest@sybase.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.dec
Subject: Using DecStation 3100's with VMS clients
Message-ID: <3849@sybase.sybase.com>
Date: 11 Apr 89 23:20:35 GMT
Sender: news@sybase.sybase.com
Reply-To: forrest@sybase.com
Organization: Sybase, Inc.
Lines: 32
Sender:forrest@sybase.com

Management at Sybase says that engineers can chose between
getting a DecStation 3100, a Vaxstation 3100, a Sun 3/60, or a NeXT 
for a personal workstation (as the budget permits) since they
all cost Sybase about the same amount of money. Although
I'm in the VMS development group, I'm starting to have second thoughts
about whether I should ask for a Vaxstation.

What I'm thinking about is whether it will be possible and feasible
to get a DecStation and run the Ultrix DecWindows software connected
to clients running on a VMS machine. From what I've read about
DecWindows, this sounds like it should be possible, assuming that
the DecStation can run DecNet. I'd like to have a bunch of Decterm
windows on the DecStation connected to the fastest VMS machine I
can find. Most of the time I would be treating the DecStation as
an overpriced but very fast X terminal since I wouldn't be making
use of the fact that it can run Unix too.

The reason this approach sounds attractive is that I'm not sure
that using a VaxStation running DecWindows to do software development
would be all that much better that using a DecStation in the way
I've described, assuming that there are "faster" VMS machines
available to run DecWindows client software. The raw speed of
the DecStation might prove more important than having a true
VMS machine locally.

Has anybody used a DecStation in this way? Does anyone have any
comments about this approach?

Jon Forrest
forrest@sybase.com
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415-596-3422