Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!utstat!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!POSTGRES.BERKELEY.EDU!dillon
From: dillon@POSTGRES.BERKELEY.EDU (Matt Dillon)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Multi-tasking and OS books
Message-ID: <8905132101.AA27636@postgres.Berkeley.EDU>
Date: 13 May 89 21:01:32 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Lines: 16

:  BTW:  I've done some checking on OS/2, are you 100% sure it doesn't task
:switch on OS call.  It's suppose to run on older 80286's which I'm sure don't
:have the hardware to do it pre-emptive.  Perhaps a calm, cool and collected
:usenet person could set the record straight.

	Pre-emptive scheduling can be done with any processor.  For example,
Bryce once multi-tasked BASIC on his (PET or C64, forgot which).  I myself
have written preemptive schedulers for AT's and for my PET & C64 a long time
ago.

	To be able to do premptive scheduling *efficiently*, the OS must be 
designed for it.  The Amiga's was designed for it.  The IBMs and MACs OS were
not and you can see the mess they have to deal with now.


					-Matt