Xref: utzoo comp.unix.i386:1948 comp.sys.ibm.pc:40659
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!wuarchive!uunet!virtech!cpcahil
From: cpcahil@virtech.uucp (Conor P. Cahill)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.i386,comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Use a 386 unix as a home machine?
Message-ID: <1989Dec23.153123.3764@virtech.uucp>
Date: 23 Dec 89 15:31:23 GMT
References: <2910@infmx.UUCP>
Organization: Virtual Technologies Inc.
Lines: 52

In article <2910@infmx.UUCP>, dror@infmx.UUCP (Dror Matalon) writes:

> I've been following this news group for a while and I'm beginning to wonder
> whether it's a good idea. I'm quite technical seeing that I make a living 
> writing 'C' code under unix on SUN workstations. But I'm not sure that I want
> to spend that much time at home hacking Kernels and fooling around with 
> device drivers. It's bad enough that I had to educate myself about MFM RLL
> ESDI SCSI Interleave modes wait states motherboards. 

Whenever you watch a BBS/newsgroup discussion group you will always find
the most of the discussions talk about problems the user's are having.  Who
cares that I have had no problems runnin 386/ix on my machine (unless, of
course, there is something real strange about my machine).

Normally you will have no problems running unix on most clones.  The problems
usually crawl in when you try to run some high performance, or little heard
of peripheral.

This is true for 386/ix, Xenix, SCO Unix, Bell Tech Unix (now Intel Unix), 
ESIX, Dell unix and probably most packages.

If you really want to make sure that you get compatible hardware, you can 
order your hardware and os from the same vendor and require that they
pre-load the os and run the burn in with your os.  Vendors that do this
may charge a little bit more than those that don't, but you save all 
the headaches of figuring which board uses which interrupt, i/o address,
and memory address.

Two companies that I know of that will do this are Dell and Tangent 
Computer Inc..  I'm sure there are many others so you shouldn't have
a problem with it.

> 	I was thinking of buying a no name clone running at 25Mhz with 4 Megs 
> and a 120M RLL Seagate drive. Do I need to worry about competability issues?
> How do I find out what drive and what controller I can use with what unix 
> (Before I buy all this stuff). 

This is a concern, but not a major one.  If you buy the stuff and load the
OS yourself, MAKE SURE YOU buy the stuff from a vendor that will give you
a 30 day no questions asked return policy (without any penalties/restocking
fees).  Again both of the companies I mentioned above provide this service and
I'm sure they are not the only ones.

The only extra thing you may want to remember is that Unix is a real 
memory hog (and gets worse as life goes on).  You will want to buy as 
much memory as you can.  Once you get to 8 meg on a single user system
you get to the point of diminishing returns.  
-- 
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| Conor P. Cahill     uunet!virtech!cpcahil      	703-430-9247	!
| Virtual Technologies Inc.,    P. O. Box 876,   Sterling, VA 22170     |
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