Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!mips!excelan!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen
From: davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (Wm E. Davidsen Jr)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: PC/IX, anyone?
Message-ID: <345@sixhub.UUCP>
Date: 28 Dec 89 21:32:43 GMT
References: <0.259A52F4@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us>
Reply-To: davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (bill davidsen)
Organization: *IX Public Access UNIX, Schenectady NY
Lines: 38

In article <0.259A52F4@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us> mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us (Marc Unangst) writes:

| Well, I heard that IBM once sold a System III Unix for the PC/XT, called
| PC/IX.  This seems like just what I need for a small, single-user Unix
| system.  Since it ran on the XT's 10MB hard disk, it shouldn't take up too
| much space.  Does anybody have a copy of this laying around, with manuals,
| that they'd be willing to part with?  I'm willing to go up to about $50
| (plus shipping), but please let me know even if that isn't enough.

  The only bad thing about PC/ix is that it only allows 54k code and 64k
data (and that's the option, 54k total is the default). In spite of that
all of the usual stuff runs on it. There is was a product to allow DOS
programs to run under it in the DOS partition (can't remember the name).

  I ran it for some years and managed to get all sorts of net software
running, even news. After I went to v1.1 it had about the same failure
rate as a bowling ball, and I think I went something like 23 months
without an unscheduled reboot. I finally gave up when I really needed a
larger disk. It only supported the 10MB or 20MB disks for the AT, as I
recall, although there was a way to patch that.

  There are still 2-3 copies running at work, just because they do the
job and require no effort to keep running. If you can get a copy cheap
it should be satisfactory in terms of reliability.

  I have a couple of personal copies around here, and even have one
running on an old XT with two 10MB floppies (DOS and PC/ix). If I ever
want to set up a machine for just mail access I might use that to do it.
Have fun, but before you ask me a lot of questions remember that it has
been over three years since I did anything but booted the system. The C
compiler, on an AT, shows better benchmark times for most benchmarks
than the latest Xenix compiler I have (I *think* 4.85, don't quote me),
so the speed is usable if not blinding.
-- 
	bill davidsen - sysop *IX BBS and Public Access UNIX
davidsen@sixhub.uucp		...!uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen

"Getting old is bad, but it beats the hell out of the alternative" -anon