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From: mboen@nixpbe.UUCP (Martin Boening)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: MINIX and NETWORK connections
Message-ID: <1275@nixpbe.UUCP>
Date: 19 Feb 90 09:43:20 GMT
References: <22274.25dc6917@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>
Organization: Nixdorf Computer AG, Paderborn, Germany
Lines: 38

whitten@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:

>After reading thru the MINIX newsgroup, my intrest about ST MINIX has
>really grown...  I would love to hear from anyone out there that has
>purchased the package, as well as anyone else who has two cents to
>put in.  Specifically, does it support multitasking, multiple users,
>that kind of thing?  Can you still run TOS programs from inside it?  
>Would you consider it useful to people who aren't real unix gurus?
>

MINIX is a 'clone' of UNIX (TM), V7. It can certainly do multitasking. On
PC engines it also does multiuser processing. The ability is also there in
MINIX ST but there may be a problem regarding the tty ports (i.e. serial
ports). I haven't tried it yet, though. The newest version, namely 1.5.0, 
contains rs232 support and should therefore support multi users (2). This
cannot be bought it must be built from the Version 1.1 sold by PH using the
patches for PC and ST that were posted to the net.

You CANNOT run TOS programs. You can try to add such a feature analogous
to the ability of running DOS programs in SCO Unix but it would be quite a 
project.

You should have UNIX knowledge. If you intend to do upgrading you should
even be competent in UNIX and system programming. If you intend to do
program development...

I would NOT consider it useful as a USERS OS. It's more a thing for people
who want to know their way around in operating systems and like to have one
os they can hack themselves (I haven't seen a spreadsheet for MINIX, for 
instance).

Hope this helps you.
Martin 
-- 
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