Date: Tue, 11 Nov 1997 08:39:02 -0500 From: Mark Mayo <mark@vmunix.com> To: wghhicks@ix.netcom.com Cc: Mike Hoskins <mike@seidata.com>, freebsd-hackers@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Newest Pentium bug (fatal) Message-ID: <19971111083902.30210@vmunix.com> In-Reply-To: <346825F9.4924796F@ix.netcom.com>; from Jerry Hicks on Tue, Nov 11, 1997 at 04:31:37AM -0500 References: <199711110526.WAA21873@usr02.primenet.com> <3467FC52.1C6E655B@ix.netcom.com> <346768CA.5984ED28@seidata.com> <346825F9.4924796F@ix.netcom.com>
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On Tue, Nov 11, 1997 at 04:31:37AM -0500, Jerry Hicks wrote: > Mike Hoskins wrote: > > > > Jerry Hicks wrote: > > > > > I bet the Linux porters *do* have access to the aforementioned source > > > code. And probably a goodly share of other DEC resources as well. > > > This simply means that, if an Alpha port were ever taken on by FreeBSD, > the best information would most likely be gleaned from the Linux ports. > Anything that DEC would give out directly probably wouldn't be as > complete as that. > > We *can* give them credit for having done more than any other mainstream > Unix vendor. >From my naive eyes, it would certainly appear that if FreeBSD were going to port to the Alpha platform, Linux is the place to look for "documentation". NetBSD also seems to be running fairly well on the Alpha. NetBSD is even running on the TurboLaser products, which i don't believe Linux is (I could be wrong on that one). If Terry is able to port the VM system to the alpha architecture, that would be a huge step towards a sucessful port IMHO, since a lot of the other stuff could be "borrowed" from NetBSD and Linux. Like I said, this is my naive point of view, and there's almost certainly other major obstacles in the way... :-) At any rate, it would be nice to have FreeBSD Alpha port. The other reality, of course, is that even though Alpha's are dropping like stones in price (at least the 21164PC ones..), they probably won't ever become mainstream enough to really warrant a FreeBSD port. Afterall, if I want BSD on my Alpha, I can always get it from NetBSD! -Mark P.S. The main problems I have with the Alpha's is their seemingly wildly different hardware layouts... the whole 21164PC vs. 21164A deal is quite confusing.. This debate is a perfect example - we've got X and you've got Y - unfortunately they seem to be so different that we can't even use the same bootstrapping code.... argghh.. Frustration... > > Food for thought eh? > > Jerry Hicks > jerry_hicks@bigfoot.com -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mark Mayo mark@vmunix.com RingZero Comp. http://www.vmunix.com/mark finger mark@vmunix.com for my PGP key and GCS code ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Win95/NT - 32 bit extensions and a graphical shell for a 16 bit patch to an an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit microprocessor, written by a 2 bit company that can't stand 1 bit of competition. -UGU
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