From: mccall@mksol.dseg.ti.com (fred j mccall 575-3539)
Subject: Re: UNIX on a PC
Keywords: unix pc systems
Organization: Texas Instruments Inc
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 17:14:37 GMT

In <Bxvs45.KHq@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> vyainsm@expert.cc.purdue.edu (Sean Vyain) writes:

>My questions:

Of which I'll give my considered opinion on a few, anyway.

>	How do fast PC clones, like a 486DX/66MHz, compare with more traditional
>		workstations for performance?  Are the processors fast enough?
>		The disk systems?  What kind of buses give the best results?
>		EISA? VESA?

For sheer performance, the i486-50 and such come in at around SPARC 1+
levels of performance (around 22 MIPS).  However, the Intel parts are
much worse when it comes to floating point than a 'real' workstation
typically is.  This can be partially rectified by using coprocessed
video boards and such, but if you do a lot of calculation sorts of
things, you probably would be happier with a Sun.

If you really are interested in the best performance, go with EISA
with perhaps a local bus video board.

>	How do different UNIX implementations for PCs, such as 386bsd, Coherent,
>		Linux, etc..., compare to say SunOS?  Are the more expensive
>		UNIXes (read AT&T) really worth the price?

Which version of SunOS?  The latest release of SunOS has gone more
toward SysV and away from its BSD heritage (from what I understand).
Anyway, if you're willing to wait, Sun is bringing out Solaris II for
Intel machines.  I thought it was supposed to be out this year, but it
has apparently been slipped.  

There are lots of fans of DELL UNIX around, Univel is supposed to be
about to release (or just has), NeXTStep 486 should be close to
release, etc.  It's turning into a very interesting world.  

>	How much, in the way of system resources (disk space, RAM, disk cache,
>		processor cache) do you find necessary to get the same level
>		of performance as a traditional workstation?

Well, I've got a system at home (not currently running UNIX -- I gotta
get that tape drive <sigh>) that I expect Sun IPC levels of
performance out of.  It's a 486-50DX with EISA, 16 MB, and a 1.2G
SCSI.  Note that equipment recomendations I've recieved regarding the
upcoming Solaris product suggest a configuration similar to this.
NeXStep will *require* a 486 machine, and they also recommend at least
16 MB of memory.

>	Who makes reliable equipment that is reasonably priced with decent
>		support?  I am thinking of mail order companies like ZEOS, or
>		LodeStar.

>	How much does it cost to get access to Internet from home for USENET
>		news, email, and ftp access?  For those who work for companies
>		that have Internet access, what are the company pocilies on
>		personal use of the network connection?

Other than FTP access, this usually can be had for cheap (or free),
depending on where you live.  FTP access gets potentially expensive
because you start tying up more of someone's access link.  If you plan
on getting a newsfeed, you'll need lots of disk space.

-- 
"Insisting on perfect safety is for people who don't have the balls to live
 in the real world."   -- Mary Shafer, NASA Ames Dryden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fred.McCall@dseg.ti.com - I don't speak for others and they don't speak for me.