🚀 go-pugleaf

RetroBBS NetNews Server

Inspired by RockSolid Light RIP Retro Guy

Article View: comp.sys.intel
Article #461

386 <-> 486 incompatibilities

#461
From: Heinz-Bernd Eggenstein
Date: Thu, 13 Aug 1992 14:37
32 lines
1824 bytes
Hello!

Among the few MS-DOS programs that will run on a 80386, but not on
an i486 based machine, there's a program called "PC Scheme"
by Texas Instruments (Scheme is a Lisp-like language). 

According to rumors, this is a result of the program changing 
some instructions in its own code-segment at runtime. 

-How can this cause incompatibilities between 
 80386 and i486 processors?
-I don't think every  self-modification of a program will
 cause problems. Exactly under what conditions may 
 problems occur? 
-Is there a way to detect this kind of self-modification
 either at runtime (say, with a small TSR debugger-like program) or 
 scanning the assembly-code sources.
-Are there any other mayor causes for i486 incompatibilities?

The source code of PC Scheme is available by FTP, so those interested
in this phenomenon can study it in detail:  
altdorf.ai.mit.edu 
in the directory /archive/pc-scheme/

Thanks in advance

Heinz-Bernd Eggenstein
CS, U. of Dortmund, FRG
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Machines will be capable, within 20 years, of doing everything 
a man can do"              -Herbert Simon, 1965-
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Technical Details
Message-ID: <16ds34INNpvn@fbi-news.Informatik.Uni-Dortmund.DE>
Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!sparky!uunet!mcsun!Germany.EU.net!Informatik.Uni-Dortmund.DE!cantor!eggenste

Show Full Headers
Complete Article Headers
Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!sparky!uunet!mcsun!Germany.EU.net!Informatik.Uni-Dortmund.DE!cantor!eggenste
From: eggenste@cantor.informatik.uni-dortmund.de (Heinz-Bernd Eggenstein)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.intel
Subject: 386 <-> 486 incompatibilities
Date: 13 Aug 1992 14:37:24 GMT
Organization: CS Department, Dortmund University, Germany
Lines: 32
Sender: eggenste@cantor (Heinz-Bernd Eggenstein (LS2))
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <16ds34INNpvn@fbi-news.Informatik.Uni-Dortmund.DE>
NNTP-Posting-Host: cantor
Keywords: 80386, i486, self-modifying code