🚀 go-pugleaf

> In article <1785@botter.cs.vu.nl>, jim@cs.vu.nl (Jim van Keulen) writes:
>> I am interested in comparisons of VaxStations 2000 vs SUN-3/50

We develop a lot of C code at Teknowledge on a variety of hardware,
including Sun-3/50s and a VAXstation 2000 running uVMS.  Both types of
systems have local disk (70Mb or 140Mb SCSI).  I don't know if the
2000 has 4Mb RAM like the 3/50s, but it has h/w floating point, which
most of our 3/50s don't.  We find that for compiling/linking/running
tests, the VAXstation 2000 is about 8-10 times SLOWER.

Also, while the "VAX C" compiler has some nice features (like function
prototypes and good code generation), and VMS is more helpful in
producing tracebacks when a program crashes, the windowing system you
get with VMS is pretty poor.  It's just a clunky multiple VT220 (or
Tektronix 4014 -- ick!) emulation environment.  You can't even cut and
paste between windows.  It's also pretty nearly impossible to
customize the environment the way you can in suntools.  If you like
the integrated environment that the various emacses give you on Unix,
sorry, it doesn't work under VMS: no M-x compile, no M-x shell, ...

If you run Ultrix on the 2000, you get X10 as your windowing system.
X is OK, but I find suntools easier to learn
(meta-control-left-mouse-what?)  than X, and easier to deal with.

On the other hand, (flame on) both DEC and Sun charge too much for
peripherals, documentation, and service.

Mike Khaw
-- 
internet:  mkhaw@teknowledge-vaxc.arpa
usenet:	   {uunet|sun|ucbvax|decwrl|uw-beaver}!mkhaw%teknowledge-vaxc.arpa
USnail:	   Teknowledge Inc, 1850 Embarcadero Rd, POB 10119, Palo Alto, CA 94303