Re: Masscomp

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2 total messages Started by works Mon, 25 Nov 1985 18:53

#10

Author: works
Date: Mon, 25 Nov 1985 18:53

30 lines
2241 bytes

In article <275@tut.UUCP> jty@tut.UUCP (Jyrki Yli-Nokari) writes:
>Masscomp offers a very nice-looking machine with MC68020 cpu
>and their RTU (Real-Time Unix) v3.0 which is claimed to
>be full SysV and full Berkeley 4.2 at the same time.
>
>Does anybody out there have any experiencies about this
>or any Masscomp? Can I run GNUemacs on a Masscomp (RMS?).
>
>...mcvax!tut!jty.UUCP			! I know all about FORTH.
>Jyrki Yli-Nokari			! I saw a TV-program about it once

We have 5 masscomps here at RIT, 3 are faculty only, and the students are
very happy about that.  They'd be even happier if all 5 were faculty only,
but that would upset the faculty a great deal.  Around here we call them
trashcomps or crashcomps.  RTU v3.0 is pretty sad, too.  RIT has the only
source license in existance for it, and it's a good thing, cause the way I
hear it, they have to keep cleaning up the bugs in the software.  I wrote
my own routine to send stuff to the printer because lpr doesn't work.  I
could tell you lots more bugs, but my concious mind can't take it, so my
sub-concious makes me forget them 8-).

==============================================================================
        Steve Wall [Snoopy] @ Rochester Institute of Technology
        USnail: 6675 Crosby Rd, Lockport, NY 14094, USA
        Usenet: ...!ritcv!spw2562                       Unix 4.2 BSD
        BITNET: SPW2562@RITVAXC                         VAX/VMS 4.2
        Voice:  Yell "Hey Steve!"

    Disclaimer:  What I just said may or may not have anything to do
                 with what I was actually thinking...

Re: Masscomp

#13

Author: works
Date: Sun, 01 Dec 1985 22:56

24 lines
2060 bytes

Steve Wall's recent comments about the masscomp do little to explain why
his opinion is so negative. His remarks about RTU 3.0 probably are about
the beta-test version since the actual released product is only just
now getting into the hands of the users.

I will have to agree that the masscomp software does have its problems, but
much the same can be said of many companies' software (a good example is
the Sun and Pyramid f77 compilers). It all depends on the market the machine 
is aimed at. 

In the case of the masscomp, the market was scientific, real-time computing
originally. The Masscomp is the only machine I know of that was designed to
run UNIX in a REAL-TIME environment (Please tell me if I am wrong). It has
one of the highest performance/cost ratios and one of the best FORTRAN
compilers available in its price range. 

There are problems as well. It may not run GNU-emacs. It does run Gosling-emacs
in the BSD-4.1 style. I have not tried to port GNU as yet. I have tried a 
number of other 4.2 items, and if you plug in BSD 2.9 or 4.1 networking for 
those programs that use it, you make very few modifications. Almost all the
System V stuff I have ported required no modification at all.

As the case with many vendors, some customers are happy and some aren't.
We are happy with Masscomp.

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