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Xref: sserve comp.unix.bsd:15978 comp.unix.advocacy:3956 comp.sys.sun.misc:17216 comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit:8043 Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!msunews!uwm.edu!spool.mu.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!swrinde!news.uh.edu!uuneo.neosoft.com!Starbase.NeoSoft.COM!not-for-mail From: jpsb@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM (jpsb) Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd,comp.unix.advocacy,comp.sys.sun.misc,comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit Subject: Re: What do people have against BSD (or Linux for that matter)? (was: Whither NeoSoft) Date: 26 Jan 1995 18:23:59 -0600 Organization: NeoSoft Internet Services +1 713 684 5969 Lines: 59 Message-ID: <3g9eev$egq@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM> References: <3g3s2k$6i@villa.fc.net> <3g65h7$7ec@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM> <3g697f$gs0@keys.csi.net> <3g8b6m$plu@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM> NNTP-Posting-Host: starbase.neosoft.com Looks like i'm going to get drawn in like it or not. remember folks i tried to back out nicely ... no flames please. disclaimer: i'll admit up front i'm NOT a sysadm. >>OK, so, what do you think? Tell me why I should spend $25,000 on a >>Sparc 10 with 4 processors? Or $40,000 on a SS1000 when I would have >>to run Solaris? > . > . >I'm interested in that answer, too. I'm much more at home >with Sun hardware, but if I were starting over, it's not >what I'd choose. I keep bumping into people who think >BSD/386 is a toy, but I have yet to understand the reason. > first off the PC you are all reffering to is not standard PC! You have high performance IO devices that you do not get at Best Buy. A "Best Buy" intel will feed the cpu 16 bits of data at 1 or .5 the CPU clock speed. Ergo the mother board can't keep up witjh the CPU. Next a Best Buy intel's disk i/o is also 16 bits at (hmmmm) 8 or 12 mhz can't remember which. very slow. At Best Buy Intel will have 16k maybe 64k of on-board chache, not a whole lot. If you get into heavy swaping, the disk i/o will bring the pc to it's knees. Now *maybe* there are new io cards and data buses that eliminate these problem (EISA, local bus, etc) but will all the DOS and Windows Apps still work? Once you have beefed up your intel with alot of chache, a fast scsi controler, a EISA mother board a high preformance SVGA card etc, you have pushed the price up to 5k. 5k will get you a Sun or an HP or even an RS6k. Where the intel pays is in the free OS, that is hard to beat. The Unix vendors will make you PAY big time for an unlimited users etc. Now what can you do with your free OS, probably anything you want, you've got the source code. but how many people know how to rebuild thier kernal? How many even know how to setup Unix on an intel, Xconfig can be a bitch. I know it took me hours to find the right modes for an ATI video card! Now let's get the modem going, mkdev() anyone? and don't forget your /etc/remote file if you want tip to work. etc, etc, etc. If you are real good with Unix you can get the system setup right, but you don't have days to spent figuring everything out then maybe a free OS is not for you. Seems like a lot of work, and money just to get an intel to act like a LOW END Unix host. And I don't believe for one second an intel 586 performs like a sparc 10, and yes I've got both. plus an SGI, and RS6k and HP's. Now the intel is an NT host so i'm sure that has a lot to do with it being a barking dog. But the 486 (33dx,scsi, 16meg ram, 256k cache). running Linux is *much* slower (compile times) than the slowest sparc 1. I bought the 486 a few years back thinking i could build a cheap Unix WS. well i've got more $ into it than i paid for my new PowerPC RS6k! Way more then the used sun 1's hanging around here. But times change, *maybe* you can turn a Pentium into a blazingly fast Unix box for pennies, maybe. jim shirreffs i speak for myself and only myself i already know i'm a terrible speller