*BSD News Article 4650


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From: brtmac@maverick.ksu.ksu.edu (Brett McCoy)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.sysv386,comp.windows.x,comp.os.linux,comp.os.mach,comp.unix.bsd
Subject: Re: Free software and the future of support for Diamond products
Date: 7 Sep 92 19:13:38
Organization: Kansas State University
Lines: 15
Message-ID: <BRTMAC.92Sep7191338@maverick.ksu.ksu.edu>
References: <1992Sep6.210159.18607@cbnewsj.cb.att.com>
	<lalqmgINNa96@needmore.cs.utexas.edu>
	<1992Sep7.133347.4433@cbnewsj.cb.att.com>
	<1992Sep7.204537.26238@mv.mv.com> <Bu8Drt.2Ls@news.cso.uiuc.edu>
NNTP-Posting-Host: maverick.ksu.ksu.edu
In-reply-to: pereckas@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu's message of Mon, 7 Sep 1992 23:11:51 GMT

In article <Bu8Drt.2Ls@news.cso.uiuc.edu> pereckas@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (pereckas michael s) writes:

>>I have also had to boot MSDOS just to run the diagnostics on nearly every
>>card.
>
>Just think of MS-DOS as a super ROM monitor that isn't in ROM, or a
>special hardware diagnostic/configuration mode.  :-) :-) :-)

Here's an idea.  Make new boot ROMS for intel based boxes that have a
Sun like boot monitor *and* MS-DOS.  If you use 1M flash ROMS it should
be easy to fit it all and easy to upgrade.  That way all the MS-DOS
executables for configuring and testing hardware can be run easily
without have to degrade the machine by installing MS-DOS on it.

++Brett;