Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site brl-tgr.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!whuxlm!harpo!decvax!genrad!mit-eddie!think!harvard!seismo!brl-tgr!tgr!vortex!lauren@RAND-UNIX.ARPA From: lauren@RAND-UNIX.ARPA Newsgroups: net.micro Subject: CD-ROMS Message-ID: <11467@brl-tgr.ARPA> Date: Wed, 10-Jul-85 17:37:39 EDT Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.11467 Posted: Wed Jul 10 17:37:39 1985 Date-Received: Mon, 15-Jul-85 06:46:06 EDT Sender: news@brl-tgr.ARPA Lines: 15 I would tend to doubt the practicality of "Unix on compact disks," at least as other than a distribution medium. CD-ROM players are fairly slow in the access time department, having a typical average seek time of 2 to 4 seconds in most cases. The transfer rate isn't spectacular either, but not too bad. CD-ROMs may turn out to be excellent for software distribution and mass archival information... but I can't see running programs off of them on any sort of regular basis. The players really aren't made for that sort of thing, and the basic parameters would be difficult to change. By the way, I know of what I speak--I'm working with CD-ROMs right now; I have an official SONY CD-ROM test disc sitting not five feet away from me. Sounds interesting in audio players, by the way... --Lauren--