Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!rutgers!ucsd!ames!lamaster From: lamaster@ames.arc.nasa.gov (Hugh LaMaster) Newsgroups: comp.arch Subject: Re: Standard Un*x H/W architecture (was: MAC 88000) Keywords: 88000 SPARC Sun Apple Mac Macintosh UNIX Message-ID: <11783@ames.arc.nasa.gov> Date: 14 Jul 88 17:23:39 GMT References: <261@hodge.UUCP> <370STORKEL@RICE> <607@riddle.UUCP> Reply-To: lamaster@ames.arc.nasa.gov.UUCP (Hugh LaMaster) Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. Lines: 25 In article <607@riddle.UUCP> domo@riddle.UUCP (Dominic Dunlop) writes: >Me, I'd love to see MacSPARC, as it would add more momentum to the >bandwagon that's promoting SPARC as a standard UN*X hardware architecture. >If that bandwaggon doesn't roll, we'll have another five years of having to >accommodate multiple architectures for no good reason, and, boy, am I >tired of doing that after the last ten years. But I fear it won't happen. A standard Un*x h/w architecture is a pipe dream. There is still far too much controversy, new technology, and progress being made. It is also unnecessary - good portable code runs on most Un*x systems already with few changes required - one of the reasons for Un*x existing in the first place. The ABI standards are supposed to at least standardize Un*x within H/W families. Personally, I would be satisfied if all vendors agreed on a standard data representation - specifically, IEEE floating point 32 bit and 64 bit, ASCII, and two's comp. integers, so that DATA files could be moved between machines, a requirement in our environment. Standard executables on all machines may have to wait another 20 years at least. -- Hugh LaMaster, m/s 233-9, UUCP ames!lamaster NASA Ames Research Center ARPA lamaster@ames.arc.nasa.gov Moffett Field, CA 94035 Phone: (415)694-6117