Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!cmcl2!nrl-cmf!ames!elroy!cit-vax!ucla-cs!zen!ucbvax!NRL-AIC.ARPA!smith From: smith@NRL-AIC.ARPA (Russ Smith) Newsgroups: comp.sys.sgi Subject: Re: Hardware purchase advice request/any vendor Message-ID: <8712021412.AA06839@nrl-aic.ARPA> Date: Wed, 2-Dec-87 09:08:58 EST Article-I.D.: nrl-aic.8712021412.AA06839 Posted: Wed Dec 2 09:08:58 1987 Date-Received: Sat, 5-Dec-87 14:59:08 EST Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Organization: The ARPA Internet Lines: 60 [Pardon the response to this list for non-IRIS material, but that's from whence the original query came...] [To Thomas Purcell:] You may want to look into the Amiga 2000. It allows multiple (two...) cards in it for IBM *and* Amiga processors which can run in parallel. There very shortly will be a '386 card for the IBM-compatible side of the 2000. Right now I believe the IBM side is XT-compatible (with expansion slots so inexpensive IBM-compatible peripherals can be added (such as hard disks...)). The Amiga-side memory can be expanded up to at least 8 megabytes. One can install a 5.25" IBM compatible floppy disk drive which can be read/written by the Amiga-side (plus it comes with a 3.5" drive). A hard drive can be internally installed on the Amiga side. AmigaDOS is a true multi-tasking operating system somewhat similar to UNIX in that it has a heirarchical file system, etc. (it does not, however, have memory management built-in). Tasks never have to be written to KNOW about multi-tasking, for example, something that many available "task-switching" systems for other machines need. Most everything on the AMIGA (except for the system itself...) is written in C. There are extensive graphics capabilities (with hardware chips to handle them and software packages to access the chips). Commercial C compilers are available (and produce quite good code (I'd recommend Aztec C)). The most popular wordprocessor package, WordPerfect, is also available. The graphics are definitely better than IBM *BUT* can *INCLUDE* IBM (in fact, an "IBM window" can be displayed on the AMIGA screen...). Of course, you could plug an IBM vga graphics board into the IBM side for "high speed" graphics that don't use the Amiga monitor. Resolution of the Amiga 2000 can vary from 320x200x5bits to 640x400x4 bits (actually, the 320x200 can use 6 bits per pixel, but that is a special feature called Hold and Modify, allowing up to 4096 colors at once under certain restrictions). The system comes with 1 megabyte. In essence, the A2000 is two different computers that are intimately hardware connected. The Amiga side starts up the IBM side, then the two communicate through shared memory. The Amiga side allows (indeed, insists on!) multitasking. The IBM side is XT compatible. Both machines run in parallel. For the price range you quote you should be able to get a VERY fully equipped A2000 machine complete with multiple megabytes of memory, IBM compatibility, hi-res color monitor, hard disk (or two), printer, and more. The hi-res mode of the Amiga is higher (AND in 16 colors) than the Mac, but there is NO Mac compatibility currently available. Bells and Whistles: There is an Ethernet card available for the A2000, allowing the A2000 to be networked to other Ethernet machines. RussJAYCOR Navy Center for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence (whew!)