If you want POSIX compliance, you must use NTFS. POSIX compliance permits UNIX programs to be ported to Windows 2000. Windows 2000 is fully compliant with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standard 1003.1, which is a standard for file naming and identification.
The following POSIX-compliant features are included in NTFS:
Case-sensitive naming. For example, POSIX would interpret README.TXT, Readme.txt, and readme.txt as different files. "
Hmm. I think that you are being over complementary of windows 2000's POSIX compliance. I work in a lab where we have win2k and linux side by side. Windows 2000 causes me no end of problems by not recognising (for example) Readme.txt and readme.txt as two different files when transfering files around / creating CD iso images.
I'm not saying that FAT32 is any better (it isn't) but I think that saying win2k is fully POSIX compliant is misleading.
I guess that what I was trying to get across was more the point of Scientific proof of evolution rather than my believe structure (and I obviously didn't do a good job;)
What I was trying to say is that this whole genome thing is just evidence that might point towards evolution, it is not proof.
The problem with the whole evolution thing is that you cannot approach it with the usual scientific method.. Can you observe evolution taking place? Can you say, hmm I think the mechanism is X, devise an experiment, and then test your hypothisis? - No. The only thing you can do is look at the historical evidence and find a theory that looks like it fits the facts.
Because of this it is very difficult to prove, nobody can come along and try new experiments to disprove it. All you can do is believe that you have found the right answer, you cannot prove it.
Ok, I'm a Christian and a scientist and I would like to point that I do think evolution could have happened.
However, I would like to point something out which I think people usually fail to take into account. If we take as red for a moment that there is an almighty, all powerful God who created the universe. And that he created us in his own image (thats what the bible says). Well, I have a sense of humor so I think that God probably does to.
Given all of this, what is to stop God having created us the way he did, and then leaving a couple of "jokes" for us to fall for? I could just imagine him laughing... ha, you guys have got it sooooo wrong!
But as I said I actually think that evolution is correct, but is it really "proved" (can you actually prove something which you can't observe and recreate? and even then is it proved?) does knowing that we evolved actually help? Where did the whole universe come from? - the big bang? Well what created the big bang? Don't forget the ask the next question... I found that it led me to God. I find believeing that we are only here because of random chance impossible to believe, just look at the work around us - it's incredible, I can't believe it wasn't designed by God.
I can see your point of view, however... From my position as a Sysadmin, a full report of a problem with my systems is much more appreciated (and much more likely to be acted on) than the usual - "your computers are broken"!
I've had all the extreems from "your f*~#ing website is broken - fix it" to "your machine alice appears to be version x of bob which is insecure, you can crack it be doing the following..."
Of the two, I ignored and was pissed off by the first, the second was useful and clear, and I reacted quickly, and thanked the person who made the bug report afterward (having checked the machine for hacks first;)
It's difficult to know where to draw the line, if someone told me my router was wide open, I'd still assume someone might have broken into it, so the extra telnet wouldn't really make a difference. But the extra information would be useful in solving the problem / believing the person who was submitting the problem.
"..virtually nobody has run into any problems with AMD CPUs, at least at the Athlon or better.."
Well I would like to put a word in as a site which has had problems. We currently run 100+ workstations for students in the UK which run RedHat Linux or Windows 2000 (roughly 50/50 split). A while ago we bought new machines with Intel 733 Pentium III processors which all run Windows 2000 just great. We also bought a AMD machine of similar spec (700 Mhz) which was flaky as hell! We run all our machines 24/7 and the intel boxes running windows were ok (not as good as the linux boxes which practically never crash), but the AMD box was rubbish crashing out 3 or 4 times a day! - after that experience we are going to use nothing but intel.
It makes our department look to bad if our machines aren't very reliable, we cannot risk using AMD chips as in our experince they just don't work. It seems a shame, but I wouldn't risk it when your reputation is at stake.
Just a quick note, I went to the bobby page that was linked, and, because I tend to think of nasty things like this I ran the bobby page through the page checker - just to check their own site out;)
Priority 1: User checks are triggered by something specific on the page; however, you need to determine whether they apply. Bobby Approval requires that none of them apply to your page. Please review these 6 item(s)....
Priority 2: 9 Priority 2 issue(s) that Bobby has identified......
Priority 3: 5 Priority 3 issue(s) that Bobby has identified......
Browser Compatibility: The following section contains a list of 6 browser compatibility errors.
If I was writing a web page that checked accessibility then I would have made sure that it passed my own checking software!
CD-R is NOT an archival storage medium - I seriously hope that you do not store anything you care about (eg. important company backups etc.) on CD-R, CD-R degrades where are DLT tapes are an archival storage medium, quote from quantum DLT media guide document:
"Quantum DLTtape media has an archival life of more than 30 years"
by some estimates CD-R can become useless within as little as 3-10 years.
Please please don't rely on dds2 / CD-R for REAL archives
The article says that time shifting of material for later use is fine... so what is all the fuss about?
If VCR's are just time shifting devices then what is the problem. As long as the data is not "archiveable" then I can't see there being a problem. Currently there is not a problem as there is no way of providing long term archive of digital data at a reasonable rate. CD-R is not a long time archive format as they degrade. Unless people are going to archive their data to DLT tapes then they only use for short term time shifting.
However what happens when hard-disk video units can be connected up to DVD-RAM drives? Will this be seen as archiveable media and then be restricted? Are DVD-RAM disks viable long term storage?
At the end of the day I don't understand what the problem is CD-R hasn't killed the CD market, so why would DVD-RAM kill the TV market? What are they affraid of, and why has "digital" changed anything? I think it is just another excuse to try and ban video type devices becuase they failed the first time;)
I work in a UK Computer Science department as system programmer / help desk contact point. At the uni, this october every undergraduate will be given a DVD rom which contains a "snapshot" of all the on-line notes for all the course the department offers (and most of the notes / slides are available on-line).
In addition to this, the CD contains course related software (subject to licences), redhat linux 6.2 (as it is used on about 50% of the departmental computers, and various useful programs that are freely available eg. Netscape, realplayer, flash plugins, IE, ftp, ssh etc.
The biggest problem this year is the amount of data, when the concept was run originally the department struggled to fill a CD-Rom, this year it will probably be a DVD-Rom with a Multiple CD option!
The department finds this invaluable as it can ensure that everybody has access to the software at home (provided they have a computer) as well as on the departmental computers. It also allows the students to look up notes etc. without having to make a trip from digs / halls to uni (and without spending what little money they have on modem phone bills;). But most of all there is the "coolness" factor - you get a free departmental DVD, no other department at our uni offers anything like it:)
I think that this wil be "the way of the future" as the data / software needed to get the most out of the course increases, there has to be CD / DVD's given out for free otherwise people can never go home or have to spend all their cash on modem bills / CD-R's to take thier downloads home on. Plus with a electronic media animated examples / complete code listings can be provided to give the students a better idea of the material being taught (particularly relvant for computer graphics courses).
Manic.
Is Slashdot behind the times?
on
Focusing Audio
·
· Score: 1
Strange I remember seeing this story on tomorrows world quite a while ago. So I decided to check on their web site.... And found this story dated the 12th January 2000: Sound Beam
It's good to see that Slashdot is there on the cutting edge of technology;)
Having said that, the sound beam did sound pretty cool but when it was reviewed in January. It had some problems with serious bass noises, but would be a wonderfull invention for clubs where the dancefloor could be loud, and still have quite areas to chill out and actually talk to people (no there's a novel concept).
I have used a PIC16F84 for a simple control project that involved interfacing a computer via RS232 and a spectrophotometer. There's no A-D but they can be fast (I used 10Mhz) and can be programmed in C if you are prepared to pay for a compiler (CSS do a good one that I used - link from the microchip web page)
I would seriously recommend thinking about a PIC as the interface chip, wired up to a palm pilot serial port, write the software for the palm an your sorted.
Seems to me that the solution is fairly simple. The main requirement is to find a PC case that is approximately 19in wide. Then hop along to RS and search for rs stock number 223-792. This is "L" shaped rack mounting strip that can be cut to the appropriate length.
Drill your case, bolt on, then bolt into the rack. Add a simple rack mounted 8 way extension lead, wire up and forget about it. Sure it's not elegant but it is cheap. If the case is a little short, buy some cheap thick metal to widen it with.
I would recommend the Creative Labs 4 point speaker system with sub:
4 point surround my friend has them running from an Aureal Vortex 2 sound card, the sound is stunning! Even a friend who is into real Hi-Fi said he was impressed with how good they sounded. Sweet trebble + solid bass
Get someone to demo them for you, you won't be disapointed.
For Linux to gain major recognition from the corporate world (which it must do to replace Windows) then it has to be used my major corporations. IF GM went ahead with switching to Linux then other company's would see that Linux is viable, and that Microsoft can be replaced. For larger company's Linux makes a lot of sense, it is more reliable, as the advantage of very easily configured "roaming" profiles so that users can access their information, desktop layout etc. from ANY computer. Plus as stated in the article NO licence problems - for a company with thousands of users, and 10's of servers the cost of Micro$oft licences is significant in the IT budget. If GM decide to go ahead with a Linux solution, then it could be the final step in proving that Linux can directly compete against Microsoft to all those misguided people who think it can't Manic.
A friend of mine was purchasing memory from a mail-order company in the UK. He was told that the reason for the price change was that one of the major manufacturers had gone bust! I'm affraid I don't know any more details but it's a start.
Some information for those interested in such stuff:
According to Bletchley Park (UK): The world's first programmable computer, Colossus I, was designed and operated in Bletchley Park. It was used to obtain the key to a sophisticated German cypher used personally by Hitler and his High Command. Its success led to the building of ten more Mk II models, which were operational in F Block in 1944. This block, the world's first computer complex, is still standing in Bletchley Park.
But it would appear that programming is open to some interpretation so.. from cranfield univsersity (UK) comes some more information: from their web page
Colossus, hardware details Input: cipher text punched onto 5 hole paper tape read at 5,000 characters per second by optical reader Output: Buffered onto relays: Typewriter printing onto paper roll Processor: Memory 5 characters of 5 bits held in a shift register. Clock speed 5kc/s derived from input tape sprocket holes. Internally generated bit streams totalling 501 bits in rings of lengths equal to the number of mechanical lugs on each of the 12 Lorenz wheels. A large number of pluggable logic gates. 20 decade counters arranged as 5 by 4 decades. 2,500 valves. Power supplies: +200v to -150v at up to 10A. Power consumption: 4.5KWatt Size: Two banks of racks 7ft 6inches high by 16ft wide spaced 6 ft apart. Bedstead, 7ft 6inches high 4ft wide by 10ft long
Colossus, operating cycles The basic machine cycle: read a character from tape, get bits from bit stream generators, perform up to 100 logic operations, clock result into decade counters. The cycle determined by the input tape: The intercepted enciphered text tape is joined into a continuous loop with about 150 blank characters in the join. Specially punched start and stop holes indicate the beginning and end of the cipher text.
On receipt of start hole pulse: Start bit stream generators and send sampling pulses to reader output. Execute basic machine cycle until receipt of stop hole pulse: Staticise counter states onto relays. After a delay, reset counters and reset bit stream generators to a new start position.
Colossus programming All programmes hard wired, some permanently, some pluggable. Conditional jumping possible between alternative programmes depending on counter outputs.
To conclude does this constitute a "properly" programmable computer? Well it was at least partialy programmable, and the Mark II was even more so, but at the end of the day, as other people have said: It's all a question of your deffinition;)
Fair point, I don't know about motherboard prices in the US, but here in the UK if I was to build a machine with a K6-3/450, a half decent motherboard would cost about £70 (mail order) and the chip would cost me about £120 (mail order)
This means that my motherboard is more than half the cost of my chip. In my books that is a significant extra cost.
Although, come to think of it, it is probably just that in the UK we always get a bad deal on computer equipment;)
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for competition in the processor market, and 8MB of cache sounds like the chip would fly!
But why do AMD and Intel insist on this "war" about the socket architecture? One of the best things about the Super Socket 7 was that you could buy a mother board, and then slap a Cyrix chip, a standard pentium, a K6/2 or a K6/3. This gave people on a low budget a nice clear upgrade route from a cheap processor to something more worthwhile.
All this customising of sockets is good for performace, but why don't they take the cost / upgrading of systems into account? Not everybody can afford to shell out for a new processor every 6 months, let alone a new processor AND motherboard.
We also have a room full of SPARCstations, probably about 60-70 again, and they do seem to be more stable BUT way slow compared with the nice IRIX machines. I guess 6 of one....
Where I attend university there is a room that contains approximately 60 IRIX machines. People (not me) use them for CAD, finite element analysis, etc. I use them to check my e-mail:). These machines run 24hrs a day, 7 days a week. I have NEVER seen more than 2/3 not working despite constant use, and no re-boots.
How about this for an alternative. Purchase a video capture PCMCIA card (if they exist) and connect the capture card up to the PC you want to connect the LCD display to..
Run the software so that it is constantly updating a full screen image from the capture card. Extend the cable on the display, hide the laptop and PSU under a desk somewhere.. and hey presto, it looks like you have a fancy wall mounted LCD display, but in reality there is just some simple video capture and display software / hardware.
Sorry to say this but you are REALLY going to have your work cut out if you want to do this. As other people have pointed out there is a fundamental problem with an LCD pannel and that is that they are Digital, and a standard VGA signal is Analogue.
This means that you are going to have to create a serious piece of custom hardware to connect them to a standard VGA output. The circuit would need to include a high speed Analogue to Digital converter, and a programmed proccessor chip to convert the digital signals into the correct format for controlling your particular display.
You will need to be VERY handy with a soldering iron to manage all of the above but if you think you can, and can get the manufactures specs, then go for it. I will certainly be an interesting project! Having said this, my advice would have to be using linux as an X-Console, Microsoft terminal server, or some form of bought solution
Slashdot Mirror
If you want POSIX compliance, you must use NTFS. POSIX compliance permits UNIX programs to be ported to Windows 2000. Windows 2000 is fully compliant with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standard 1003.1, which is a standard for file naming and identification.
The following POSIX-compliant features are included in NTFS:
Case-sensitive naming. For example, POSIX would interpret README.TXT, Readme.txt, and readme.txt as different files. "
Hmm. I think that you are being over complementary of windows 2000's POSIX compliance.
I work in a lab where we have win2k and linux side by side. Windows 2000 causes me no end of problems by not recognising (for example) Readme.txt and readme.txt as two different files when transfering files around / creating CD iso images.
I'm not saying that FAT32 is any better (it isn't) but I think that saying win2k is fully POSIX compliant is misleading.
I guess that what I was trying to get across was more the point of Scientific proof of evolution rather than my believe structure (and I obviously didn't do a good job ;)
What I was trying to say is that this whole genome thing is just evidence that might point towards evolution, it is not proof.
The problem with the whole evolution thing is that you cannot approach it with the usual scientific method.. Can you observe evolution taking place? Can you say, hmm I think the mechanism is X, devise an experiment, and then test your hypothisis? - No. The only thing you can do is look at the historical evidence and find a theory that looks like it fits the facts.
Because of this it is very difficult to prove, nobody can come along and try new experiments to disprove it. All you can do is believe that you have found the right answer, you cannot prove it.
Ok, I'm a Christian and a scientist and I would like to point that I do think evolution could have happened.
However, I would like to point something out which I think people usually fail to take into account. If we take as red for a moment that there is an almighty, all powerful God who created the universe. And that he created us in his own image (thats what the bible says). Well, I have a sense of humor so I think that God probably does to.
Given all of this, what is to stop God having created us the way he did, and then leaving a couple of "jokes" for us to fall for? I could just imagine him laughing... ha, you guys have got it sooooo wrong!
But as I said I actually think that evolution is correct, but is it really "proved" (can you actually prove something which you can't observe and recreate? and even then is it proved?) does knowing that we evolved actually help? Where did the whole universe come from? - the big bang? Well what created the big bang? Don't forget the ask the next question... I found that it led me to God. I find believeing that we are only here because of random chance impossible to believe, just look at the work around us - it's incredible, I can't believe it wasn't designed by God.
I can see your point of view, however... From my position as a Sysadmin, a full report of a problem with my systems is much more appreciated (and much more likely to be acted on) than the usual - "your computers are broken"!
I've had all the extreems from "your f*~#ing website is broken - fix it" to "your machine alice appears to be version x of bob which is insecure, you can crack it be doing the following..."
Of the two, I ignored and was pissed off by the first, the second was useful and clear, and I reacted quickly, and thanked the person who made the bug report afterward (having checked the machine for hacks first ;)
It's difficult to know where to draw the line, if someone told me my router was wide open, I'd still assume someone might have broken into it, so the extra telnet wouldn't really make a difference. But the extra information would be useful in solving the problem / believing the person who was submitting the problem.
"..virtually nobody has run into any problems with AMD CPUs, at least at the Athlon or better.."
Well I would like to put a word in as a site which has had problems. We currently run 100+ workstations for students in the UK which run RedHat Linux or Windows 2000 (roughly 50/50 split). A while ago we bought new machines with Intel 733 Pentium III processors which all run Windows 2000 just great. We also bought a AMD machine of similar spec (700 Mhz) which was flaky as hell! We run all our machines 24/7 and the intel boxes running windows were ok (not as good as the linux boxes which practically never crash), but the AMD box was rubbish crashing out 3 or 4 times a day! - after that experience we are going to use nothing but intel.
It makes our department look to bad if our machines aren't very reliable, we cannot risk using AMD chips as in our experince they just don't work. It seems a shame, but I wouldn't risk it when your reputation is at stake.
Just a quick note, I went to the bobby page that was linked, and, because I tend to think of nasty things like this I ran the bobby page through the page checker - just to check their own site out ;)
I was kind of shocked by the results:
- Priority 1: User checks are triggered by something specific on the page; however, you need to determine whether they apply. Bobby Approval requires that none of them apply to your page. Please review these 6 item(s)....
- Priority 2: 9 Priority 2 issue(s) that Bobby has identified......
- Priority 3: 5 Priority 3 issue(s) that Bobby has identified......
- Browser Compatibility: The following section contains a list of 6 browser compatibility errors.
If I was writing a web page that checked accessibility then I would have made sure that it passed my own checking software!CD-R is NOT an archival storage medium - I seriously hope that you do not store anything you care about (eg. important company backups etc.) on CD-R, CD-R degrades where are DLT tapes are an archival storage medium, quote from quantum DLT media guide document:
"Quantum DLTtape media has an archival life of more than 30 years"
by some estimates CD-R can become useless within as little as 3-10 years.
Please please don't rely on dds2 / CD-R for REAL archives
The article says that time shifting of material for later use is fine... so what is all the fuss about?
If VCR's are just time shifting devices then what is the problem. As long as the data is not "archiveable" then I can't see there being a problem. Currently there is not a problem as there is no way of providing long term archive of digital data at a reasonable rate. CD-R is not a long time archive format as they degrade. Unless people are going to archive their data to DLT tapes then they only use for short term time shifting.
However what happens when hard-disk video units can be connected up to DVD-RAM drives? Will this be seen as archiveable media and then be restricted? Are DVD-RAM disks viable long term storage?
At the end of the day I don't understand what the problem is CD-R hasn't killed the CD market, so why would DVD-RAM kill the TV market? What are they affraid of, and why has "digital" changed anything? I think it is just another excuse to try and ban video type devices becuase they failed the first time ;)
I work in a UK Computer Science department as system programmer / help desk contact point. At the uni, this october every undergraduate will be given a DVD rom which contains a "snapshot" of all the on-line notes for all the course the department offers (and most of the notes / slides are available on-line).
In addition to this, the CD contains course related software (subject to licences), redhat linux 6.2 (as it is used on about 50% of the departmental computers, and various useful programs that are freely available eg. Netscape, realplayer, flash plugins, IE, ftp, ssh etc.
The biggest problem this year is the amount of data, when the concept was run originally the department struggled to fill a CD-Rom, this year it will probably be a DVD-Rom with a Multiple CD option!
The department finds this invaluable as it can ensure that everybody has access to the software at home (provided they have a computer) as well as on the departmental computers. It also allows the students to look up notes etc. without having to make a trip from digs / halls to uni (and without spending what little money they have on modem phone bills ;). But most of all there is the "coolness" factor - you get a free departmental DVD, no other department at our uni offers anything like it :)
I think that this wil be "the way of the future" as the data / software needed to get the most out of the course increases, there has to be CD / DVD's given out for free otherwise people can never go home or have to spend all their cash on modem bills / CD-R's to take thier downloads home on. Plus with a electronic media animated examples / complete code listings can be provided to give the students a better idea of the material being taught (particularly relvant for computer graphics courses).
Manic.
Strange I remember seeing this story on tomorrows world quite a while ago. So I decided to check on their web site.... And found this story dated the 12th January 2000: Sound Beam
It's good to see that Slashdot is there on the cutting edge of technology ;)
Having said that, the sound beam did sound pretty cool but when it was reviewed in January. It had some problems with serious bass noises, but would be a wonderfull invention for clubs where the dancefloor could be loud, and still have quite areas to chill out and actually talk to people (no there's a novel concept).
Manic Miner.
I have used a PIC16F84 for a simple control project that involved interfacing a computer via RS232 and a spectrophotometer. There's no A-D but they can be fast (I used 10Mhz) and can be programmed in C if you are prepared to pay for a compiler (CSS do a good one that I used - link from the microchip web page)
I would seriously recommend thinking about a PIC as the interface chip, wired up to a palm pilot serial port, write the software for the palm an your sorted.
Drill your case, bolt on, then bolt into the rack. Add a simple rack mounted 8 way extension lead, wire up and forget about it. Sure it's not elegant but it is cheap. If the case is a little short, buy some cheap thick metal to widen it with.
I would recommend the Creative Labs 4 point speaker system with sub:
4 point surround
my friend has them running from an Aureal Vortex 2 sound card, the sound is stunning! Even a friend who is into real Hi-Fi said he was impressed with how good they sounded. Sweet trebble + solid bass
Get someone to demo them for you, you won't be disapointed.
For Linux to gain major recognition from the corporate world (which it must do to replace Windows) then it has to be used my major corporations.
IF GM went ahead with switching to Linux then other company's would see that Linux is viable, and that Microsoft can be replaced. For larger company's Linux makes a lot of sense, it is more reliable, as the advantage of very easily configured "roaming" profiles so that users can access their information, desktop layout etc. from ANY computer. Plus as stated in the article NO licence problems - for a company with thousands of users, and 10's of servers the cost of Micro$oft licences is significant in the IT budget.
If GM decide to go ahead with a Linux solution, then it could be the final step in proving that Linux can directly compete against Microsoft to all those misguided people who think it can't
Manic.
"Nanobots" here we come!
A friend of mine was purchasing memory from a mail-order company in the UK. He was told that the reason for the price change was that one of the major manufacturers had gone bust! I'm affraid I don't know any more details but it's a start.
Manic.
Some information for those interested in such stuff:
;)
According to Bletchley Park (UK):
The world's first programmable computer, Colossus I, was designed and operated in Bletchley Park. It was used to obtain the key to a sophisticated German cypher used personally by Hitler and his High Command. Its success led to the building of ten more Mk II models, which were operational in F Block in 1944. This block, the world's first computer complex, is still standing in Bletchley Park.
But it would appear that programming is open to some interpretation so.. from cranfield univsersity (UK) comes some more information: from their web page
Colossus, hardware details
Input: cipher text punched onto 5 hole paper tape read at 5,000 characters per second by optical reader
Output: Buffered onto relays: Typewriter printing onto paper roll
Processor: Memory 5 characters of 5 bits held in a shift register. Clock speed 5kc/s derived from input tape sprocket holes. Internally generated bit streams totalling 501 bits in rings of lengths equal to the number of mechanical lugs on each of the 12 Lorenz wheels. A large number of pluggable logic gates. 20 decade counters arranged as 5 by 4 decades. 2,500 valves.
Power supplies: +200v to -150v at up to 10A.
Power consumption: 4.5KWatt
Size: Two banks of racks 7ft 6inches high by 16ft wide spaced 6 ft apart. Bedstead, 7ft 6inches high 4ft wide by 10ft long
Colossus, operating cycles
The basic machine cycle: read a character from tape, get bits from bit stream generators, perform up to 100 logic operations, clock result into decade counters.
The cycle determined by the input tape: The intercepted enciphered text tape is joined into a continuous loop with about 150 blank characters in the join. Specially punched start and stop holes indicate the beginning and end of the cipher text.
On receipt of start hole pulse: Start bit stream generators and send sampling pulses to reader output. Execute basic machine cycle until receipt of stop hole pulse: Staticise counter states onto relays. After a delay, reset counters and reset bit stream generators to a new start position.
Colossus programming
All programmes hard wired, some permanently, some pluggable. Conditional jumping possible between alternative programmes depending on counter outputs.
To conclude
does this constitute a "properly" programmable computer? Well it was at least partialy programmable, and the Mark II was even more so, but at the end of the day, as other people have said:
It's all a question of your deffinition
Fair point, I don't know about motherboard prices in the US, but here in the UK if I was to build a machine with a K6-3/450, a half decent motherboard would cost about £70 (mail order) and the chip would cost me about £120 (mail order)
;)
This means that my motherboard is more than half the cost of my chip. In my books that is a significant extra cost.
Although, come to think of it, it is probably just that in the UK we always get a bad deal on computer equipment
Manic.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for competition in the processor market, and 8MB of cache sounds like the chip would fly!
But why do AMD and Intel insist on this "war" about the socket architecture? One of the best things about the Super Socket 7 was that you could buy a mother board, and then slap a Cyrix chip, a standard pentium, a K6/2 or a K6/3. This gave people on a low budget a nice clear upgrade route from a cheap processor to something more worthwhile.
All this customising of sockets is good for performace, but why don't they take the cost / upgrading of systems into account? Not everybody can afford to shell out for a new processor every 6 months, let alone a new processor AND motherboard.
Manic.
No need to post the log, I am quite happy to take your word for it. I was just saying that not all IRIX machines crash out all the time.
:)
And if nothing else, they do have funky boxes
Yeah, fair comment.
We also have a room full of SPARCstations, probably about 60-70 again, and they do seem to be more stable BUT way slow compared with the nice IRIX machines. I guess 6 of one....
;)
Strange...
:). These machines run 24hrs a day, 7 days a week. I have NEVER seen more than 2/3 not working despite constant use, and no re-boots.
;)
Where I attend university there is a room that contains approximately 60 IRIX machines. People (not me) use them for CAD, finite element analysis, etc. I use them to check my e-mail
Not bad for an "unstable" OS
How about this for an alternative.
Purchase a video capture PCMCIA card (if they exist) and connect the capture card up to the PC you want to connect the LCD display to..
Run the software so that it is constantly updating a full screen image from the capture card.
Extend the cable on the display, hide the laptop and PSU under a desk somewhere.. and hey presto, it looks like you have a fancy wall mounted LCD display, but in reality there is just some simple video capture and display software / hardware.
Just another thought / alternative.
This means that you are going to have to create a serious piece of custom hardware to connect them to a standard VGA output. The circuit would need to include a high speed Analogue to Digital converter, and a programmed proccessor chip to convert the digital signals into the correct format for controlling your particular display.
You will need to be VERY handy with a soldering iron to manage all of the above but if you think you can, and can get the manufactures specs, then go for it. I will certainly be an interesting project! Having said this, my advice would have to be using linux as an X-Console, Microsoft terminal server, or some form of bought solution
I hope this helps
Manic.