Re: [SLE] 9.3 Ships!

From: Carlos E. R. (robin1.listas_at_tiscali.es)
Date: 04/17/05

  • Next message: Scott Leighton: "[SLE] Issues with 9.2 upgrade to 9.3" 
    Date: Sun, 17 Apr 2005 02:35:57 +0200 (CEST)
To: SLE <suse-linux-e@suse.com>

    The Saturday 2005-04-16 at 15:43 -0700, Randall R Schulz wrote:

    > CPU "power," perhaps, but there's more to computing that the CPU. The
    > VAX had a pretty sophisticated I/O architecture (part of which, the
    > Unibus Adaptor, was just there to make it possible for the large base
    > of installed PDP-11 installations to keep their existing peripherals).
    > The VAX could move a lot more data than any system that was ever built
    > around the 386.

    My first computer programming lab (pascal) used a VAX, for a lot of
    people. We were so many that on the busy times (like when everybody was
    compiling/testing their programs) we had to wait several seconds for the
    cursor to move. I had to edit by counting letters and pressing the
    keyboard blind. Oh, I thought it was so slow!

    By that time I got my first PC, an 8086 (not 8088), 512K, 8MHz, no HD. I
    could program my "exercises" at home (tpascal-2), without time limits. I
    thought it was fast.

    We did a program to recursively calculate the colors for a map, using four
    colours only (there is a theorem that proves that only 4 colours are
    needed for painting any map. I timed the program on the PC, and later in
    the VAX. The surprise came when the VAX proved to be much faster, the
    moment it was my program turn to run. 

    -- 
Cheers,
       Carlos Robinson
-- 
Check the headers for your unsubscription address
For additional commands send e-mail to suse-linux-e-help@suse.com
Also check the archives at http://lists.suse.com
Please read the FAQs: suse-linux-e-faq@suse.com
  • Next message: Scott Leighton: "[SLE] Issues with 9.2 upgrade to 9.3"