From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on inbox.vuxu.org X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.8 required=5.0 tests=DKIM_ADSP_CUSTOM_MED, DKIM_INVALID,DKIM_SIGNED,FREEMAIL_FROM,MAILING_LIST_MULTI, RCVD_IN_DNSWL_NONE autolearn=ham autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 Received: (qmail 18081 invoked from network); 19 Jul 2020 20:43:25 -0000 Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (45.79.103.53) by inbox.vuxu.org with ESMTPUTF8; 19 Jul 2020 20:43:25 -0000 Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id 552DD9BA61; Mon, 20 Jul 2020 06:43:24 +1000 (AEST) Received: from minnie.tuhs.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 312F49BA30; Mon, 20 Jul 2020 06:42:54 +1000 (AEST) Authentication-Results: minnie.tuhs.org; dkim=fail reason="signature verification failed" (2048-bit key; unprotected) header.d=gmail.com header.i=@gmail.com header.b="VUUIJBLy"; dkim-atps=neutral Received: by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix, from userid 112) id 756689BA30; Mon, 20 Jul 2020 06:42:51 +1000 (AEST) Received: from mail-vs1-f43.google.com (mail-vs1-f43.google.com [209.85.217.43]) by minnie.tuhs.org (Postfix) with ESMTPS id 98CD79BA2A for ; Mon, 20 Jul 2020 06:42:50 +1000 (AEST) Received: by mail-vs1-f43.google.com with SMTP id j186so7460581vsd.10 for ; Sun, 19 Jul 2020 13:42:50 -0700 (PDT) DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=20161025; h=mime-version:from:date:message-id:subject:to:cc; bh=5LTd7Ogx/hUfpHOizvZ2vMy66BlicDD1M/FV5xvF+28=; b=VUUIJBLy9Q7KHGBdziK/8Bca8kR71XzoR95IQvOBnbFcfriR1Dp5jXLmT22g9OIITK eRb17vgVJp3U1z0GKIKubXfbuJAyL9vztLpCe+vugcFr6Xpcfh39KRF8y8Up2ufgXSNT L5JnJqbB9+/c+sCVM1m21UQGubgk/I0kJ5Aa3cpOiHWdWyxQkgZy4phNVekNETyYY3ME IURXOc1kjsIOqp/tdQ/2kN4NkqH+yn1p2qn0O/p27izmrB7e4LgAuMrMiX1l5K6ZtcSq nJWNr4FfVvdoap+9K5pzIGMPNNSmvV2Sl6c3GElgMg+1D3xwUxRBf7fIr6s41F1MDxde ibMw== X-Google-DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=1e100.net; s=20161025; h=x-gm-message-state:mime-version:from:date:message-id:subject:to:cc; bh=5LTd7Ogx/hUfpHOizvZ2vMy66BlicDD1M/FV5xvF+28=; b=tWZXmJu2dlPRXeoFIz5q0gyhXbceexFtxNnIjIijcGaIPlQ2aLpVXyastRflg8DJY4 3076U5RnVG2RMXVw3iebl6HJqlVaizHg/Q+s6QC6NwGh0ObQjZDAoNgaDxtqPbQ9TlUD PSeR8BKveT95vTyMPhgODZhlMWOb8drGbjBEUIUiOPDvgq95t3wleDjdSjT1Pm4Goffx xbkfZ2kH1yW+8Xc1j2+sXWkF2Y3BulM6rT1e8qJGVBqpz0VpXR8jFGwFL6xJgqw/2ylY HGtk886t9SNarfZPSpn47OToV96IUaanFuEq9rCCfXvQTWbgy+17I23P8SpcIwTsm2Zf vszQ== X-Gm-Message-State: AOAM532bueHYy/OpWHHrwnPmK4mR5G+RUSYfZXuLDSZPz8VpA4ZsgSMK JDpWVCymumTZeDsH37A7ihYSkbJZsK2Yhv79bDo= X-Google-Smtp-Source: ABdhPJzgBx5j5uWyUF5SPZmYamT+69fXUQhLWUCOAbw/18DvVNctXgN2OIjONrZnpEUFVlNHtnxPWDP66yMGuESE0Yk= X-Received: by 2002:a67:6785:: with SMTP id b127mr14249198vsc.186.1595191369735; Sun, 19 Jul 2020 13:42:49 -0700 (PDT) MIME-Version: 1.0 Received: by 2002:ab0:214d:0:0:0:0:0 with HTTP; Sun, 19 Jul 2020 13:42:49 -0700 (PDT) From: Paul Winalski Date: Sun, 19 Jul 2020 16:42:49 -0400 Message-ID: To: emanuel stiebler Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" Subject: [TUHS] MicroVAX architecture (was: Linux is on-topic) X-BeenThere: tuhs@minnie.tuhs.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.26 Precedence: list List-Id: The Unix Heritage Society mailing list List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Cc: The Eunuchs Hysterical Society Errors-To: tuhs-bounces@minnie.tuhs.org Sender: "TUHS" On 7/19/20, emanuel stiebler wrote: > > That's why DEC made also the MicroVAX. I had once a MVII/BA23 in my > samsonite. Weird look at customs, but worked ;-) > By the early 1980s it was apparent that some of the more complicated VAX instructions weren't worth the space they took up in firmware. Especially POLY and EMOD, which turned out to be both slower and less accurate than coding them up as subroutines. And the PL/I and COBOL compilers were implementing packed decimal using decimal shadowing. Chucking out those instructions and doing them by emulation in the OS freed up enough chip real estate to allow the remaining VAX architecture to be implemented on a chip. All the later VAXen supported only the MicroVAX subset architecture in hardware/firmware. I don't recall which was the last VAX to support the whole architecture in hardware/firmware. Perhaps the VAX 8200/8300 (Scorpio)? That was a single-board implementation. It could be paired with a high-end Evans & Sutherland 3D graphics monitor. DEC tried unsuccessfully to use that combination to compete with Apollo in the workstation market, but it was too little too late. One reviewer said that coupling the E&S graphics to the VAX 8200 was like turbocharging a lawn mower. Did Unix support that configuration, or was it VMS-only? -Paul W.