So Linux isn't ready for the desktop yet, eh? (fwd)

[ccb at valinux.com (ccb at valinux.com)]

> > Say Jerry, wasn't the DEC PDP 8 (the Robin I think it was called) used
> > for word processing for the IBM PC went to market???

The VT180 (Robin) was a VT100 with a card cage adapter (yes, the VT100
had SLOTS) connecting it to an external unit with Z-80 SBC and a pair
of Shuggart 801 8" floppy drives.  Like most Z-80 gear, It ran CP/M.

The DECmate was a dedicated word processor system built around the DEC
238 12-bit microprocessor, effectively a PDP-8 on a chip.

The DEC Professional was a PDP-11 (LSI11) desktop.  Pro350 used a T11,
the Pro380 used the J11.  It ran a scaled-down version of RSX-11
called "Professional Operating System" and it was.  We had a port of
BSD 2.7 or 2.8 (V7M-11, Ultrix-11) that we ran on it in-house but
never sold.

The DEC Rainbow was an 8086 box that was "better" (in that special DEC
way) than a PC and almost compatible with it.

The VAXMate was another intel-based vogon misadventure that was
effectively a new and innovative way to siphon cycles off your VAX
while doing nothing particularly interesting at your desktop.

My favorite paperweight of the era?  The VAXStation2000, of course.
The again I do so fondly remember the VAX-11/725 with it's primary
storage on the removable RC-25 disk cartridge system.


ccb
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