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Conference 7.286::digital

Title:The Digital way of working
Moderator:QUARK::LIONELON
Created:Fri Feb 14 1986
Last Modified:Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:5321
Total number of notes:139771

1846.0. "Comments? VAX -> ALPHA; Future of VAX HW?" by DIODE::CROWELL (Jon Crowell) Sun Apr 12 1992 19:45

    
    
    How would you handle the future of (DEC STD 32) VAXes?
    
    How long do you think we need to continue designing
    non-alpha VAX systems?
    
    What features would you add to systems like the VAX4000
    in any future systems?
    
    What percent improvement in performance is acceptable
    to make people feel a system is new and better, 10%, 20%,
    50%??
    
    What things are important in this transition VAX -> ALPHA?
    
T.RTitleUserPersonal
Name
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1846.1Free advice, and worth every pennyRANGER::MINOWThe best lack all conviction, while the worstMon Apr 13 1992 00:479
Since Alpha can emulate a Vax (or so I was told), and since Alpha will
be out in the "PC price/performance class" in some hopfully not too
distant future, I fail to see why we should be building "pure" Vax
systems except in niche markets, such as single-chip real-time systems.

If I were you, I'd put my engineering/manufacturing effort into lowering
the cost of Alpha systems.

Martin.
1846.2VAX still has a purposePRIMES::ZIMMERMANNVOTE for 'REAL CHOICES' to DCUMon Apr 13 1992 01:247
    I think this is a dangerous topic for this conference.  Any
    knowledgeable talk of Alpha would be inappropriate for this
    conference, leaving many readers with the wrong impression of Alpha. 
    VAX's should, and I hope will, be produced for some time for come, and
    for good reason.
    
    Mark
1846.3SICVAX::SWEENEYPatrick Sweeney in New YorkMon Apr 13 1992 01:5911
    What's going on here?

    "Knowledgeable talk" about Alpha should be going on continuously inside
    the company and with customers by people who know the facts.

    The Alpha conference is VAXWRK::ALPHANOTES, let the technical
    knowledge flow there.  Let the marketing commentary proceed in
    NODEMO::MARKETING.

    Everyone has a stake in Alpha, and Alpha will either save or destroy
    Digital.
1846.4Alpha vs R4000HGOVC::RAYMONDLEEMon Apr 13 1992 07:167
    I went to an internal training on Open System this morning.  I was told
    that "Alpha Project" has made Digital without any new DECsystem for
    another 9-12 months.  The R4000 chip product was delayed because of
    Alpha.  Our competitors have it now.
    
    I was also told that OpenVMS is a joke.  We are kidding ourself.  The
    message was "Open means Unix".
1846.5R4000 schedule not impacted by AlphaSLOAN::HOMMon Apr 13 1992 11:3413
>     The R4000 chip product was delayed because of
>     Alpha. 

As a member of the Workstations Engineering PCU, I can say that this
statement is absolutely NOT true.  Part of the reason for the long
engineering schedule was the need to make the R4000 daughter cards
compatible with the current R3000 (32bit) daughter card.

There were and still are two separate engineering teams: one for
the R4000 products and one for the Alpha based workstations.

Gim

1846.6Topic write-lockedSCAACT::AINSLEYLess than 150 kts. is TOO slowMon Apr 13 1992 12:509
As Patrick Sweeney put it so well in .3, the alpha discussion should continue
in VAXWRK::ALPHANOTES and the VAX and marketing discussion should continue in
NODEMO::MARKETING.

As usual, check the rules of both conferences before discussing futures.

Thanks,

Bob Co-moderator DIGITAL