Re: IBM & Linux

From: Michael H. Warfield (mhw@wittsend.com)
Date: Wed Jan 19 2000 - 20:33:33 EST


On Wed, Jan 19, 2000 at 10:30:30PM +0000, Adam Fritzler wrote:
> On Wed, 19 Jan 2000, Kevin A. Burton wrote:

> > MicroChannel? Is that still being used or are these just old cards?

> I do not know of any manufacturers still making machines or cards based on
> MicroChannel. However, there is a very sizable user base of older
> machines that use it.

        Actually, I do. I helped get the Computone-II Multiport serial
card drivers into the Linux kernel. Computone does make an MCA card.
The decision was up for grabs whether to support the MCA card. We decided
not to. I put it on my web site under things we weren't going to support
along with the question "does anyone really care?" I have yet to hear
a single peep. The board exists and is in production. It is not supported
under Linux like it's ISA or PCI brethren.

> Production of MCA RS/6ks was killed in 1996/7 (iirc), I'm betting those
> were the last to use MCA. Though there might have been a few MCA PS/2's
> produced around then as well.

        MCA was a good idea for it's time. I worked on several cards
designed for MCA. Too bad IBM decided to make it an example where
intellectual property trumps good idea and destroys it.

> af

> ---
> Adam Fritzler
> { mid@auk.cx, afritz@iname.com}
> http://www.auk.cx/~mid/

        Mike

-- 
 Michael H. Warfield    |  (770) 985-6132   |  mhw@WittsEnd.com
  (The Mad Wizard)      |  (770) 331-2437   |  http://www.wittsend.com/mhw/
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