1548 lines
60 KiB
Plaintext
1548 lines
60 KiB
Plaintext
From vistachrome.com!andy@cyan.vistachrome.com Sat Jan 23 10:43:12 1993
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id AA14654; Sat, 23 Jan 93 10:17:39 EST
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From: andy@vistachrome.com (Andrew Finkenstadt)
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Message-Id: <9301231517.AA14654@vistachrome.com>
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Subject: Coherent FAQ
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To: andy@genie.geis.com
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Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1993 10:17:38 -0500 (EST)
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X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL20]
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Content-Type: text
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Content-Length: 59572
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From: mike@array.com (Mike Willett)
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Date: 23 Jan 93 01:57:43 GMT
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Newsgroups: comp.os.coherent
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Subject: Coherent FAQ, General Information
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A N I N T R O D U C T I O N T O T H E C O H E R E N T F O R U M :
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Comp.os.coherent (Usenet) / Coherent list on ListServ@IndyCMS
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Rev. 2.3
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A N I N T R O D U C T I O N T O C O H E R E N T
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General Information FAQ for the Coherent Operating System
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C O N T E N T S :
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What is Coherent?
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Will Coherent run on my system?
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What incompatibilities are known?
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Can I still run DOS?
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What about technical support?
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What revision is Coherent?
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How many people run Coherent?
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Can source postings be made in this newsgroup (comp.os.coherent)?
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Public domain software:
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Where do I get the public domain software?
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Heated discussions of the group:
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MISC:
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Disclaimer:
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Trademarks:
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A N I N T R O D U C T I O N T O C O H E R E N T
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-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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WHAT IS COHERENT?
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Coherent is a multi-tasking, multi-user operating system for IBM
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PC's and compatibles. It will run on most systems with a 286,
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386, or 486 CPU. Coherent closely represents the Unix operating
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system, but, it is not Unix. Coherent appears to be very similar
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to Version 7 Unix, or for those of you that have not had the
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pleasure, close to System 5 Unix. Coherent includes uucp (Coherent
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to Coherent Copy) :) and many more functions you would expect with
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Unix. Coherent is small and simple, easy to maintain, and does not
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require extensive CPU resources to operate well. It does not have
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network nor X windows support, and does not require an AT&T
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license for Unix. It is as advertised, a quick, elegant Unix-like
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multi-tasking, multi-user Operating System, with good
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documentation.
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WILL COHERENT RUN ON MY SYSTEM?
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Coherent runs on just about all 286-386-486 systems. To list them
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here would make this document far too lengthy. It is suggested
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that if you are in doubt, buy Coherent, and when it is almost
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beyond a doubt that you can not run Coherent on your machine, to
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return the software and documentation to the the Mark Williams
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Company within 60 days for a full refund as per their policy.
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WHAT INCOMPATIBILITIES ARE KNOWN?
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IBM XT compatibles will not work, since the Coherent version 3.2
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operating system uses the 286 protected mode. Coherent version
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4.0 only works on 386 or 486 proccessors and operates in the 386
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protected mode.
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Coherent will not run on an AT&T 6300, IBM PS/2 model, or with the
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Western Digital WD1004-27X (XT) or other XT controllers. Coherent
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exhibits a slight problem with some 386 AMI BIOS, whereas Coherent
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requires a cold boot (hit the reset switch, not CTL- ALT-DEL) to
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boot Coherent after previously running DOS. The latest revisions
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of the AMI BIOS may not exibit this problem.
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CAN I STILL RUN DOS?
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Yes, Coherent can reside on a disk partition separate from DOS,
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and likewise DOS on a partition separate from Coherent. You can
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boot either one at boot time via a "boot strap" program. They
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will not run concurrently however. DOS file systems are available
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to Coherent with the Coherent DOS command, so files can be
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transferred from DOS to Coherent, Coherent to DOS.
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WHAT ABOUT TECHNICAL SUPPORT?
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It is generally felt that Mark Williams Company provides excellent
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technical support of their software within the U.S.A.. They can
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be reached via phone (708) 291-6700, or email:
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uunet!mwc!support (General uucp address)
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support@mwc.com (Internet address)
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mwcbbs!support (from your system directly to the uucp connection
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they provided by the Mark Williams Company)
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WHAT REVISION IS COHERENT?
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Coherent is offered in two revisions. Revision 3.2 will run on
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systems with a 286 or higher processor, but does not take
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advantage of the 386 architecture, and has the 64K executable and
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64K data limits. Revision 3.2 is the last revision of Coherent
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for the 286 protected mode OS. Bug fixes will continue to be
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posted to mwcbbs to support customers of the 3.2 version.
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COHERENT 4.0 was announced in May of 1992, and is targeted for the
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386 and 486 processors. This revision does not have the 64K
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limits of revision 3.2, but, still does not include a virtual
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memory system that swaps pages out to disk. See the 4.0 specific
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FAQ posted with this FAQ for more information.
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Both versions of OS are available at $99.00, and updates from 3.2
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to 4.0 are now priced at $79.00.
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HOW MANY PEOPLE RUN COHERENT?
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The Mark Williams Company has stated that the sales volume has
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passed 40,000 copies since its introduction to the market in 1990.
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CAN POSTINGS BE MADE IN THIS NEWS GROUP (COMP.OS.COHERENT)?
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It is somewhat accepted that source for Coherent will be posted in
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this news group occasionally. Keep in mind that large postings
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cost money to those that pay for telephone and connect time, so
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perhaps a short posting to query general interest should precede
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the posting. Direct mailing should be used if there is small
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interest, and a posting to archive sites such as raven.alaska.edu.
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If the interest is overwhelming, a posting to this news group may
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be in order, along with posting to an archive site such as
|
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raven.alaska.edu. Posting to this newsgroup has been a topic of
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constant debate... :( We hope to have a source news group for
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coherent, yet another topic of debate... :)
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PUBLIC DOMAIN SOFTWARE:
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Several public domain packages are available for use on a Coherent
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machine. These range from improved mailing packages and spread
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sheets, to at least four news programs, such as bsnews, cnews,
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gnews, wnews, along with readers such as rn, tass, tin and more.
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WHERE DO I GET THE PUBLIC DOMAIN SOFTWARE?
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There are several ways to get public domain software:
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1. Mark Williams Company bbs (mwcbbs)
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2. FTP sites
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3. Mailserver (ListServ@IndyCMS)
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4. The OZ / NZ Coherent Users Group
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5. The Pacific Australian Coherent Users Group
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MWCbbs (mwcbbs)
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Access information on the mwcbbs is included in the documentation
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provided with Coherent. In short, it is a uucp site with public
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domain software as well as updates to the Coherent release, along
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with Coherent news (not usenet) and a "home" for all Coherent
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sites to uucp to. For most of us, that is a long distance phone
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call, as the Mark Williams Company is located in Illinois.
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FTP sites:
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Jay C. Beavers has been keeping the Coherent Archives for quite
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some time on the ftp site orca.alaska.edu, and has moved these to
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an Ultrix machine for better access (raven). When a previous ftp
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site was no longer available, Jay quickly put raven into action.
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Hats off to Jay!
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Machine I'net Address Archive administrator
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--------------- ------------- ----------------------------------
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raven.alaska.edu 137.229.10.39 J.C. Beavers:sxjcb@orca.alaska.edu
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on raven: cd /pub/coherent
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MailServers:
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ListServ@IndyCMS has been offering a mailserver service since
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before the start of comp.os.coherent. It is a gateway between two
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nets:
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||
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Machine Address Mailserver Administrator
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------------------------------------ ------------------------
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ListServ@IndyCMS (CREN) IJBH200@IndyVAX (CREN)
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ListServ@IndyCMS.IUPUI.Edu (Internet) IJBH200@IndyVAX.IUPUI.Edu (I)
|
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Coherent@IndyCMS is bidirectional gateway between the ListServ
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list Coherent and Usenet newsgroup comp.os.coherent co-owned and
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coordinated by John Harlan and Phil Corporon. All original
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postings to comp.os.coherent Usenet group are automatically
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distributed to the ListServ list, and everything posted to the
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ListServ list Coherent, is automatically posted to
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comp.os.coherent on Usenet. John Harlan humorously adds: "And all
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without mail looping :-)"
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To get a list of Coherent files from ListServ, mail the ListServ
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mailserver as follows, with the contents of the message being the
|
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mailserver command:
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% mail ListServ@IndyCMS.IUPUI.Edu
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Subject: (none)
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||
|
||
INDEX COHERENT
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Privately Owned BBSs:
|
||
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The Australian Coherent Users Group:
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||
(From: rjl@spectre.pub.uu.oz.au.)
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In order to support Coherent users in oz & nz, Mark Williams
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Co. have agreed to supply a mirror of the downloads directory
|
||
from their uucp BBS in the states for distribution here [in
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Australia]. This is being supplied to the Australian Coherent
|
||
User Group, initially in one 13MB chunk to get things kicked
|
||
off, then subsequently updated on a monthly basis.
|
||
|
||
Software is available to all registered Coherent users, and
|
||
may be obtained either by direct UUCP transfer from this
|
||
machine, or on 1.2MB floppies for a nominal media/postage
|
||
charge.
|
||
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||
Anyone interested in this, or in ACUG in general, (as well as
|
||
in APANA - the Australian Public Access Network Association)
|
||
may contact me by email at rjl@spectre.pub.uu.oz.au.
|
||
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Australia-Pacific Coherent User Group.
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(Robert Chalmers. d10590@tanus.edu.au. Mackay, Queensland. Australia)
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||
---------------------* ao zhong youyi wan sui *----------------------
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||
Privately operated public uucp site, based in Mackay, North
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||
Queensland, Australia. The system connected 24 hours a 7
|
||
days a week, apart from some down time for maintenance.
|
||
Purely Coherent system. Technical: 386-25DX, 4Mb RAM, 130Mb
|
||
IDE HDD. 1 x 1.2, 1 x 1.44 FDD. Maestro 2400ZXR Modem.
|
||
Wangtek Tape Drive.(not yet working).Cannon BJ330 bubble jet.
|
||
Version 4.00 Coherent. Mono.
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||
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||
Support: Robert can pass on internet fixes and messages to
|
||
local users, such as this FAQ, and is a MIRROR site for MWC,
|
||
receiving thly updates from MWC. Can supply elm, tin and
|
||
wnews red.
|
||
|
||
Contact details: (There are no fees or subscriptions involved.)
|
||
APCUG nanguo!root (AUS)
|
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UUCP mwcbbs!nanguo!earth (USA)
|
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UUCP nanguo!root +61 79 521070 AEST:24 Hours. in:nuucp rd:uupublic
|
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MYNAME=bbsuser in your Permissions file.
|
||
Info is in ~/INFO
|
||
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||
Home address: 22 Minster Street.
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Mackay. 4740
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Queensland. Australia. ( The Coral Coast )
|
||
|
||
Currently the site supports uucp using a chat script exactly
|
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the same as the mwcbbs chat script listed in their manual.
|
||
The public directory is really /usr/spool/uucppublic. The
|
||
default directory is available for incoming material and the
|
||
INFO file, which contains most of the details concerning me
|
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and the site.
|
||
|
||
Direct login is also available using the following login and
|
||
passwd. login: public passwd: coherent
|
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|
||
This is a public user area, mostly used by my students
|
||
locally, but you are welcome to log in and leave mail. (mail
|
||
root). Modem details are: 2400 N81. (v22bis). Please note
|
||
that you MUST have MYNAME=bbsuser in the Permissions file for
|
||
site nanguo and uucp, or Coherent will return a site unknown
|
||
error. Even if you only uucp mail to me, mail nanguo!root,
|
||
all are welcome to use these facilities for the exchange of
|
||
information.
|
||
Bob Chalmers.
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||
|
||
HEATED DISCUSSIONS OF THE GROUP:
|
||
Mark Williams Company has a patent on bit ordering, which is a
|
||
software patent. Most think that this is obvious art in software,
|
||
and should not be patentable, not to mention a move in the
|
||
software world (i.e., FSF) that "software" should not be
|
||
patentable in the first place. The Mark Williams Company has
|
||
committed to comment on this some time in the future.
|
||
|
||
DISCLAIMER:
|
||
ANY REFERENCE TO THIS ARTICLE, IN ANY FORM, IS PURELY AT YOUR OWN RISK!
|
||
All opinions, tips, and instructions in this article are those of
|
||
the contributors, and not of any company associated with the
|
||
individual contributor, or any company mentioned in this article.
|
||
The information contained within is not guaranteed to be free of
|
||
errors in any way.
|
||
|
||
The intention of this note is only to inform curious usenet
|
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readers about some aspects of the operating system of Coherent,
|
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and those companies mentioned are encouraged to add corrections,
|
||
additions, or suggest deletions to this note to as per their
|
||
policy or willingness to provide positive criticism.
|
||
|
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TRADEMARKS
|
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Unix is the trademark of AT&T / Unix System Laboratories, Inc.
|
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Coherent is the trademark of the Mark Williams Company.
|
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--
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||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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mike@array.com So much fun, so little time to enjoy it....
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||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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From: mike@array.com (Mike Willett)
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Date: 23 Jan 93 02:42:27 GMT
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Newsgroups: comp.os.coherent
|
||
Subject: Re:Coherent FAQ, General Information
|
||
|
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After a long dry spell of my postings not making it out, here
|
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are the FAQs. I realize I am less than punctual about posting
|
||
these, but, after my upstream site changed news host names,
|
||
not posting one made it out of here for nearly 3 months. We
|
||
are not what you would call a high volume site, although
|
||
incoming is usually near 40 megs a day, our outgoing doesn't
|
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make it past two or three postings a week. My last posting
|
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from an Internet host was unusual. Since I pay $$$ for time
|
||
on that host I never read news there, and so I never had an
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||
idea that my postings never made it upstream. However, I
|
||
have always verified that they were going to my site
|
||
(minuet.omc.com) which is a down stream leaf node, and so I
|
||
thought all was well. It wasn't. So if you are reading
|
||
this, the FAQs should again start coming out in a semi-punctual
|
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manner, well, maybe even more punctual manner.
|
||
|
||
The current FAQs are at REV 2.3. When I make a change to any
|
||
FAQ, all the REVs roll to reflect them as a "set". This set
|
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had some formatting corrections and some input from Robert
|
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Chalmers is OZ. I appreciate the updates and corrections!
|
||
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||
I have received some offers for help with the FAQs, and I have
|
||
forwarded my ideas to those people. I hope the quality and
|
||
consistancy of the FAQ can be improved with a second set of eyes
|
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and effort.
|
||
|
||
--Mike
|
||
--
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
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mike@array.com So much fun, so little time to enjoy it....
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
From: mike@array.com (Mike Willett)
|
||
Date: 23 Jan 93 01:59:38 GMT
|
||
Newsgroups: comp.os.coherent
|
||
Subject: Coherent FAQ Features and Sales Information for 4.X
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
Features Overview FAQ for Rev 4.X
|
||
|
||
FAQ Rev. 2.3
|
||
|
||
Comp.os.coherent (Usenet) / Coherent list on ListServ@IndyCMS
|
||
|
||
|
||
Coherent Overview and Features:
|
||
---------------------------------
|
||
COHERENT exists as two revisions. The 4.0.X revision supports the
|
||
386/486 architectures, and revision 3.X.X supports the 286 archi-
|
||
tecture.
|
||
|
||
Coherent 4.0 capitalizes on the 386 and 486 architecture, and
|
||
Coherent 3.2 allows users to run Coherent on the 286 architecture
|
||
as well as 386 and 486 CPUs, but, is limited to 64K memory seg-
|
||
ments.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 FEATURES OUTLINE:
|
||
------------------------------
|
||
- 32-bit flat address space (386 native mode).
|
||
- Virtual consoles and multi-session support.
|
||
- Support for third-party C++, COBOL, FORTRAN and BASIC compilers.
|
||
- Monolithic K&R C compiler with in memory temp files (it's fast!).
|
||
- Fully documented assembler supports conditional assembly, listings and
|
||
assembly time variables.
|
||
- Optimizing linker.
|
||
- Terminfo support.
|
||
- Record locking.
|
||
- Enhanced buffer cache.
|
||
- New async driver supports up to 32 ports.
|
||
- over 200 UNIX commands,
|
||
- Bourne and Korn shells
|
||
- vi, MicroEMACS, sed, ed
|
||
- 386 assembler, awk, lex, yacc, m4
|
||
- linker, archiver, assembly language debugger, make
|
||
- UUCP, ckermit
|
||
- ar, cpio, tar, compress, uncompress, zcat
|
||
- nroff, troff with LaserJet and Postscript support.
|
||
- Many Berkeley utilities
|
||
- International and user-definable keyboard support.
|
||
- Improved DOS utilities support DOS 5.0 filesystems.
|
||
- Built-in support for multi-user cards made by ARNET Corp.,
|
||
Comtrol Corp., Connect Tech, DigiBoard, GTEK, Sea Level Systems
|
||
and other third party vendors.
|
||
|
||
INSTALL NOTES/MORE on FEATURES:
|
||
----------------------------
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 The entire distribution consists of 6 floppy disks and
|
||
installs in under 1 hour. (Possibly longer for most of us)
|
||
|
||
COHERENT will run on machines with 1MB of RAM and 20MB hard disks. The
|
||
more ram and disk you have, the better it runs.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 runs on most 386 and 486 ISA/EISA based IBM compatible
|
||
computers. 8 bit SCSI from Future Domain and Seagate are supported, as
|
||
are IDE, RLL, MFM, ESDI and Perstor hard disk controllers. 16 bit
|
||
controllers such as the Adaptec 154X, DPT Smart Connex SCSI host adapter
|
||
(WD emulation) and the DPT Smart Cache Plus EISA 16 bit bit (WD emulation).
|
||
|
||
Future support will include the Always IN2000 and the Future Domain 16 bit
|
||
SCSI host adapters.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 requires a minimum of 1 MB of RAM and will support systems with
|
||
up to 16MB of RAM. It works with monochrome, CGA, EGA, and VGA/SVGA displays.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT's kernel is around 100K.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0's new features is a development system which produces System V
|
||
Intel BCS compliant COFF binaries that run on many other compliant PC UNIX
|
||
systems, such as The Santa Cruz Operation's (SCO) SCO UNIX System V/386
|
||
Version 3.2.2, a licensee of AT&T's System V UNIX.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0's development tools include an optimizing C compiler, a new
|
||
optimizing linker, and versions of lex, yacc, awk, make as well as termcap,
|
||
terminfo and curses.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 also comes with a new 386 macro-assembler. The assembler is
|
||
fully documented and supports conditional assembly, listings, and assembly
|
||
time variables.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 also contains versions of the traditional UNIX text processing
|
||
utilities, nroff and troff, along with support for the LaserJet(PCL) and
|
||
PostScript.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT comes with UUCP, ckermit and kermit.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT's administrative commands include several archiving utilities,
|
||
a Bourne shell, a Korn shell, System V style cron, virtual console
|
||
support, on-line manual pages and many of the popular Berkeley utilities.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT 4.0 has built in support for multi-user cards made by ARNET Corp.,
|
||
Chase Research, Inc., Comtrol Corp, Connect Tech, Inc., DigiBoard, GTEK, Inc.,
|
||
Sea Level Systems, Specialix Corp., Sritek, Inc., and Stargate Technologies.
|
||
|
||
COHERENT SALES CONTACTS:
|
||
------------------------
|
||
Mark Williams Company continues to make every effort to keep the
|
||
price of COHERENT down and to provide customers with maximum
|
||
value. COHERENT 4.0 costs $99.95. This price includes unlimited
|
||
free technical support, an unlimited user license, and a 1200
|
||
page manual. Registered users can upgrade to COHERENT 4.0 from
|
||
COHERENT 3.2 for $79.95. COHERENT 4.0, and the COHERENT 4.0 up-
|
||
date, are available from the Mark Williams Company, 60 Revere
|
||
Drive, Northbrook, Illinois, 60062, United States of America.
|
||
|
||
(If ordering, tell us the size of your 'A' drive. Update custo-
|
||
mers are required to also include their serial number.)
|
||
|
||
Phone; 1-800-627-5967 or.. 1-708-291-6700 Fax; 1-708-291-6750
|
||
|
||
For Sales Literature or electronic ordering, e-mail complete mailing
|
||
address to... sales@mwc.com or uunet!mwc!sales
|
||
|
||
For specific technical information, e-mail... (No literature sent.)
|
||
|
||
support@mwc.com or uunet!mwc!support Compuserv; 76256,427 BIX; join mwc
|
||
|
||
Internet Forum; comp.os.coherent
|
||
|
||
COHERENT is a registered trademark of the Mark Williams Corporation.
|
||
Intel386 is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation.
|
||
UNIX is a registered trademark of UNIX System Laboratories, Inc.
|
||
SCO is a registered trademark of the Santa Cruz Operation.
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
--
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
mike@array.com So much fun, so little time to enjoy it....
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
From: mike@array.com (Mike Willett)
|
||
Date: 23 Jan 93 02:01:37 GMT
|
||
Newsgroups: comp.os.coherent
|
||
Subject: Coherent FAQ, Technical Info for Version 3.2
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
T E C H N I C A L T I P S F O R C O H E R E N T 3.2
|
||
|
||
Technical Tips FAQ for Rev 3.2 of Coherent
|
||
|
||
Comp.os.coherent (Usenet) / Coherent list on ListServ@IndyCMS
|
||
|
||
FAQ Rev. 2.3
|
||
|
||
|
||
C O N T E N T S :
|
||
-----------------
|
||
Modem devices:
|
||
Remote logins:
|
||
Fast modems:
|
||
Simultaneous users:
|
||
Usenet news software:
|
||
Email packages:
|
||
The 64K question:
|
||
Compiler hints:
|
||
Hardware configurations:
|
||
Termio hints:
|
||
Curses:
|
||
More uucp:
|
||
How to create a bootable >>>R/W<<< floppy from Coherent:
|
||
Master Boot Reinstallation:
|
||
Line Printer Help:
|
||
Moving data from a Sun to Coherent:
|
||
Multi-Volume Archive:
|
||
SCSI MKFS Notes:
|
||
DOS to Coherent:
|
||
Uuinstall Bug Help:
|
||
Xwindows:
|
||
Tar Help:
|
||
Setting Boot Partition: DOS or Coherent?
|
||
A Backup Script:
|
||
|
||
MISC:
|
||
Disclaimer:
|
||
Trademarks:
|
||
|
||
T E C H N I C A L T I P S :
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
MODEM DEVICES:
|
||
Q: What devices should I use with a modem for dialing in / dialing out
|
||
|
||
A: For dialing in you should use a device with modem control. For example
|
||
com1r or com2r. That is important to ensure that when the calling site
|
||
dropped carrier, that also at your site SIGHUP is sent to already running
|
||
processes, to ensure that the modem hangs up (dropping DTR) and a new
|
||
getty is opened on that port to enable further logins.
|
||
|
||
For dialing out or local terminals you do not need modem control
|
||
Also you do not have to worry about cabling problems, just use some
|
||
of those null modem cables available in most computer stores.
|
||
|
||
REMOTE LOGINS:
|
||
Q: How do I enable logins via modem to my machine:
|
||
|
||
A: I assume that modem is set to AUTO-ANSWER (ATS0=1) and the cabling
|
||
is ok.
|
||
Edit the file /etc/ttys. Here an example for com2:
|
||
|
||
0rPcom2r
|
||
|
||
0 = not yet enabled (enable = allow login, run getty)
|
||
|
||
r = remote access (will enable asking of a password
|
||
for remote-access (see /etc/passwd)
|
||
Why ? System security, additional password
|
||
|
||
P = speed (your modem is connected to the computer)
|
||
P = 9600 Baud, I use this for my Telebit Modem
|
||
|
||
com2r = device with modem control, when CARRIER is lost it
|
||
will sent SIGHUP to all processes running on that
|
||
line and will also drop DTR so a modem hangup or
|
||
a modern modem does a hardware reset.
|
||
|
||
Now type the following:
|
||
enable com2r (for Coherent 3.2 that's enough)
|
||
kill -1 1 (Coherent 3.0.0 or 3.1.0, Process INIT will start
|
||
a getty on com2r)
|
||
|
||
FAST MODEMS:
|
||
Q: Can I use fast modems with Coherent 3.2?
|
||
|
||
A: Yes you can. But you must think about the following:
|
||
|
||
a) maximum Baud rate between modem - machine is 9600 Baud
|
||
(Coherent as a multiuser/multitasking environment is
|
||
not fast enough for 19200 Baud)
|
||
|
||
b) cps-rates in transfer depend on modem/method
|
||
|
||
calling into my machine (T2500) with a USR, using sz for transfer:
|
||
480 cps to 600 cps (compressed, uncompressed files)
|
||
|
||
calling out with uucp (T2500):
|
||
860 cps
|
||
|
||
The rate may differ if you use a slow 286 or 386. The above results
|
||
were yielded with a 386/33.
|
||
|
||
SIMULTANEOUS USERS:
|
||
Q: I want to use Coherent 3.2 as a multiuser operating system. How many
|
||
users can work with it at the same time ?
|
||
|
||
A: Now 11 User:
|
||
console : 1
|
||
com1 : 1
|
||
com2 : 1
|
||
Multiport : 8
|
||
--------------
|
||
11
|
||
|
||
USENET NEWS SOFTWARE:
|
||
Q: Is there any Net-News Software for Coherent ?
|
||
|
||
A: Yes, there are several packages available:
|
||
|
||
CNEWS - the famous package
|
||
difficult to install (although there is a nice installation
|
||
script in the Coherent version). Only for advanced users !
|
||
Has no reader !
|
||
|
||
WNEWS 3.0 - News for MINIX, ported to Coherent
|
||
based on BNEWS - small, not bad
|
||
Has no reader
|
||
|
||
rn
|
||
the well known newsreader
|
||
|
||
tass
|
||
curses based newsreader. Nice, but you should not have
|
||
too much groups or articles in /usr/spool/news.
|
||
|
||
bsnews
|
||
small news package for receiving news via email
|
||
|
||
and others...
|
||
|
||
EMAIL PACKAGES:
|
||
Q: I do not like Coherent's mailer. What can I use instead of it ?
|
||
|
||
A: WMAIL 3.63 - a minix port, MAILX-clone
|
||
|
||
comb 1.29 - curses based mailer, nice interface
|
||
|
||
You should ensure that in both cases you have smail 2.5 as
|
||
a smart-mailer that understands domain addresses.
|
||
smail 2.5 is already in Coherent 3.2
|
||
|
||
THE 64K QUESTION:
|
||
Q: Does Coherent really have a 64 kb limitation ? I want to port
|
||
the GNU-C-Compiler and compile big programs.
|
||
|
||
A: Coherent programs are limited to 64 K for code and 64 k for data
|
||
and stack. The limit is not in the compiler, it's in the kernel
|
||
or at least in the actual system design. No process can exceed this
|
||
limitation.
|
||
But Binaries in Coherent are about 40 % smaller so big programs
|
||
for "Real-UNIXES" may also be portable
|
||
|
||
COMPILER HINTS:
|
||
Q: I write a C-program that seems to be ok but it still core dumped.
|
||
Is this a compiler error ? Is my program wrong ?
|
||
|
||
A: If a program needs a lot of space for local data (resided on the
|
||
stack in most cases) then the maximum size for the stack may be
|
||
exceeded and your return addresses or other important things were
|
||
overwritten.
|
||
With the program fixstack you can increase the size for the stack
|
||
(and also cut the space for data)
|
||
Try size my_prog before and after fixstacking to see the difference.
|
||
|
||
HARDWARE CONFIGURATIONS:
|
||
Q: What hardware (Motherboard, hard disk) do I need for Coherent ?
|
||
|
||
A: Difficult question. Minimum is a AT 286 with 640 KB RAM and a
|
||
hard disk (MFM,RLL,ESDI,SCSI (some), IDE (some)) with at least
|
||
10 MB free disk space.
|
||
|
||
Nevertheless Coherent is not the fastest operating system, so
|
||
a 386 with at least 25 MHZ and 4 MB RAM and a fast hard disk
|
||
(a hard disk is always too small !!!!) is the minimum config-
|
||
uration for a usable multi-user-operating.
|
||
|
||
TERMIO HINTS:
|
||
Q: I compiled a program that uses termio but it did not work.
|
||
|
||
A: The termio in Coherent (at least 3.1.0 and the first 3.2.0) did
|
||
not work in all cases. So try the sgtty, that works fine.
|
||
When porting programs try to find the -DBSD-parts. There you will
|
||
find in most cases the sgtty-parts you need for porting.
|
||
|
||
CURSES:
|
||
Q: I compiled a program that uses curses but the screen sometimes get
|
||
garbled or the machine seems to hang
|
||
|
||
A: Maybe you still have an old libcurses.a. Replace it with a newer
|
||
copy.
|
||
|
||
MORE UUCP:
|
||
Q: I often loose email or files after receiving them with UUCP.
|
||
|
||
A: Try to get the newest UUCP-update from MWCBBS. The old packages
|
||
still have some problems. Check the permissions, at least for example
|
||
with comparing them with those on your original diskettes.
|
||
Check also the permissions of the needed directories.
|
||
In /usr/spool/uucp/Logs./uucp-program you will find the "hints" of the
|
||
"uucp-program" (uucico, uucp, uux,uuxqt) what goes wrong.
|
||
In Coherent 3.2. you have the program uucheck that will check your
|
||
uucp-installation and is also able to "fix" problems. But you have to
|
||
run it twice if you run it as root because the first time it creates
|
||
the needed directories and the second run sets the correct permission.
|
||
|
||
Q: I am having a problem connecting to uucp sites not running Coherent
|
||
after updating to Coherent 3.2. The error looks like a parity
|
||
problem, with an {expect} / {actually got} output like:
|
||
uu315323t 342og310n: (With backslashes before the numbers)
|
||
|
||
Again, get the latest UUCP package from MWCBBS. The 3.2 Coherent
|
||
release may exhibit a parity problem which is cured with the latest
|
||
uucp release.
|
||
|
||
HOW TO CREATE A BOOTABLE >>>R/W<<< FLOPPY from Coherent
|
||
From: Peter Fillingham fillingham@att.com
|
||
The COHERENT Operating System Release Notes (Release 3.1.0) along with
|
||
the main manual suggest ways of creating a bootable floppy. One
|
||
difficulty of this procedure is that, after producing a bootable
|
||
floppy, one can't write to it ! The following shell programs are
|
||
suggested as a way making a bootable floppy, and below is the fix
|
||
recommended by mwc for making the bootable floppy system read-write.
|
||
|
||
(0) first boot your system from your hard disk, login in as root,
|
||
use mkdir to make a convenient subdirectory [e.g., /bin/temp ]. cd to
|
||
/bin/temp. Place disk #1 of your mwc original floppies in drive A:,
|
||
then enter
|
||
|
||
dd if=/dev/fha0 of=cohboot count=80 bs=30b
|
||
|
||
Run it in the background if you wish [follow the above line with an &;
|
||
use ps -axfl if you are curious]. This will take just over three
|
||
minutes depending on the speed of your system. What is going on is
|
||
that dd is creating an image of your boot floppy in you default
|
||
directory with the file name cohboot. When it finishes, remove the mwc
|
||
original floppy, and insert a blank disk.
|
||
|
||
(1) Next run the following shell program:
|
||
|
||
echo "/etc/fdformat -v /dev/fha0"
|
||
/etc/fdformat -v /dev/fha0
|
||
echo "/etc/badscan -o proto /dev/fha0 2400"
|
||
/etc/badscan -o proto /dev/fha0 2400
|
||
|
||
Run it in the background if you wish; it takes time. The echo
|
||
lines simply display each command line just before it is carried
|
||
out to tell you what is going on. The second and fourth lines
|
||
format the floppy and check for bad blocks, respectively. In
|
||
addition, a file (proto) is being built in your default
|
||
subdirectory. This file will contain a list of the bad blocks:
|
||
look for a line with %b in it. Probably it is best to use only a
|
||
floppy with NO bad blocks: so try until you find one.
|
||
|
||
(2) make sure you have a subdirectory /f0 on your hard disk;
|
||
if not, use mkdir /f0.
|
||
|
||
(3) Next run the following shell program:
|
||
|
||
echo "/etc/mkfs /dev/fha0 proto"
|
||
/etc/mkfs /dev/fha0 proto
|
||
echo "cp /conf/boot.fha /dev/fha0"
|
||
cp /conf/boot.fha /dev/fha0
|
||
echo "dd if=cohboot of=/dev/fha0 count=80 bs=30b"
|
||
dd if=cohboot of=/dev/fha0 count=80 bs=30b
|
||
echo "/etc/mount /dev/fha0 /f0"
|
||
/etc/mount /dev/fha0 /f0
|
||
echo "cd /f0 "
|
||
cd /f0
|
||
echo " DONE but f0 still mounted !"
|
||
|
||
The second line produces the file system on the floppy using the
|
||
information from file proto. The fourth line copies boot.fha to
|
||
the floppy. The sixth line transfers the image of your system
|
||
boot floppy to your newly formatted disk (note all these things
|
||
take time). Finally, the floppy is mounted so that while you have
|
||
booted from the hard disk and have root permissions you can write
|
||
to the floppy. The last line simply rings the bell and tells you
|
||
it is done.
|
||
|
||
(4) next (noting that your default directory is /f0, i.e. the
|
||
floppy disk) enter:
|
||
|
||
mv begin autoboot
|
||
then enter
|
||
db coherent
|
||
then enter
|
||
ronflag
|
||
the response is
|
||
ronflag=001
|
||
then enter
|
||
.=0
|
||
then a response appears
|
||
ronflag=000
|
||
then enter
|
||
:q
|
||
and you should get back your prompt.
|
||
|
||
(5) Finally while the floppy is still mounted, cp over your most
|
||
useful programs to the appropriate directories (e.g., vi or
|
||
me, du, df ...) Lastly umount f0, shutdown, sync and boot your
|
||
writable floppy.
|
||
|
||
MASTER BOOT REINSTALLATION:
|
||
From: doug@mwc.com (Doug Peterson)
|
||
I want to upgrade the DOS partition from MS-DOS 3.3 to 5.0, and the
|
||
installation program refuses to work with the Coherent master bootstrap
|
||
program. It no longer asks for the ability to boot Coherent!
|
||
|
||
The problem specifically is caused be Microsoft's faulty update install
|
||
procedure. They assume you have no other operating system on the
|
||
computer.
|
||
|
||
When the 5.0 update install is run, the procedure archives the original
|
||
master boot block of the hard drive and rewrites a brand new one.
|
||
Problem is, it takes Coherent's master boot along with it. To restore
|
||
the master boot is very simple:
|
||
|
||
Use dos 5.0 fdisk to change the active partition to COHERENT. Reboot.
|
||
|
||
Use COHERENT's fdisk utility with the -b option to rewrite a new master
|
||
boot. Specifically; fdisk -b /conf/mboot /dev/at0x <ENTER>
|
||
|
||
Once completed, you can now boot either system no matter which one is
|
||
active or inactive.
|
||
|
||
|
||
LINE PRINTER HELP: From: dave@uvm-gen!pete (Dave Peterson)
|
||
I have my printer hooked up to lpt1 and cannot get any output. I have
|
||
checked my files, but, no luck. What's the problem?
|
||
|
||
1) ls -li ( The i will list the inode number, this will tell you where
|
||
you have linked /dev/lp to. )
|
||
|
||
2) ln -f /dev/lpt2 /dev/lp ( link to lpt2 IBM and MWC number the ports
|
||
differently thus lpt2 is the first printer )
|
||
[ you need to be root or bin to do the link ]
|
||
|
||
This is a partial listing of my /dev directory note the first number is
|
||
the inode number. I have linked lp to lpt2.
|
||
174 c-w--w--w- 2 bin bin 3 1 Mon Nov 25 17:36 /dev/lp
|
||
101 c-w--w--w- 1 bin bin 3 0 Fri Apr 27 1990 /dev/lpt1
|
||
174 c-w--w--w- 2 bin bin 3 1 Mon Nov 25 17:36 /dev/lpt2
|
||
173 c-w--w--w- 1 bin bin 3 2 Fri Apr 27 1990 /dev/lpt3
|
||
|
||
As a final point when you send data to /dev/lpt2 use pipes not redirection.
|
||
Try cat (file) | /dev/lpt2 it works for me.
|
||
|
||
MOVING DATA FROM A SUN TO COHERENT:
|
||
(From: PINEAU@uqac.uquebec.ca (Louis Pineau))
|
||
First, the floppy have to be formatted whether on the sun or on
|
||
the Coherent system (with fdformat /dev/rfd0c on the sun). Once
|
||
the floppy is formatted, there is no need to reformat or mkfs it
|
||
for the life of the floppy or until something unusual happens.
|
||
|
||
To write and read the floppy, on both system (sun and coherent), I
|
||
use the command "ustar" since it can handle multi-volume files
|
||
(files that are too large to fit on a single floppy).
|
||
|
||
Thus, on the sun, I do:
|
||
/usr/5bin/ustar -cvf /dev/rfd0c file [files ...] to write on the floppy
|
||
/usr/5bin/ustar -tvf /dev/rfd0c to list the floppy
|
||
/usr/5bin/ustar -xvf /dev/rfd0c [file ...] to read the floppy
|
||
|
||
On my coherent system, I use the same commands without the
|
||
/usr/5bin prefix and with the proper floppy device (/dev/fva1 on
|
||
my system).
|
||
|
||
I know that there is a way to read or write ms-dos formatted
|
||
floppy but in order to mount or unmount the floppy, you must
|
||
become superuser.
|
||
|
||
MULTI-VOLUME ARCHIVE: (From: jr@connie.de.convex.com (Joachim Riedel))
|
||
I'm trying to archive a 5 mb file (which is itself a compressed
|
||
cpio file) from hard disk onto floppy disk (fva1). I've tried cpio
|
||
and tar and even pax directly but cannot get past one volume.
|
||
|
||
Use the raw device (i.e. /dev/rfva1 ) instead of the device fva1.
|
||
|
||
SCSI MKFS NOTES: Answer From: stephen@mwc.com (Stephen Davis)
|
||
I am trying to add a second scsi drive to my system. mkfs will
|
||
not accept a proto file. What do I do?
|
||
|
||
You do not badscan a SCSI drive. Instead of giving mkfs a proto
|
||
file, you give it the total number of blocks in the partition. The
|
||
number of blocks is listed in the partition table under f-disk.
|
||
|
||
DOS TO COHERENT:
|
||
Q: The question is, is it possible to read DOS-format 360KB-diskettes?
|
||
|
||
A: yes it is :-) From: lvds@tfpbbs.uucp (Laurent Cas)
|
||
|
||
Here is the device type reference table:
|
||
Device name Sectors/track Heads Sectors Bytes Format
|
||
/dev/f9a0 9 2 720 360 KB 5.25"
|
||
/dev/fqa0 9 2 1440 720 KB 3.5"
|
||
/dev/fha0 15 2 2400 1.2 MB 5.25"
|
||
/dev/fva0 18 2 2880 1.44 MB 3.5"
|
||
|
||
If your 360KB drive is 'A:' (MSDOS reference) you can do dos t
|
||
/dev/f9a0 to list your disk, or if your 360KB is 'B:' you will
|
||
have to do dos t /dev/f9a1
|
||
|
||
drive A is number 0 and drive B is number 1 ; same for partitions
|
||
on your hard disk...
|
||
|
||
Cheers, Laurent.
|
||
|
||
UUINSTALL BUG HELP: (From norm@mwc.com)
|
||
Using Coherent 3.2, I run UUINSTALL, upon exiting, I am back at my
|
||
prompt, but, the system hangs. the only way to restart via a
|
||
reboot. Is this problem specific to 3.2 or is it something I have
|
||
possibly done?
|
||
|
||
This is a bug in the 3.2.0 release of uuinstall. Occasionally,
|
||
upon exiting, it leaves your terminal in "raw" mode. The Errata
|
||
sheet which is included with 3.2 releases mentions this, as far as
|
||
I know. To fix your terminal after exiting uuinstall, enter the
|
||
following (note that <ctrl-J> is the control key plus the letter
|
||
J):
|
||
|
||
<ctrl-J> stty sane <ctrl-J>
|
||
|
||
XWINDOWS: (From doug@mwc:)
|
||
From time to time, we get people asking about X windows on
|
||
Coherent. Many new entrants into the field of UNIX have probably
|
||
heard of the popular UNIX graphics interface called X-WINDOWS.
|
||
|
||
X-WINDOWS was developed by MIT. To the best of our knowledge they
|
||
still hold the rights to the source code and it is in the public
|
||
domain.
|
||
|
||
To the best of our knowledge, the source code takes up 110mb of
|
||
disk space! The binaries, an additional 12 - 20mb's of disk
|
||
space. It requires TCP or Streams support, neither of which is in
|
||
COHERENT.
|
||
|
||
X-windows it seems, has become somewhat of a popular GUI for UNIX
|
||
in a very short time. Various hardware firms have developed and
|
||
are marketing X-workstations, servers and cards.
|
||
|
||
On page 14 of the November 1991 issue of UNIX REVIEW, is an ad for
|
||
X11 Release 5 for System V/386. The price advertised is $495 with
|
||
printed manuals, $395 without. So, X is not cheap via the
|
||
commercial route.
|
||
|
||
Given COHERENT 3.2's small model compiler, it is obviously
|
||
impossible at this time for COHERENT to even compile the code, let
|
||
alone run it.
|
||
|
||
Tar Help:
|
||
The Coherent version of tar has been known to create problems for
|
||
users. It is believed that the latest version of tar has
|
||
alleviated most of these problems. Some of the original problems
|
||
include inability to read a tar archive to tar creating recursive
|
||
inode/file loops that can only be removed by "clri". The more
|
||
recent Coherent releases also includes ustar, which appears to be
|
||
much more robust. It has been suggested to use the ustar command
|
||
instead of the Coherent native tar command in most cases.
|
||
|
||
Setting Boot Partition: DOS or Coherent?
|
||
Occasionally, a user may want to boot to Coherent for the most
|
||
part, rather than come up in DOS by default. You can leave the
|
||
DOS partition in tact, and switch between the preferred operating
|
||
systems on as "as needed" basis. To do this, simply use the fdisk
|
||
program in either operating system and make the partition active
|
||
for the operating system that resides there. Reboot the system,
|
||
(AMI Bios system owners require a hard reset) and the system will
|
||
now boot to the partition made active with fdisk. For example, if
|
||
you wish to boot DOS by default, make the first partition active.
|
||
If you want to boot Coherent by default, make the partition active
|
||
that Coherent resides on.
|
||
|
||
DISCLAIMER:
|
||
ANY REFERENCE TO THIS ARTICLE, IN ANY FORM, IS PURELY AT YOUR OWN RISK!
|
||
All opinions, tips, and instructions in this article are those of
|
||
the contributors, and not of any company associated with the
|
||
individual contributor, or any company mentioned in this article.
|
||
The information contained within is not guaranteed to be free of
|
||
errors in any way.
|
||
|
||
The intention of this note is only to inform curious usenet
|
||
readers about some aspects of the operating system of Coherent,
|
||
and those companies mentioned are encouraged to add corrections,
|
||
additions, or suggest deletions to this note to as per their
|
||
policy or willingness to provide positive criticism.
|
||
|
||
TRADEMARKS
|
||
Unix is the trademark of AT&T / Unix System Laboratories, Inc.
|
||
Coherent is the trademark of the Mark Williams Company.
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
--
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
mike@array.com So much fun, so little time to enjoy it....
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
From: mike@array.com (Mike Willett)
|
||
Date: 23 Jan 93 02:03:29 GMT
|
||
Newsgroups: comp.os.coherent
|
||
Subject: Coherent FAQ, Technical Info for Version 4.X
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
T E C H N I C A L T I P S F O R C O H E R E N T 4.X
|
||
|
||
Technical Tips FAQ for Rev 4.X of Coherent
|
||
|
||
FAQ Rev 2.3
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
Help With Installation:
|
||
4.0 Binary compatability with other software:
|
||
Compiling programs:
|
||
Help with serial ports and terminals:
|
||
Creating a Bootable Floppy for Emergency Use:
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
Help With Installation: From: Bob Hemedinger <support@mwc.com>
|
||
-----------------------
|
||
1) I'm updating from version 3.x to 4.x and am being asked for
|
||
a serial number from a registration card. I don't have one.
|
||
|
||
- updating users do not need new serial numbers. Use
|
||
the number supplied with your 3.x version. If you don't
|
||
know what it is, read the file /etc/serialno.
|
||
|
||
2) I'm seeing various characters in the upper right hand corner of
|
||
my screen when Coherent boots.
|
||
|
||
- These are used by MWC for debugging some installation
|
||
problems. If installation fails to boot, the last character(s)
|
||
displayed in the corner of the screen will give a significant
|
||
clue as to where the failure occurred.
|
||
|
||
3) I get a core dump during the installation. The last digits of the
|
||
eip register are 2EF.
|
||
|
||
- Call MWC for a new set of installation diskettes.
|
||
|
||
4) I see a prepare_gift() message when Coherent boots.
|
||
|
||
- The tertiary boot program, /tboot, is attempting to read your
|
||
CMOS to get your hard drive parameters and other information.
|
||
This process met with an unexpected error, usually related to
|
||
the initialization of cache memory. If Coherent continues to boot
|
||
and run, ignore the message. If the boot fails, try this:
|
||
|
||
- hit <space> when prompted by tboot to abort the
|
||
boot process. Type 'info' at the first '?' prompt.
|
||
Ignore the returned data. At the next '?' prompt,
|
||
type 'update' or 'begin' if updating or installing,
|
||
or enter the name of the kernel to boot. Follow
|
||
this procedure exactly. Do NOT try the 'info' command
|
||
more than once.
|
||
|
||
5) When booting the installation, I come to a # prompt with a message
|
||
displayed that I didn't boot properly and need to reboot.
|
||
|
||
- tboot failed to pass what you typed at the '?' prompt
|
||
to the installation program. A prepare_gift() message
|
||
was probably displayed before this, sometimes too quickly
|
||
to be seen unless one is looking for it specifically.
|
||
One can either reboot and use the procedure from item #4
|
||
(above), or type 'build' at the # prompt to install, or
|
||
type 'build -u' at the # prompt to update from 3.x.
|
||
|
||
6) During boot, I see a message about not being able to brelease a
|
||
modified buffer.
|
||
|
||
- In most cases, Coherent will continue to boot normally. In some,
|
||
the message will scroll endlessly. This is an indication of an
|
||
incompatible bios and is a very rare case. The Epson bios set
|
||
has sometimes produced this problem. If at all possible, update
|
||
the bios chips in the computer. Phoenix is the bios chipset
|
||
MWC recommends.
|
||
|
||
7) After installing disk #1, I reboot Coherent from the hard drive, but
|
||
am never prompted to enter a diskette -or-, I reboot Coherent from the
|
||
hard drive, and the system hangs with a Coherent banner message on the
|
||
screen.
|
||
|
||
- Thou hast most likely chosen to use either virtual consoles,
|
||
or no virtual consoles but did select a loadable keyboard
|
||
table. Coherent is hanging at the point where keyboard
|
||
initialization
|
||
takes place, indicating that the keyboard does not properly support
|
||
IBM scan code 3. This is a different keyboard mode than DOS
|
||
uses, and probably a good 10% of keyboards of Asian origin will
|
||
have problems with this. Reinstallation without virtual consoles
|
||
nor loadable keyboard tables should resolve this.
|
||
|
||
8) All diskettes install without a hitch, but after rebooting, fsck finds
|
||
all sorts of DUP blocks and bad i-nodes.
|
||
|
||
- This is rare, but is usually the result of installing onto a
|
||
large partition. This is possibly related to sector translation
|
||
firmware and/or the manner in which the firmware deals with
|
||
bad blocks... we don't know yet. Break the large partition into
|
||
smaller partitions and try installation again. If this is an ESDI
|
||
drive, and the controller is doing sector translation, try switching
|
||
it to native mode.
|
||
|
||
|
||
4.0 Binary compatability with other software:
|
||
--------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
Coherent 4.x compiles and runs COFF executables. Third party COFF software
|
||
will most likely run if the following conditions are true:
|
||
|
||
- does NOT use shared memory nor shared libraries. We plan to
|
||
implement these in the next release of Coherent. Coherent
|
||
4.0 shared memory is not System V compliant.
|
||
|
||
- does NOT rely on sockets nor streams. Again, we plan to have
|
||
have at least one of these in the next release.
|
||
|
||
- does NOT use graphics. Coherent 4.0 is strictly a text-based
|
||
system. Again, we plan to have some form of graphics support
|
||
in the future.
|
||
|
||
Some examples of 3rd party software running under Coherent 4.x:
|
||
ACUCOBOL
|
||
Xtree
|
||
BASIS International BBX/Progression 3 (BASIC)
|
||
FilePro
|
||
|
||
- For more info, please contact MWC, or email sales@mwc.com.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Compiling programs:
|
||
-------------------
|
||
|
||
1) The compiler is complaining about not enough memory.
|
||
|
||
- You may have a significant amount of memory, say 2 or 4 Megabytes,
|
||
but one must also account for other running processes. The compiler
|
||
by default tries to do all of its work in core (memory). If it
|
||
aborts due to not enough memory, then add a -T0 to your cc command
|
||
line. This will force the compiler to use temporary files on
|
||
the hard drive, rather than in core.
|
||
|
||
2) I'm trying to port software from a bbs or the net. Is Coherent closer to
|
||
System V or BSD?
|
||
|
||
- You should select System V wherever possible. We tend to
|
||
avoid BSDisms.
|
||
|
||
3) When compiling a package, the linker complains that getwd() doesn't
|
||
exist. This worked under 3.x. What happened?
|
||
|
||
- With Coherent 4.0, we have gone to getcwd() in place of
|
||
getwd(). We have supplied _getwd() for people that need
|
||
getwd(), but we are planning on dropping this in the
|
||
future.
|
||
|
||
|
||
Help with serial ports and terminals:
|
||
-------------------------------------
|
||
d10590@tanus.oz.au (Robert Chalmers) Coherent V4.0/4.01.
|
||
Thanks, Robert!
|
||
|
||
If you follow the installation instructions, and choose their defaults,
|
||
you will end up with a ttys file very similar to the following.
|
||
|
||
0lPcom1l <--|
|
||
0lPcom2l | -- The four standard COM1, COM2,
|
||
0lPcom3l | COM3 & COM4 ports. NOT CONFIGURED.
|
||
0lPcom4l <--| See the notes below for configuration.
|
||
1lPmono0 <--|
|
||
1lPmono1 | -- The terminal virtual consoles.
|
||
1lPmono2 | These REPLACE the V3.x's 1Pconsole
|
||
1lPmono3 <--| entry in that versions ttys file.
|
||
You dont have to touch these.
|
||
|
||
For example, on my system I have the following hardware. One
|
||
standard HDD/FDD Controller (IDE) with COM1, COM2 and LPT1 on board,
|
||
and enabled. These live at 3F8 - IRQ4, and 2F8 - IRQ3. LPT1 uses 378
|
||
and IRQ7.
|
||
|
||
One standard Taiwan Multi I/O card with 2 COM ports, one printer
|
||
port, and one game port. This card can be configured as COM1/2 or
|
||
COM3/4, and LPT1 or LPT2. I have the jumpers set for the following.
|
||
COM3 at 3E8 - IRQ4 and COM4 at 2E8 - IRQ3, with the second printer,
|
||
LPT2 at 278 - IRQ5.
|
||
|
||
Now, setting them up, as applied to this type of 2 board setup. If
|
||
you are not sure if your installation configured the ports
|
||
correctly, then follow the instructions in the Release Notes and
|
||
Installation Guide under 'Asy' exactly as they appear, regarding the
|
||
making of the devices. Dont change anything. yet. Now, the thing
|
||
to note is the rule on IRQs and Polling. If you are using COM2 as
|
||
your modem port, (seems to be the most used option), and COM1 as a
|
||
terminal connection, and both are using IRQs, then the other two
|
||
must be Polled. COM3 and COM4 must be Polled. Observe my settings
|
||
listed,
|
||
|
||
0lPcom1l <--- Serial terminal on COM1. IRQ4
|
||
1rLcom2r <--- Modem, incoming, on COM2. IRQ3
|
||
0lLcom2l <--- Modem, outgoing (the same modem) on COM2. IRQ3
|
||
0lPcom3pl <--- Serial terminal on COM3. Polled
|
||
0lPcom4pl <--- Serial terminal on COM4. Polled
|
||
1lPmono0 <-|
|
||
1lPmono1 |
|
||
1lPmono2 | --virtual screens.
|
||
1lPmono3 <-|
|
||
|
||
The Serial terminals are shown as 'disabled' in the above listing,
|
||
but when they are connected, you simply type 'enable com3pl' and
|
||
presto!, you get a login prompt on that terminal.
|
||
|
||
In SUMMARY:
|
||
Install with all defaults.
|
||
Run the three configuration commands in the Asy entry.
|
||
The asyxxx entries in your /dev directory are the prototypes for
|
||
the comxx devices, so you can ignore them for the purposes of this.
|
||
Decide which lines you will use, and check your IRQ/Poll combination.
|
||
Check your physical wiring.
|
||
|
||
For terminals, you only need three wires:
|
||
|
||
D25 connectors. TXD to RXD, RXD to TXD, Common Ground.
|
||
2 --> 3
|
||
3 <-- 2
|
||
7 <-> 7
|
||
D9 connector. TXD to RXD, RXD to TXD, Common Ground.
|
||
2 --> 3
|
||
3 <-- 2
|
||
5 <-> 5
|
||
|
||
In the above setting, to call out on the modem, you MUST type
|
||
'disable com2r' before you can call out on com2l. When you are
|
||
finished, type 'enable com2r' to put your modem back on line.
|
||
|
||
Other things of note: Old Xt's with a com port and any version of
|
||
TELIX/PROCOMM/etc etc make good cheap terminals, as do old terminals
|
||
that businesses throw away as obsolete.
|
||
|
||
Windows 3.1's Terminal will emulate a vt100. If you have a second PC
|
||
connected to a Coherent serial port, its 'almost!' like having Xterm
|
||
running Coherent in a Term window. You can even cut and paste
|
||
between Word for Windows etc and vi. So who needs X I ask?
|
||
|
||
Creating a Bootable Floppy for Emergency Use:
|
||
---------------------------------------------
|
||
Forwarded here by Robert Chalmers, work done by Udo and Vlad
|
||
| Udo and Vlad have done a MARVELOUS job here. -- Robert Chalmers |
|
||
|
||
[Two spaces have been added to the start of each line to
|
||
avoid mailer and nroff problems... --Mike]
|
||
|
||
-------------------------Cut Here-------------------------------
|
||
# shell script to create a bootable floppy disk
|
||
# Works with COHERENT 3.x and COHERENT 4.0.
|
||
# Written by Udo Munk (udo@umunk.GUN.de)
|
||
# with help from Vladimir Smelyansky (vlad@mwc.com)
|
||
clear
|
||
if [ $USER != root ]
|
||
then
|
||
echo "This program must be run as user root!"
|
||
exit
|
||
fi
|
||
echo "This programm creates a bootable floppy disk for COHERENT."
|
||
echo "Because booting the PC hardware only works with floppy drive A"
|
||
echo "I want to know the size of your A device first."
|
||
echo
|
||
while true
|
||
do
|
||
echo -n "Is your A devive a 5,25
|
||
read answer
|
||
if [ $answer = y -o $answer = n ]
|
||
then
|
||
break
|
||
else
|
||
echo "answer with y or n please!"
|
||
echo
|
||
fi
|
||
done
|
||
if [ $answer = y ]
|
||
then
|
||
echo "Fine, let us create a 5,25
|
||
dev=/dev/fha0
|
||
devsize="5,25
|
||
devblocks=2400
|
||
boot=/conf/boot.fha
|
||
else
|
||
echo "Fine, let us create a 3,5
|
||
dev=/dev/fva0
|
||
devsize="3,5
|
||
devblocks=2880
|
||
boot=/conf/boot.fva
|
||
fi
|
||
echo
|
||
echo "Now please put a" $devsize "floppy disk into your drive A".
|
||
echo "WARNING: ALL DATA ON THIS FLOPPY DISK WILL BE DESTROYED!"
|
||
echo
|
||
echo -n "Type y if you want to continue, any other to abort: "
|
||
read answer
|
||
if [ $answer != y ]
|
||
then
|
||
exit
|
||
fi
|
||
clear
|
||
echo "Step 1: formating floppy disk..."
|
||
/etc/fdformat $dev
|
||
echo "Step 2: building the bad block list..."
|
||
/etc/badscan -o bootdisk $dev $devblocks
|
||
echo "Step 3: building a filesystem..."
|
||
/etc/mkfs $dev bootdisk
|
||
rm bootdisk
|
||
echo "Step 4: copy the bootstrap onto the floppy disk..."
|
||
cp $boot $dev
|
||
/etc/mount $dev /mnt
|
||
if [ -f /tboot ]
|
||
then
|
||
cp /tboot /mnt
|
||
fi
|
||
cp /dpb /mnt
|
||
echo "Step 5: copy the kernel and patch it..."
|
||
cp /coherent /mnt
|
||
ln /mnt/coherent /mnt/autoboot
|
||
if [ -f /tboot ] # we are running Coherent 4.x
|
||
then
|
||
if [ $dev = /dev/fha0 ] # drive A is 5,25"
|
||
then
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent rootdev=makedev14)
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent pipedev=makedev14)
|
||
else # drive A is 3,5"
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent rootdev=makedev15)
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent pipedev=makedev15)
|
||
fi
|
||
else # we are running Cohherent 3.x
|
||
if [ $dev = /dev/fha0 ] # drive A is 5,25"
|
||
then
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent rootdev_=makedev14)
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent pipedev_=makedev14)
|
||
else # drive A is 3,5"
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent rootdev_=makedev15)
|
||
/conf/patch /mnt/coherent pipedev_=makedev15)
|
||
fi
|
||
fi
|
||
echo "Step 6: copy all neccesary files to the floppy disk..."
|
||
mkdir /mnt/mnt
|
||
mkdir /mnt/tmp
|
||
cpdir /dev /mnt/dev
|
||
cpdir /drv /mnt/drv
|
||
mkdir /mnt/conf
|
||
cpdir /conf/kbd /mnt/conf/kbd
|
||
mkdir /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/bad /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/check /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/chgrp /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/chmod /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/chown /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/cmp /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/cp /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/cpdir /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/date /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/db /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/dcheck /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/df /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/find /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/grep /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/icheck /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/ln /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/ls /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/lc /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/mkdir /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/mv /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/ncheck /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/ps /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/pwd /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/rm /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/rmdir /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/scat /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/sh /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/stty /mnt/bin
|
||
cp /bin/sync /mnt/bin
|
||
mkdir /mnt/usr
|
||
mkdir /mnt/usr/tmp
|
||
mkdir /mnt/usr/bin
|
||
cp /usr/bin/vi /mnt/usr/bin
|
||
cp /usr/bin/me /mnt/usr/bin
|
||
cp /usr/bin/more /mnt/usr/bin
|
||
if [ -d /usr/lib/terminfo ]
|
||
then
|
||
mkdir /mnt/usr/lib
|
||
mkdir /mnt/usr/lib/terminfo
|
||
mkdir /mnt/usr/lib/terminfo/a
|
||
cp /usr/lib/terminfo/a/ansipc /mnt/usr/lib/terminfo/a
|
||
fi
|
||
mkdir /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/.profile /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/ATclock /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/badscan /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/clri /mnt/etc
|
||
if [ -f /etc/drvld ]
|
||
then
|
||
cp /etc/drvld /mnt/etc
|
||
fi
|
||
cp /etc/drvld.all /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/fdisk /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/fsck /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/init /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/mkfs /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/mount /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/reboot /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/umount /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/serialno /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/timezone /mnt/etc
|
||
cp /etc/termcap /mnt/etc
|
||
echo "Step 7: create lost+found with enough empty directory slots..."
|
||
mkdir /mnt/lost+found
|
||
for I in 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
|
||
do
|
||
for J in 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
|
||
do
|
||
touch /mnt/lost+found/$I$J
|
||
done
|
||
done
|
||
rm /mnt/lost+found/*
|
||
echo "Step 8: create some files, so that boot ends in single user mode..."
|
||
cat >/mnt/etc/brc <<!
|
||
. /etc/timezone
|
||
/bin/date -s `/etc/ATclock` >/dev/null
|
||
/etc/drvld.all
|
||
exit 1
|
||
!
|
||
>/mnt/etc/checklist
|
||
>/mnt/etc/mount.all
|
||
echo "Last step: check the filesystem of the created floppy disk:"
|
||
/etc/umount $dev
|
||
/etc/fsck $dev
|
||
echo "Fine, floppy disk ready, store it at a cold and dry place but"
|
||
echo "where you can remeber in case of an emergency :-)"
|
||
-------------------------End Here-------------------------------
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
--
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
mike@array.com So much fun, so little time to enjoy it....
|
||
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|