Sun-Spots Digest, v7n2
William LeFebvre
Sun-Spots-Request at Rice.edu
Fri Nov 4 01:16:42 AEST 1988
SUN-SPOTS DIGEST Wednesday, 2 November 1988 Volume 7 : Issue 2
Today's Topics:
Re: graphics on the Sun
Re: Portmap, Gateway problems under SunOS 3.5
Re: Multi-user SUN enquiry
Re: Clearpoint memory on 3/110
word processing on Sun: FrameMaker
dvipage crashes on SUN 4/110's
Want to install 3rd party disk in 386i
Extra memory board in a 3/160 causes trouble
Help needed with very simple device driver
request for feedback on Harris/Lanier serial board for 386i
SUN 386i dos windows problem, and fortran
Termcap problems with Gmacs 18.50 and SunView 3.5?
Sun raster -> MacPaint filter?
PC-NFS printer-redirection problem?
SunOS 4.0 'st' driver with Exabyte 8mm tape drive?
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----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 10:01:31 PDT
From: rodgers at maxwell.mmwb.ucsf.edu
Subject: Re: graphics on the Sun
Reply to an earlier article (sorry, lost the full reference)...
Kristian,
Here is some information which I hope will help, regarding your net query.
We use <PLOT79> for general scientific line graphics. It is FORTRAN
based, and very portable (running on virtually all major OSs). The price
paid for the portability is that it takes little advantage of hardware
specifics (mice, etc.) so those obsessed with being "state of the art"
tend to thumb their noses at it; we find it very useful and do essetnially
ALL of our graphics using it (including contour maps, 2- and 3-D line
plots, pie charts, and histograms). It also supports about 40-50 output
devices, including HPGL, PostScript, and Tektronix. Also, there is quite
of bit of graphics built into systems like S (the AT&T statistical
package, which we can highly recommend), Macsyma, and Mathematica (both
symbolic mathematics packages, which run on a variety of machines
including the Sun). S and Mathematica take advantage of PostScript. To
inquire about <PLOT79>, contact:
Nelson H. F. Beebe, Ph.D.
Center for Scientific Computing
South Physics Building
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, UT 84112
(801) 581-5254,5257
ARPAnet:beebe at science.utah.edu
To find out about S, call (800)828-UNIX; to find out about Mathematica,
call Wolfram Associates (I don't have their number; it has appeared in
other net postings, particulary the new comp.next group).
Cheerio, Rick Rodgers
R. P. C. Rodgers, M.D. Telephone:
Statistical Mechanics of Biomolecules (415)476-8910 (work)
Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry (415)664-0560 (home)
University of California, Box 1204 E-mail:
Laurel Heights Campus, Room 102 ARPA: rodgers at cca.ucsf.edu
3333 California St. rodgers at maxwell.mmwb.ucsf.edu
San Francisco CA 94118 BITNET: rodgers at ucsfcca
USA UUCP:
...ucbvax.berkeley.edu!cca.ucsf.edu!rodgers
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 11:46:47 EDT
From: Preston Mullen <mullen at itd.nrl.navy.mil>
Subject: Re: Portmap, Gateway problems under SunOS 3.5
Reference: v6n268
There is a known bug whereby portmap crashes. The following description
was taken from Sun's on-line bug list a few months ago:
> Reference Number: 1008925
> Synopsis: portmap is dumping
>
> Category: network
> Subcategory: program
> Releases: 3.2, 3.4
>
> Description:
> `portmap' dumps core when the response to an rpc broadcast
> is greatr than 2000 bytes. Since this broadcast is seen by
> all portmappers on the net at once, they all crash.
The bug is also in 3.5 and is not fixed by 3.5.1 or 3.5.2. It appears to
be caused by overflowing a 2000 byte buffer.
It is fixed (by extending the buffer to 9000 bytes) in the portmap.c that
is part of the 11/30/87 RPCSRC 3.9 distribution, which Sun posted to
unix-sources in March. Perhaps the Sun-Spots moderator can suggest an
anonymous FTP source.
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 11:42:40 EDT
From: phil at tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Phil Ritzenthaler)
Subject: Re: Multi-user SUN enquiry
Reference: v6n270
> My question: does any reader have experience in using a single 3/260 or
> 4/260 for 30 users (especially users of this kind)? What size of memory do
> you have? Will a single large disk (700 or 890 MB drive) do the job, or
> would two smaller drives be better?
Here at the Advanced Computing Center for the Arts & Design, we have a
4/280 with 32 Mbyte memory, 1 890Mbyte drive, and a 16 port Multiplexer.
Since we deal with only graduate students and these students are doing
some mega-number crunching (via computer graphics and animation), we felt
that it was necessary to have as much memory as possible. Still, when we
have 5 or 6 students on, the load goes above 5 and the response time
diminishes. If we didn't have as much computer animation (rendering), and
tools that create the frames for this animation, I'm sure that we could
handle many more.
Hope this helps . . .
------------------------------
Date: 26 Oct 88 17:22:21 GMT
From: mkhaw at teknowledge-vaxc.arpa (Mike Khaw)
Subject: Re: Clearpoint memory on 3/110
Reference: v6n274
> We're using Clearpoint memory for SUN 3/60's and SUN 4/110's, and are
> happy with the results. The price is a lot better than SUN's price (but
> still a whole lot higher than it was 12 months ago...).
>
> Mike Carter
> Mitel Corporation
We're also using Clearpoint memory on our 3/110s. My only comment is that
the screw holes on the Clearpoint boards don't line up with the holes on
the Sun chassis (we have somewhere around 6 machines with the Clearpoint
memory board and all have the same problem). Between that and the idiotic
Sun ethernet cable clip, it's like the machines are held together with the
proverbial bubble gum and tape.
Mike Khaw
--
internet: mkhaw at teknowledge.arpa
uucp: {uunet|sun|ucbvax|decwrl|uw-beaver}!mkhaw%teknowledge.arpa
hardcopy: Teknowledge Inc, 1850 Embarcadero Rd, POB 10119, Palo Alto, CA 94303
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 16:58:56 EDT
From: berlin%bu-albert.BU.EDU at bu-it.bu.edu (David Fickes)
Subject: word processing on Sun: FrameMaker
I feel the need/urge to add to Chuck Musciano's comments regarding
FrameMaker from Frame Technology. I am VERY pleased with the work we are
doing with the product and find their technical support, documentation and
performance TERRIFIC. This is especially true for their tech support
group, my turnaround with messages averages a half-day or they'll call me
if necessary.
There are other companies in the market however, I still would not
purchase any of their products over Frame.
If someone wants a longer analysis of the various companies and products
please feel free to Email and I'll put it together.
- david
David K. Fickes dfickes at bu-albert.bu.edu
The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein ...harvard!bu-it!bu-albert!dfickes
Boston University berlin at buita.bu.edu
745 Commonwealth Avenue - room 541 617/ 353-9249
Boston, MA 02215 617/ 783-4301
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 13:51:41 EDT
From: chuck at morgan.com
Subject: dvipage crashes on SUN 4/110's
When the "New DVI file" option is chosen from the dvipage top menu a
Segmentation fault occurs. Does anyone know of a working version or a
quick fix for this problem. A review of the core dump shows the following
stack traceback:
(dbx) where
strncpy() at 0xf7688c7c
panel_text() at 0xf778648c
panel_text() at 0xf77861c4
panel_create_item() at 0xf779c870
strings_prompt(x = 576, y = 450, first_prompt = 0x10ab8 "Directory: ", first_value = 0xe7d4 "/tmp_mnt/auto155a00063/chuck/src/dvipage"), line 4301 in "dvipage.c"
page_event(canvas = 0x1c688 "", event = 0x14188, arg = (nil)), line 1154 in "dvipage.c"
canvas_event() at 0xf77c589c
notify_post_event_and_arg() at 0xf77134cc
notify_post_event_and_arg() at 0xf7713360
win_is_io_grabbed() at 0xf771c030
win_is_io_grabbed() at 0xf771b414
notify_client() at 0xf7720a48
notify_input() at 0xf7720a74
ndis_default_prioritizer() at 0xf7712a18
ndis_default_prioritizer() at 0xf77128b0
notify_client() at 0xf7720964
ndis_default_scheduler() at 0xf77126d4
ndis_dispatch() at 0xf772033c
notify_start() at 0xf7714b1c
main(argc = 1, argv = 0xf7fffddc), line 814 in "dvipage.c"
I really like dvipage but I hate having to relocate to a sun3 everytime I
want to use it.
Chuck Ocheret
Morgan Stanley & Co, Inc.
1251 Avenue of the Americas
New York, N.Y. 10020
(212)703-4474
chuck at morgan.com
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 17:32:28 EDT
From: dph at astro.psu.edu (David P. Huenemoerder)
Subject: Want to install 3rd party disk in 386i
I would like to install a disk in the expansion box of a 386i. It looks
like its cables are ready to go and all is needed is a disk. Has anyone
done this? I think its a SCSI controller and not ESCI. I would like to
make sure that if I get a SCSI disk, I can just plug it in, make the disk,
and go, before spending any $$.
David Huenemoerder
Internet (preferred): dph at astro.psu.edu (128.118.30.150)
Bitnet: ia0 at psuvm
UUCP: ...!psuvax1!psaips!huenemoerder (?)
Voice: 814-865-6601
Other: Dept. of Astronomy, 525 Davey Lab, Univ. Park, PA 16802
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 17:49:58 PDT
From: mh%WLBR at etn-wlv.eaton.com (Mike Hoegeman)
Subject: Extra memory board in a 3/160 causes trouble
I've have the good fortune of stumbling upon another memory board laying
around were i work and i want to put it into my 3/160, (I've got 8mb
already). However, when i stick the xtra board in it tries to allocate
144 buffers instead of the 95 buffers it used to allocate w/ 8mb, then it
gets the following panic message.....
panic: memall intrans|want
What's going wrong?? I assume "buffers" means disk buffers. Is there some
kernel parameter I need to massage? I'd really only like to use 95 disk
buffers anyways if this helps in solving the problem.
mike hoegeman - mike at etn-wlv.eaton.com
------------------------------
Date: 26 Oct 88 17:23:13 GMT
From: roston at robotics.jpl.nasa.gov (Gerry Roston)
Subject: Help needed with very simple device driver
Hi!
I recently wrote a device driver for a parallel card which resides on the
backplane of our Sun 3/260 running SunOS 3.5. This machine is our main
file server and our ethernet gateway, and as such has a second ethernet
board installed (purchased from Sun). The parallel card, Burr-Brown
MPV930 is a vme16d16 type card whose base address is 0xccc0 and the card
is installed in slot 12 of the backplane. The card can generate no
interrupts, you simply write the values you want sent out to the
appropriate register and out they go.
I wrote a sample program which tests the device driver, and it does indeed
write the correct value to the output port of the parallel card. However,
with the card installed in the system, vi seems to fail! (this include
vipw, ex, view) Is there any possible causality? Other data points (?):
when in single user mode, typing the command csh caused a memory dump
error followed by a boot to multi user mode. Also, when the reboot
command is used, the system sometimes hangs just after the line "using 95
buffers containing 778240 bytes of main memory".
Are the above problems related to the device or the device driver somehow?
If anyone wants a copy of the device driver, I will be glad to send it to
them.
gerry roston, robotic systems research group
jet propulsion laboratory, 4800 oak grove drive, m/s 23
pasadena, california, 91109, (818) 354-9124 (818) 354-6508
roston at robotics.jpl.nasa.gov
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 25 Oct 88 20:51:48 PDT
From: pixar!euphonics!jb at sun.com (Jeffrey Borish)
Subject: request for feedback on Harris/Lanier serial board for 386i
I would like to hear from people who have direct experience with the
Harris/Lanier 8-port serial board in the 386i. Does it really work with 8
devices at 9600 baud as claimed? Was it difficult to install? If you
needed technical support, why and was it forthcoming? Thanks.
Jeffrey Borish
{ucbvax,sun}!pixar!euphonics!jb
------------------------------
Date: 26 Oct 1988 15:45:51 EST
From: I.E.Auger at uacsc1.albany.edu
Subject: SUN 386i dos windows problem, and fortran
Does anybody know what is the status of SUN fortran for the 386i (as well
as the status of decnet) ?
Under a DOS window, the IBM PC version of kermit (v 2.31) will work if
you do the following: set port bios1, set baud 2400. At any higher speed,
it will not work. You should avoid using set port 1 or com1 since this
accesses the port directly, and since the machine is multitasking it
cannot feed the interrupts fast enough (you may get it to work for a
little bit, but it will die). You should also read the sun documentation
to make unix ignore the DCD line on the RS232 connection (you go into
superuser and then run /etc/softchar on /dev/ttya, don't remember exactly
what needs to be done).
Another problem is that Kermit and other programs don't seem to find the
PATH and insist in accessing drive A:. A partial solution is to do an
ASSIGN A=H.
Another problem is that programs like Turbo Ligthning and Webster's
thesaurus cannot do the spell/thesaurus check of the current word.
Apparently, they cannot find the current cursor position. They try to
access the word on the upper rigth corner of the dos window. I have
checked whether or not location 0:450 has the correct cursor position, and
it does. Could it be that the BIOS call to find out the cursor position is
not working or is it something else ?.
Ivan E. Auger I.E.Auger at uacsc1.albany.edu (internet)
Research Scientist or IEA25 at albny1vx.bitnet
NYS Dept. of Health
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 11:56:26 EDT
From: mfci!ryland at uunet.uu.net (Chris Ryland)
Subject: Termcap problems with Gmacs 18.50 and SunView 3.5?
Gmacs 18.50 running under emacstool (and under SunOS 3.5) will flub the
occasional redisplay, usually when using side-by-side windows. Since this
doesn't happen with the X driver (as RMS firmly told me, and
experimentation bears out), it seems that there must be some bug in the
termcap entry that emacstools uses.
Has anyone else found and fixed this bug or something like it?
Please reply directly, as I don't read Sun-Spots in enough detail to spot
replies. I'll summarize as needed, etc.
--Chris Ryland, Multiflow Computer, Inc.
ryland at multiflow.com, ...!yale!mfci!ryland, ...!uunet!mfci!ryland
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 10:32:49 MDT
From: topologix!devin at boulder.colorado.edu (Devin Hooker)
Subject: Sun raster -> MacPaint filter?
Does anybody know of or have code for one? We have a Mac->Sun filter, but
it throws away a header, and I don't know what's in the header.
AtDhVaAnNkCsE
-Devin
Devin Hooker
Software Engineer
4860 Ward Rd.
Denver, Co. 80033 (303) 421-7700
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 17:55:24 +0200
From: Alexander Koerner <KOE at DB0TUI6.BITNET>
Subject: PC-NFS printer-redirection problem?
Hello,
we have some problems with the printer-redirection feature of PC-NFS since
we upgraded from SunOS 3.5 to 4.0(Export) ! Sometimes the printer output
(created with Word 4.0 and WordPerfect 4.2) appears on the PC's screen,
instead of creating a spoolfile in the PC's spool area on our SUN. (The
redirected printer-ports are correctly initialized using lpconfig !) We
are using 6 PC's with PC-NFS 2.0 and 3.0 and the server is a SUN 3/60C
connected via Thin-Ethernet. Any suggestions ???
Alexander Koerner
BITNET: koe at db0tui6
UUCP : ...mcvax!unido!tub!koe
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 88 17:53:16 EDT
From: glenn at mathcs.emory.edu (Glenn Barry)
Subject: SunOS 4.0 'st' driver with Exabyte 8mm tape drive?
Has anybody had any problems with the Sun supplied 'st' driver (SunOS 4.0
on sun3 and sun4) with the Exabyte tape drive? I have heard reports that
some problems exist and that there is a patched 'st' driver but when I
talk to the Hotline they have not heard of any problems. Our Exabyte will
be in any day now and it would be so nice if works correctly.
If anybody has info (Hotline service order number, bug report number, or
name of the contact at the Hotline) please drop me a line.
many thanks.
Glenn T. Barry | glenn at mathcs.emory.edu Internet
Emory University | {sun!sunatl,gatech}!emory!glenn UUCP
Dept of Math and CS | glenn at emory BITNET
Atlanta, GA 30322 | ph: (404) 727-5637
------------------------------
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