FREESCO Support

by **EdSchouten** » Mon Jan 27, 2003 7:06 pm

Is that possible? I hope so. Maybe making it independant from Linux? Creating a new routing-optimized more compact kernel.

by **Vrolijk** » Mon Jan 27, 2003 8:19 pm

Unfortunately the standard linux kernel doesn't work on 286 and lower due to a missing memory unit. There is a project called ELKS <a href="http://elks.sourceforge.net/" target="_blank">ELKS: The Embeddable Linux Kernel System</a> that is working on just that, but adapting Freesco to this would be like starting from scratch. Major (really major) rewriting. :(

Anyway a 386 with 8meg is more than enough to serve a small network including mail :)

Bye,

Marcel

by **tecknojunky** » Mon Jan 27, 2003 10:05 pm

286 don't have protected memory features. That's why any multitask software wont run on a 286 and lower, including Windows 3.0, Deskview and ... Linux

by **BigHomeNet2** » Tue Jan 28, 2003 6:32 am

Have you ever tried running Linux on a 386? I do and it's SLOW.

Another problem with the 286, is back in the day, most of the mobo builders bought a 286 chip and built the rest from scratch. I have a lot of 286 mobos that are HUGE with a mass of chips and even some hand wiring. Most can't handle 8 MB of memory, or boot from an IDE device.

I vote we keep the 286s booting DOS 4 and WP 5.1. :)

BHNet

by **CDFiXER** » Tue Jan 28, 2003 12:47 pm

Lots of those old 286 boards were power hogs too!

Actually I saw a 286 system one time that did have protected memory, and other 386 like funtctions. It was a machine controller and ran DOS. Talk about a hack job in the hardware. It was using an ISA board to hold all the extra RAM as well as 3-4 cables directly to the motherboard. Also, I think it used as much power as my Athlon 1.4 GHz machine....

Wow, WP 5.1! I loved that Word processor! I would still be using it if I hadnt lost my install discs...maybe...

by **izzy4505** » Tue Jan 28, 2003 2:39 pm

Lol, our school forces us to use wp 5.1. It's what they teach in our most advanced computing class. LOL.

If you all would like to see a really old clunker, I've got my IBM XT, 4.77mhz with 640kb of ram [I've got an isa expansion board on there]. It's actually got an asychronous communications adapter [com port], that goes as high as 2400baud, and I use it for a terminal, running telix for dos. It's quite nifty, and can even do ansi colors. LOL.

by **tecknojunky** » Tue Jan 28, 2003 9:56 pm

I have my 386 running linux 2.4.20. It is slower than a P1 which is normal but it seem useable. I say "seem" because I'm just using a bootdisk with a ramdrive root fs, so i'm not entirely sure how fast it would be from the hard drive. I'll keep on building it just to see. Call this an experiment.

3 years ago, I had 5 old XTs RIP in the closet with old 5" floppies (thick 360K that used two drives bays) and 20MB mfm hds . When I moved out from my appartment, I decided to trash them and called a recycling guy who told me what exactly is worth something in those monsters. I extracted some targeted peaces of metals and guess what, about 1% in weight got me 30$ and the 99% of the rest gave 1.50$

(true story).

by **CDFiXER** » Tue Jan 28, 2003 11:39 pm

The Compact Disc manufacturer I work for still uses some of the old XT's. One of them is on the packaging floor and is covered in @6" of cardboard dust. Every 6~8 months it quits. Pick it up and drop it an inch or so is the ONLY thing that gets it going again. And yes, I went through the hardware many times-about 3 years ago....

They are using another one with an NEC 3X CDROM drive to verify TOC's from master to production discs with robotics and the whole mess cooked up in house. Hmmmmm, 20,000 in parts and we cant afford a newer PC? :p

They do have an interesting program for it. It emulates an 8087 math coprocessor.

Ok enough from on the golden oldies. I dont want to start getting rude PM's about being off topic.... :O

by **BigHomeNet2** » Wed Jan 29, 2003 5:22 am

I have a 386 running at work. I setup RH 5.2 on it and use it as a RAS server running 1 modem. It's very happy and does it's job well.
(I would have used Freesco, but I had built the system to play with when the request came in for dial-in.)
I also have another 386. It's a mobo, memory, 528MB HDD, IDE combo card, video card, and PS, all in a carboard box. I dump it on the table, and after a bit of plugging in cards, it boots to RH 5.2. Even runs X.

I have a few XTs and ATs sitting around. Most still boot, and have said DOS 4, WP 5.1, and 123 on them. I hate tossing out stuff that still works. Also have the first Compaq "luggable" computer. It boots, but is missing the video card and shows an error.

Makes me wonder how log the latest P4 will last.

BHNet

by **unclejed613** » Fri Aug 22, 2003 1:58 pm

by **El Machete** » Sat Aug 23, 2003 2:19 am

by **JNK** » Thu Jun 02, 2005 5:30 am

by **tom** » Sun Jun 19, 2005 9:01 pm

FREESCO Support

286 and lower support

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