Subject: MicroVax IIs and NetBSD/vax
To: Dave McGuire <mcguire@rocinante.digex.net>
From: Jonathan Sturges <jonathan@maui.cc.odu.edu>
List: port-vax
Date: 10/05/1994 16:53:17
On Tue, 4 Oct 1994, Dave McGuire wrote:
> Some friends and I now have several MicroVAX 2000's,
> VAXstation 2000's, MicroVAX II's, and even a rather well-equipped
> VAX-11/750, all waiting for NetBSD/vax.
I have a MicroVax II myself... :-)
I'm waiting anxiously for NetBSD/vax; however, first I need to prepare 
the hard disk.  The drive in the machine is a Maxtor XT-2190, but it came 
from a PC.  It's not formatted for Vax's, and I have no way to do 
this... :-(

>   The question is...How will we support distributing bootable media?
> I will have the ability to generate tk50 tapes, rx50 and rx33
> floppies, and probably 9-track tapes-- but how to help those with NO
> host operating system at all?  Tape and disk images, perhaps?  But how
> to write them from PC's or whatever?
For future reference, I'd love to know the physical data for RX50s, so I 
could format/use them on my DOS machine.  Anyone have the specs?  
Although I don't currently have an RX50, I can pick one up for cheap, and 
I'd buy one in a sec. if that's what it takes to get NetBSD in there!  :)

As I get the drive ready for use, I'll be dying waiting for NetBSD.  I'm 
going to try to get the machine on the net before it comes out, so I'll 
be able to ftp it over.  Otherwise, I may need the gracious assistance of 
those working on bootable TK50's... :-)

What's the official release status of NetBSD/vax, and where will it be 
distributed from?  Or are these variables unknown at this time?

thanks,
Jonathan
jonathan@cc.odu.edu