[rescue] Movin' on up (long)

[Joshua D Boyd]

On Mon, Apr 22, 2002 at 02:32:26AM -0500, Jonathan C. Patschke wrote:
> To fix this, I'm toying with the idea of selling every system I have and
> consolidating into something that might do what I need.  That is: lots of
> disc, basic audio, multiple SCSI buses, FastEthernet, multiple CPUs, and a
> decent GUI console w/ excellent 2D performance[2] and so-so 3D
> performance. Primarily what I do:
> 
>   1) Lots of C development.  Mainly client/server apps, the occasional
>      web or Java frontend, and the occasional desktop application.
>      Databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, or Berkeley DB) are almost always
>      involved.
>   2) Windows development (VisStudio).
>   3) A tiny bit of OpenGL development.
>   4) Clerical crap: doc-processing in LaTeX or HTML and a little image
>      manipulation in GIMP.
> 
> I'm considering:
> 
>   1) A Sun E3000.  Sounds great, but I can't verify that it has UPA for a
>      decent framebuffer.  Bill also warns me that parts are scarce, as
>      they're not interchangeable with the rest of the Exx00 family. 
>   2) A Sun E450.  Dual UPA, quad CPUs, lots of PCI64, and plenty of space
>      for memory and internal disc.  Not nearly as expen$ive as the E3000,
>      either.  However, it's still a current model, so replacement parts
>      could be prohibitively expensive should anything go wrong.
>   3) A homegrown box based on a Sun axMP.  All the advantages of the
>      E450, but the disadvantages of having to hunt down a decent ATX case
>      (is there such?) and having to -find- an axMP on the used market.
>      Also, I can't confirm anywhere that there are UPA slots on the axMP,
>      and all the decent framebuffers require UPA.

You left out an Onyx as an option.  Full rack in the basement with cable
extenders, and you could have to RE2s, and a whole heck of a lot of CPUs
(I think the limit for Onyx is 28, but the second RE2 might cut into that
number some) and ram.  Perfect for running postgres, quake, mp3s, latex,
etc all at once.

Err, you would have to use FDDI rather than FastE most likely though.  


-- 
Joshua D. Boyd