In article <BwsHJr.LnJ@unix.amherst.edu> twpierce@unix.amherst.edu (Tim Pierce) writes:
quoted text
> I'm looking for a machine on which to run Linux in the 00-00
> range.  I was looking at a lot of 486SX boxes, until I ran across Eric
> Raymond's PC Unix hardware buyer's guide, which includes the following
> paragraph:

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> > Don't bother with SX machines.  Under UNIX the 16-bit bus-to-CPU path
> > can choke your throughput.

Agreed.

quoted text
> > The 486SX is even worse, a stupid marketing crock
> > with no technical justification whatsoever.

This is Eric's politics coming to the fore. A 486SX is a better choice than
any 386DX I know of. The 487SX is a scam, but most competantly designed
motherboards support the 486SX or DX with a jumper change.

Eric's a nice guy, he's just got less tolerance for marketing bullshit than
most and it shows. Objectively, the 486SX is an OK chip, and the marketing
bullshit can be avoided by careful motherboard choices.
-- 
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