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jsdf / pce

Emulates Mac Plus, PC, & Atari ST in the browser using WebAssembly
https://jamesfriend.com.au/pce-js
GNU General Public License v2.0
864 stars 154 forks source link

This is rad — great work! You think it could run A/UX? #3

Open geoff-nixon opened 10 years ago

geoff-nixon commented 10 years ago

So I've been meaning forever to try to get an emulator up and running with A/UX, but kept putting it off; and now it looks like aux-penelope is shutting its doors in a couple of weeks. So I'm scrambling a bit. I was able to wget most of the site, but there are a bunch of weird errors with jagubox directory.

So anyway, my question. Before I just dive in head first here: how much of a "Mac Plus" is this? It seems like the "hardware" requirements might be too steep. And in my head I think of a Mac Plus as terribly slow compared to what was my first computer, an SE/30, though I'm not sure how accurate that impression is considering I was maybe five years old when I made it. (Damned Plus couldn't run my HyperCard stacks.)

So anyway, what's your assessment? Any suggestions?

jsdf commented 10 years ago

The emulated mac can be configured to run much faster and with more memory, but still only supports a 68000 processor, and also only a black and white screen. What are the system requirements for A/UX?Cheers, James

On Fri, Jan 31, 2014 at 11:53 PM, Geoff Nixon notifications@github.com wrote:

So I've been meaning forever to try to get an emulator up and running with A/UX, but kept putting it off; and now it looks like aux-penelope is shutting its doors in a couple of weeks. So I'm scrambling a bit... I was able to wget most of the site, but there are a bunch of weird errors with jagubox directory. So anyway, my question: before I just dive in head first here: how much of a "Mac Plus" is this? It seems like the "hardware" requirements might be too steep. And in my head I think of a Mac Plus as terribly slow compared to what was my first computer, an SE/30, though I'm not sure how accurate that impression is considering I was maybe five years old when I made it. (Damned Plus couldn't run my HyperCard stacks.)

So anyway, what's your assessment? Any suggestions?

Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub: https://github.com/jsdf/pce/issues/3

geoff-nixon commented 10 years ago

Basically: a Mac II. I don't get the feeling that the handful of instructions changed with the 68010, nor even the additional ones added with the 68020 would be a barrier, since Apple's binary releases generally ran fine on all of these. But the UNIX layer makes heavy use of an (off-chip with Mac II, later integrated in the 68030/40) PMMU which came standard. Basically that would be the deal breaker, I think.

There's a somewhat cryptic reference on the wikipedia page, which says: "In theory it can be used with other processors such as the 68010 by simulating the coprocessor interface in software."

But I don't know what that would really entail. Do you? By chance are you familiar with any of this?

jywarren commented 4 years ago

FWIW i think i remember installing A/UX on a mac classic a long time ago... but it was like, over 20 years ago and i could be mis-remembering. But it was definitely an early Mac.