RISC iX
Encyclopedia
RISC iX was a Unix
operating system
designed to run on the Acorn Archimedes
. Heavily based on 4.3BSD
, it was initially completed in 1988 — a year after Arthur but prior to RISC OS
.
Later versions upgraded the X11 server to release 4, and was certified to conform to the X/Open
Portability Guide 3 Base profile.
The native file system
implemented a transparent executable file compression
mechanism that took advantage of the hardware's 32kB page size and sparse files. Additionally, the console featured a two-cursor text copying mechanism inspired by Acorn's own earlier 8-bit
range including the BBC Micro
.
by Granada Microcare, who would take the installation tape away with them. The cost of purchase was £
1,000.
Once installed a backup of the core operating system to three floppy disk
s was possible, allowing future reinstallation.
.
RAM (dual MEMCs) and a 67 MB hard drive running from an onboard SCSI
controller (no other machine from Acorn Computers
included integrated SCSI
). It is rumoured that overheating from the SCSI
controller was one reason for the machine to never be released.
At the time of initial release in 1989, the cost of the R140 was £3,500.
An ordinary A440 with at least 4 MiB RAM and a suitable hard drive could run RISC iX. The R140 and A440 were hampered by the memory management system, using 32 KiB pages.
adapter and a 100 MB SCSI hard drive (typically a Conner CP30100). It booted in the same style as the earlier R140. The machine was supplied with an Ethernet
adapter.
The system was released in 1990 priced £3,500 just as its predecessor had.
A similarly configured A540 could run RISC iX.
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
designed to run on the Acorn Archimedes
Acorn Archimedes
The Acorn Archimedes was Acorn Computers Ltd's first general purpose home computer to be based on their own ARM architecture.Using a RISC design with a 32-bit CPU, at its launch in June 1987, the Archimedes was stated as running at 4 MIPS, with a claim of 18 MIPS during tests.The name is commonly...
. Heavily based on 4.3BSD
Berkeley Software Distribution
Berkeley Software Distribution is a Unix operating system derivative developed and distributed by the Computer Systems Research Group of the University of California, Berkeley, from 1977 to 1995...
, it was initially completed in 1988 — a year after Arthur but prior to RISC OS
RISC OS
RISC OS is a computer operating system originally developed by Acorn Computers Ltd in Cambridge, England for their range of desktop computers, based on their own ARM architecture. First released in 1987, under the name Arthur, the subsequent iteration was renamed as in 1988...
.
Features
- X11 (initially Release 2) with Ardent Window ManagerArdent Window ManagerIn computing, the Ardent Window Manager was an early window manager for the X Window System. It was descended from uwm.awm was written by Jordan Hubbard for the Ardent Computer Corporation's TITAN line of workstations in 1988, which ran a version of X11R2...
, Tom's Window ManagerTwmIn computing, twm is the standard window manager for the X Window System, version X11R4 onwards...
and Ultrix Window ManagerUltrix Window ManagerThe Ultrix Window Manager was the standard window manager for the X Window System from X11R1 through X11R3 releases. In fact, it was the only X11-compatible window manager as of X11R1.- History :...
available by default - System V virtual memoryVirtual memoryIn computing, virtual memory is a memory management technique developed for multitasking kernels. This technique virtualizes a computer architecture's various forms of computer data storage , allowing a program to be designed as though there is only one kind of memory, "virtual" memory, which...
extensions, compatible with the System V Interface Definition - CC (programming language)C is a general-purpose computer programming language developed between 1969 and 1973 by Dennis Ritchie at the Bell Telephone Laboratories for use with the Unix operating system....
CompilerCompilerA compiler is a computer program that transforms source code written in a programming language into another computer language...
with ANSIAmerican National Standards InstituteThe American National Standards Institute is a private non-profit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States. The organization also coordinates U.S. standards with international...
C and pcc (BerkeleyUniversity of California, BerkeleyThe University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
) compatibility - SunSun MicrosystemsSun Microsystems, Inc. was a company that sold :computers, computer components, :computer software, and :information technology services. Sun was founded on February 24, 1982...
Network File System version 3.2 - ARMARM architectureARM is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computer instruction set architecture developed by ARM Holdings. It was named the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that, the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA in numbers produced...
AssemblerAssembly languageAn assembly language is a low-level programming language for computers, microprocessors, microcontrollers, and other programmable devices. It implements a symbolic representation of the machine codes and other constants needed to program a given CPU architecture...
Later versions upgraded the X11 server to release 4, and was certified to conform to the X/Open
X/Open
X/Open Company, Ltd. was a consortium founded by several European UNIX systems manufacturers in 1984 to identify and promote open standards in the field of information technology. More specifically, the original aim was to define a single specification for operating systems derived from UNIX, to...
Portability Guide 3 Base profile.
The native file system
File system
A file system is a means to organize data expected to be retained after a program terminates by providing procedures to store, retrieve and update data, as well as manage the available space on the device which contain it. A file system organizes data in an efficient manner and is tuned to the...
implemented a transparent executable file compression
Data compression
In computer science and information theory, data compression, source coding or bit-rate reduction is the process of encoding information using fewer bits than the original representation would use....
mechanism that took advantage of the hardware's 32kB page size and sparse files. Additionally, the console featured a two-cursor text copying mechanism inspired by Acorn's own earlier 8-bit
8-bit
The first widely adopted 8-bit microprocessor was the Intel 8080, being used in many hobbyist computers of the late 1970s and early 1980s, often running the CP/M operating system. The Zilog Z80 and the Motorola 6800 were also used in similar computers...
range including the BBC Micro
BBC Micro
The BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
.
Distribution
RISC iX was either supplied preinstalled on new computer hardware or was installed onsite from a portable tape driveTape drive
A tape drive is a data storage device that reads and performs digital recording, writes data on a magnetic tape. Magnetic tape data storage is typically used for offline, archival data storage. Tape media generally has a favorable unit cost and long archival stability.A tape drive provides...
by Granada Microcare, who would take the installation tape away with them. The cost of purchase was £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
1,000.
Once installed a backup of the core operating system to three floppy disk
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
s was possible, allowing future reinstallation.
M4
An unreleased machine, built internally by Acorn for the development of RISC iX. Reputedly only three were built and one of them has subsequently been destroyed. All known examples are owned by The National Museum of ComputingThe National Museum of Computing
The National Museum of Computing is a museum in the United Kingdom dedicated to collecting and restoring historic computer systems. The museum is based at Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire, England, and opened in 2007...
.
A680 Technical Publishing System
Unreleased but widely prototyped, the A680 contained an ARM2 processor, 8 MiBMIB
MIB may refer to any of several concepts:* Master of International Business, a postgraduate business degree* Melayu Islam Beraja, the adopted national philosophy of Brunei* Motion induced blindness, a visual illusion in peripheral vision...
RAM (dual MEMCs) and a 67 MB hard drive running from an onboard SCSI
SCSI
Small Computer System Interface is a set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices. The SCSI standards define commands, protocols, and electrical and optical interfaces. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it...
controller (no other machine from Acorn Computers
Acorn Computers
Acorn Computers Ltd. was a British computer company established in Cambridge, England, in 1978. The company produced a number of computers which were especially popular in the UK. These included the Acorn Electron, the BBC Micro, and the Acorn Archimedes...
included integrated SCSI
SCSI
Small Computer System Interface is a set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices. The SCSI standards define commands, protocols, and electrical and optical interfaces. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it...
). It is rumoured that overheating from the SCSI
SCSI
Small Computer System Interface is a set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices. The SCSI standards define commands, protocols, and electrical and optical interfaces. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it...
controller was one reason for the machine to never be released.
R140
Based on the A440, the R140 contained an 8 MHz ARM2 processor, 4 MiB RAM and a 47 MB, later upgraded to 56 MB, ST506 hard drive. Supplied with RISC OS 2 in ROM, the machine would boot that OS then could either automatically boot RISC iX totally removing RISC OS from memory or continue running RISC OS — optionally being rebooted into RISC iX at any time.At the time of initial release in 1989, the cost of the R140 was £3,500.
An ordinary A440 with at least 4 MiB RAM and a suitable hard drive could run RISC iX. The R140 and A440 were hampered by the memory management system, using 32 KiB pages.
R260
Based on the A540, the R260 originally contained a 26 MHz, (later 33 MHz) ARM3 processor, 4 MiB RAM (upgradable to 16 MiB) SCSISCSI
Small Computer System Interface is a set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices. The SCSI standards define commands, protocols, and electrical and optical interfaces. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it...
adapter and a 100 MB SCSI hard drive (typically a Conner CP30100). It booted in the same style as the earlier R140. The machine was supplied with an Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
adapter.
The system was released in 1990 priced £3,500 just as its predecessor had.
A similarly configured A540 could run RISC iX.
R225
The R225 was a discless version of the R260. It required a network file server or an R260 to boot.Peripherals
- As well as industry-standard Ethernet, Acorn's own EconetEconetEconet was Acorn's low-cost local area network system, intended for use by schools and small businesses. Econet is rumoured to be an abbreviation of Economy Network, but Acorn were always careful to stress the Greek root, oikos, meaning "house"....
was supported, including an IPInternet ProtocolThe Internet Protocol is the principal communications protocol used for relaying datagrams across an internetwork using the Internet Protocol Suite...
over Econet transmission system.
External links
- RISCiX computers
- Playing with UNIX - The R140
- Charge-free Software for RISC iX machines Acorn legacy FTP Site, hosted by RISCOS LtdRISCOS LtdRISCOS Ltd. is a limited company engaged in computer software and IT consulting. It licensed the rights to from Element 14 and subsequently Pace Micro Technology. It continues to develop...