On Wednesday, June 23, 2004, at 07:47 PM, Andy Ruhl wrote:
>
> I'm looking for people who have installed NetBSD on the i386 based
> qubes or raqs. The qube 3 seems nice because it has a scsi port right
> on it which could be useful. I've seen some Linux stuff, but no NetBSD
> specific stuff. Does anyone know of any links? If there are any, this
> might be useful for the cobalt page to deflect emails like this...
>

As far as Qube 2's, did you find the the archive of the cobalt mailing 
list  at
<http://mail-index.NetBSD.org/port-cobalt/>?

It has some nice info archived, especially around Aug 2003, there's an 
announcement from Dennis about a 1.6 Netbootable CD that will install 
1.6.1 if you have the right PC hardware to hook up.  A 1.6.1 version is 
housed on the netbsd site:
<ftp://ftp.netbsd.org/pub/NetBSD/arch/cobalt/restore-cd/1.6.1/>

Be sure to look at later months, e.g. there's a nice walkthru posted in 
Jan 2004, to help you get set up and going that's a big help with 
netbsd-cobalt2 specific steps.  And if you get a Qube 2 that's a little 
low on RAM, there's one tweek that you need to do before the 
netboot/install will work (unless that's been fixed on the CD image 
now).

> I keep looking for a qube 2, but these things are drying up and are
> getting dangerously close in price to the i386 based ones, which are
> supposed to be much faster anyway. All I'm trying to do is get a nice
> quiet compact box that doesn't make any noise. I'm tired of the noise!

I got a Qube 2 Jan 2004 and like it very much; I have a few things I've 
been saving up to ask the list, sometime I'll get them organized and 
post them.  It will be late July before I have time though (listers, 
you're warned! <grin>).

I'm not sure where you are looking for pricing, but searching ebay 
completed items from all June auctions, Qube 2's seem to be going for 
$90-150, and Qube 3's for $250-400+.  There are a couple lowball 
auctions for each of these models, but if you look at the auction 
details, they didn't meet reserve so don't really count as sold for the 
price listed.

I'm not sure about the Qube 3 or RAQ specific info re: NetBSD.  Also, 
google for the "gigaCube" for info on adding big HDs to Qube2, and 
getting a beefier external PS for cheap.  And for SCSI card info for 
the Qube 2, the QubeQuorner FAQ used to have specific card info, but is 
offline now.  Searching the internet archive for 
<http://weblogs.userland.com/qube/faq/> should turn it up though- it 
was the very last question in the FAQ.  I know the card models were 
posted here and should be in the list archive, in the last 4? months or 
so.

Assuming the SCSI works OK in 1.6.1 and a Qube 2 (I've got a card but 
never tested fully) $100-150 for the box, and $10 for a old SCSI card, 
seems fine to me... and still cheaper than a Qube 3 by quite a bit.  
With added RAM, compiling on my Qube 2 is bearable, and it's pretty 
easy to saturate outbound cable modem connections anyway- more CPU 
speed wouldn't help in that regard, that's the cap I hit most 
(rationale for the Qube2 in my household is for sftpd).

HTH.

Brian
-- 
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that 
we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only 
unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American 
public."
-- Theodore Roosevelt, speaking on President Wilson's crackdown on 
dissent after the U.S. entered W.W.I