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> > [1.5] takes about 5 times as long [as what? it's not clear] to boot,

From my crude approximations to timings on my MVII with scsi drives...

1.2    boots in 1 minute and a few seconds.
1.4.3  boots in 1 minute and 45 seconds or thereabouts.
1.5    boots in well over 6 minutes.

> I'm not surprised.  This is one of the prices of the breaking the
> traditional /etc/rc boot script that was done.  It might be interesting
> to try 1.4.x boot scripts on an otherwise 1.5 system.

I was sensing it probably has a lot to do with that.  Would it be worth
trying a 1.4.3 boot script set on 1.5 to see what it does?

> > My sense is still that 1.4.x is the end of the line on the
> > oldenVAXencrates pushing 1.0 and under speeds (MVII, 780, 750, 730,
> > etc.).  [...]  I know, they are dinosuars.  But they are fun
> > dinosaurs, and are our heritage.
> 
> Yeah...I've been wondering what to do with mine.  I'm currently running
> 1.4T diskless on a uVII.  I've been wanting to do OS research of a more
> fundamental sort than things like UVM...a VAX is probably good hardware
> to do it on, since it's the only architecture I know thoroughly, from
> top to bottom.

I was wanting to make mine mostly an archive machine and a writing box
for troff/TeX stuff.  It should be fine for that.  In that kind of mode,
its horsepower needs are minimal, and all the latest features are not
really required, since it won't be directly on the net.  One of the
things I was wanting to do was bring it up in Tahoe and Reno, for
comparisons, and maybe using the original troff suite with my ps drivers
that I have been carrying along for years.  With a scsi board and 4
or 8 x 1gig drives, it would make a nice closet archive/writing box.
Retro boxes are fine for that kind of low-pressure use.  They are
definitely underpowered for big kernel compiles on a daily basis.

I went digging in my board pile and found a DQ696 ESDI controller for it,
and 3 esdi drives (300mb, 141mb, 141mb).  When I get the cables patched
up, that should bring up Reno and Tahoe directly, without the scsi burps.
I will also try the 1.2, 1.3.2, 1.4.3, 1.5 comparisons on those drives
and see how it all shakes out.  I am expecting them to be about the same.

Keeping fingers crossed all the old cables can be made to work.....

Bob

p.s.  Can someone confirm that the 3 headed ESDI bus cable has NO twists
      like the PC version, and that the usual drive ID's are 0/1/2 on the
      DQ696 Dilogic ESDI controller?  Are there any rom things that need
      setting like on the SCSI controllers off that little 10 pin port?