New VAX CPUs (was Re: DEC VAX 785 and PDP11/70's in Kansas City)

On Monday 19 April 2004 20:48, ben franchuk wrote: If the patents took 6 years after being registered to be accepted (a relatively long time), and they're enforcable for 17 years, that means that any significant VAX pantents (which would/should have been applied for no later than the VAX-11/780's release in 1977) would have expired in 2000. I think it's safe to assume that VAX and PDP-11 patents would have expired. Don't forget how old the VAX and -11 are, relative to how long patents last. As well, anything newer than that would likely be on things like chipset architecture, or CPU implementation details, which would be nearly useless to bother following when implementing a modernized version of the CPU. As well, DEC wasn't as IP-heavy as someone like IBM. It was possible/encouraged for third parties to build compatible hardware when these machines were still being produced. Pat -- Purdue University ITAP/RCS --- http://www.itap.purdue.edu/rcs/ The Computer Refuge --- http://computer-refuge.org