One of these days I'd really like to play with a UCSD PASCAL system, largely to get a feel of how well it worked. From what I've heard getting any kind of Java running on a 68k based system is a problem (have we got anyone still active with Amiga's around, they'd have a better idea). That tells me that a 486 or lower won't really be able to cut it when it comes to JAVA.

John Foust skrev: But what does Java entail in this case? In its purest form, Java is a programming language which may be compiled for your processor of choice. In this case, it will run on most everything. Then there is Java bytecode, which is compiled for an imaginary Java processor which is emulated on your host system. Then we have the entire application kit used for writing applets, with libraries and lots of functions, compiled into bytecode and rendered into a web browser window. This is where it gets troublesome not only for the processor, but also due to lack of the entire set of libraries required.

There's also a thing called a Sage II. It's a 68000-based single-board computer + 2 disk drives + PSU in a small-ish metal case. I seem to remember the standard OS for that is the P-system (although the machine would also run CP/M-68K). I don't know how common the machine is, though.

And of course there's the PERQ. It's not strictly a UCSD p-machine -- the instruction set is called 'Q-codes' and is an enhanced version of the P-code (with graphics operations, etc). It's a very similar instruction set, though. However the user interface to the OS is totally different (the P-system has a menu displayed across the top of the CRT and you type the first letter of a command to select it; the PERQ has a proper command line and/or pop-up menus with a mouse).

I suspect that by far the most common P-system-capable machine is the Apple ][ with a language card.

There's also a thing called a Sage II.

And of course there's the PERQ.

Actually, there were P-system implementations for all sorts of machines (not suprisingly -- the idea was that much of the system was portable). There was certainly a PDP11 version. And I remember reading about a version for the PC (along with the complaint that it could only use floppy drives, and would ignore the hard disk in a PC/XT system) -tony

but it's _much_ nicer with two. The only annoying thing about the P-code card is that it "takes over" the PEB; to boot the system as a 99/4A you have to pull the card. There is a hack to add a switch to the P-code card to disable this; the details are somewhere in my basement, awaiting a quiet winter afternoon with a soldering iron.

I suspect that by far the most common P-system-capable machine is the Apple ][ with a language card. Finding one of those is not going to be hard. There's also a thing called a Sage II. It's a 68000-based single-board computer + 2 disk drives + PSU in a small-ish metal case. I seem to remember the standard OS for that is the P-system (although the machine would also run CP/M-68K). I don't know how common the machine is, though. And of course there's the PERQ. It's not strictly a UCSD p-machine -- the instruction set is called 'Q-codes' and is an enhanced version of the P-code (with graphics operations, etc). It's a very similar instruction set, though. However the user interface to the OS is totally different (the P-system has a menu displayed across the top of the CRT and you type the first letter of a command to select it; the PERQ has a proper command line and/or pop-up menus with a mouse).

I'd like to see PERQ microcode to turn a PERQ into a Java machine. I think it's technically possible, but it's not going to be trivial to write it either. Not trivial at all, which is why I've not attempted it yet. -tony

I use my Amiga as my main machine, but none of the browsers has got Java. Javascript, yes, but no Java. It doesn't matter, though, since I've encountered about five sites in the last five years which actually used

and about two of those depended on it. It's just used for flashy effects, nothing else.