To go along with "JPM's bored..." thread

[DrPop]

I've been thinking about a really cool project I'd like to do someday if it didn't cost too much for the coolness factor. Er...that should be geek factor! :P

What I'm thinking is, setting up a project where you had one of each CPU crunching a BOINC project, going back as far as you could. If we took a project like SETI for example, where the WU due date times are way long, what do you think is the *oldest* CPU architecture that could actually crunch it and turn in a valid result?
Could a 486 DX (with the math co-processor) do it? A 386 DX? etc... :D wouldn't that be the ultimate in geekdom to have a lineup of them from oldest to newest in architecture churning out results?

*for bonus points you could install a popular game of that era - whatever was the rage to play when that CPU was in vogue, and people could play them :p haha! :o

[DrPop]

Hmmm...maybe the weakest link here would be the BOINC client? System Requirements here (http://boinc.berkeley.edu/wiki/System_requirements). In which case it appears one would be limited to the Pentium and up, with a minimum of 64MB of RAM and higher.
I would have thought at least with Linux you could go down to a 386, but maybe the limitation is something else.

[John P. Myers]

Linux actually dropped support for the 386 and older in their more recent kernels...something Windows should strongly consider :/

I like the idea though :) One day a museum might call and offer good money for those working ancient rigs :D

[DrPop]

Linux actually dropped support for the 386 and older in their more recent kernels...

Oh. Well I guess that nixes that idea. Unless...maybe I could find an OLD version of the BOINC client somewhere that ran on the old Linux kernel? :confused: I'm sure there's some micro-tiny version of Linux out there that will still run on a 386, the problem I'm seeing here would be connecting it to BOINC. If I can't get a BOINC client that works with anything less than a Pentium, then there's my answer...because I'll be even the oldest BOINC client would require at least Win95/98 to run, right?

This (http://www.winhistory.de/more/386/xpmini.htm.en) looks like an interesting page for this kind of stuff. :o

[John P. Myers]

even the oldest BOINC client would require at least Win95/98 to run, right?

It couldn't use DOS because it doesn't support multi-tasking. You could have more than 1 program open, but only 1 of them could run at a time.

[DrPop]

Heh. OK, that was a "good waste of time" as in a fun 2 hour academic pursuit. But I think that's where this project will remain - in the land of academia. When I counted up how much it would cost (eBay), how much space it would take, and how many watts it would burn . . . it's just not realistic. A nice thought though. :rolleyes: :p

[r2d2]

I'd hate to see how long a wu would take on that old of a machine.. It takes 15-17hrs for a pogs wu to complete on a intel atom 1.66ghz. I wouldn't want to imagine a 486.. lol

[FourOh]

I've been thinking about a really cool project I'd like to do someday if it didn't cost too much for the coolness factor. Er...that should be geek factor! :P

What I'm thinking is, setting up a project where you had one of each CPU crunching a BOINC project, going back as far as you could. If we took a project like SETI for example, where the WU due date times are way long, what do you think is the *oldest* CPU architecture that could actually crunch it and turn in a valid result?
Could a 486 DX (with the math co-processor) do it? A 386 DX? etc... :D wouldn't that be the ultimate in geekdom to have a lineup of them from oldest to newest in architecture churning out results?

*for bonus points you could install a popular game of that era - whatever was the rage to play when that CPU was in vogue, and people could play them :p haha! :o

I had an Acer 486 DX2/50 (4mb ram, 250mb HD, 3x SCSI CD-ROM) that I put a "Pentium Overdrive" chip in - was able to upgrade from Win3.1 to Win95 and it was my computer in college. Was still working last time I checked (8yrs ago) - only catch is that (I believe) it's in my ex's attic. Anyone wants it, I'll give you her number and YOU deal with her!! :eek: