[rescue] RS/6000

[rescue at sunhelp.org]

On Fri, 10 Aug 2001, Scott Norwood wrote:

> It appears that I have the opportunity to purchase a Powerstation 580.
> Any idea what I should offer the seller?  Neither of us really knows
> what it's worth.  Is it possible to get AIX media and any necessary
> licenses at reasonable prices?  Or should I just pass up on this thing
> altogether.

It's a beast.  Basically the same as a 380 except in a bigger chassis with
more expandability.  CPU-wise it's comparable to a fast SS5 except in
floating point where it really shines.  RAM comes on carrier boards which
are expensive if you have to obtain, and some of the nicest hardware that
was supported in AIX 3 was EOL'd for 4.

I'd say if you're not familiar with the machines and it is not known to be
a fully operational system, walk away or give some more info to other
people on the list who may be interested.  If it boots up and seems fully
sane, it might be worth considering.  Depending on the config it could be
worth anywhere from $50 to over $1k but probably is in the $100-150 area.

> I'm not really an AIX fan, but I wouldn't mind having something at home
> to run it...

A 25x or 42x would probably be a better starter box.  The 43P is nice as
well but usually more expensive.

-James [but I'd _love_ a 591!]