[Info-vax] State of the OpenVMS hobbyist program?

[Bill Gunshannon]

On 11/20/19 11:06 AM, Dave Froble wrote:
> On 11/20/2019 9:10 AM, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>> On 11/20/19 8:07 AM, Simon Clubley wrote:
>>> On 2019-11-19, Hans Bachner <hans at bachner.priv.at> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> While we all are interested how the VSI hobbyist program will work (and
>>>> when), this is only half the answer. I assume that there are quite a 
>>>> few
>>>> hobbyists around who use VMS on physical and/or emulated VAXen or just
>>>> enjoy running historic equipment with software from the days when this
>>>> equipment was built. And the probability that VSI will (be allowed to)
>>>> issue licenses for DEC/CPQ/HP(E) versions of VMS is rather low imho.
>>>>
>>>
>>> Unless something dramatic happens, I suspect there will be no VAX
>>> hobbyist
>>> licence of any kind after the end of 2020, regardless of whatever
>>> hobbyist
>>> program VSI may eventually come up with.
>>>
>>> Simon.
>>>
>>
>>
>> Welcome to the same world as PDP-11 "Hobbyists".  :-)
> 
> Maybe, but, I don't think it's the same world.
> 
> I'm not aware of any LMF type of thing on PDP-11 OSs.  Does such exist?

Nope, just human morals.

> 
> There is plenty of VAX/VMS media available.  Not sure it's the same with 
> PDP-11 OSs.

Internet is replete with them.

> 
> Probably the biggest problem for PDP-11 stuff is media.  At least media 
> for which there still exists devices which can access such media. 
> Haven't seen a 9-track tape drive for quite a long time.

I still have one.  Mine is SCSI so I can move it around.  But others
have some of the originals.  I used to.  And they were all still
working when IO gave them away.  I also still have TK-50's and, yes,
they still work.  But there are a number of other ways to get the
OSes onto a real PDP-11.  But, as I have stated in the past, Unix is
the only one that can be used legally (and morally if anyone still
cares about such an antiquated concept!)  That is the world the VAX
is joining.

> 
> Another issue would be documentation.  Back in the day it was all on paper.

Bitsavers has a lot of it, but I still have quite a bit of paper
documentation for RT-11 and RSTS.

bill