MIPS Computer admits that the only reason other users of its RISC such as DEC haven’t brought out kit based around the R6000 before itself, is the technical problem involved in incorporating ECL technology into new hardware. The Big-Endian byte ordering on the processor is as on the previous chips, and DEC will again reverse this arrangement to Little-Endian, as it has with its version of the R2000 for its DECstations (CI No 1,175), in order to bring the workstations in line with VAX and PDP-11 hardware and to allow for easier data transfer across DECnet. On this score DEC’s MIPS-based hardware is incompatible with other MIPS-based systems at the binary level. In addition, because DEC’s Ultrix operating system is incompatible with AT&T Unix, it means that the Applications Binary Interface being devloped by AT&T anHMIPS for Unix which is due in six months time, will not deliver shrink wrapped software to DECstation users. However, to try and steer a path around DEC’s idiosyncrasies, and now that MIPS’ own Synthesis Software business has been reabsorbed into the company, MIPS and companies using its RISC architecture are collaborating in a new effort to provide software source code compatibilty across the board called the MIPS Application Interface, which is to develop a range a specifications for compilers and user interfaces amongst other things. In addition industry sources are confident that DEC is now ready to release the source code for Ultrix, which will enable other firms to configure and sell MIPS-based systems into the DEC Ultrix marketplace.
