September: Bitter graphics sup ercomputer rivals Stellar Computer Corp and Ardent Computer Inc agreed to merge to create Stardent Inc in what sounded like a marriage made in hell. Intel Corp’s 80960 RISC chip appeared and was immediately taken on board by Intel’s 50-50 joint real-time venture with Siem ens AG, BiiN Inc. Relational Technology Inc developed a multiprocessing version of its Ingres database. Sun Microsystems, Novell Inc and Netwise Inc announced a plan to combine their networking technologies to enable shrink-wrapped software to run across a variety of net works and architectures. In mos International launched a 10 MIPS Transputer at $20. Leaks about licensing and pricing for Unix V.4 looked like sparking off a new ind ustry row. AT&T Co boosted Pyramid Technology Corp’s fortunes by taking its MIS servers to top off the 3B2 line in a deal worth hundreds of millions. NeXT Computer Inc released new system soft ware for the NeXT machine, planning a 68040-based vers ion for early 1990. IBM was going to be three months late in shipping version 3.0 of AIX, but the Open Software Foundation still promised its AIX-based OSF/1 operating sys tem would come out on time.
October: Rows over the licence fee for Unix System V.4 were largely avoided with a fee set by the Unix Software Op eration that generally worked out to be cheaper than previ ous fees, although favouring the low-end of the market. The computer industry’s Sili con Valley survived a monster earthquake relatively intact. Groupe Bull SA agreed to pay $635m for Zenith Data Syst ems in a move that promised to make it the top European computer manufacturer ahead of Ing C Olivetti & Co SpA. More good news for MIPS Com puter Systems Inc, when Bull, Nixdorf Computer AG and Pyra mid Technology Corp said they would be taking up a MIPS RISC option in future. The Open Software Foundation was revealed to be more worried about IBM’s AIX delays than it had let on, and was set to incorporate Mach multiproces sing capabilities into OSF/1, following hints from Hewlett- Packard Co that it might wait for OSF/2. Ravaged by its takeover battle, Prime Compu ter Inc had to withdraw from Unix multiprocessing efforts. Intel Corp and Siemens AG pulled the plug on their short lived BiiN Inc project, while Stratus Computer Inc promised to bring fault-tol erance to the low end with the launch of a new XA2000 Model 30 VOS machine that it promised would run Unix as well in the first quarter of 1990. Hewlett-Packard Co rushed out an 80486 EISA bus machine, and Unisys Corp un veiled some major imaging systems. Hoskyns Group Plc paid UKP12m for UK Unix veter ans The Instruction Set Ltd, the European Commission decided it couldn’t wait for X/Open Group Ltd to make up its mind on a interface and plummed, like many others, for OSF/Mo tif. Sun Microsystems Inc looked to break even in the current quarter, and landed another $250m in funding, but put its Tops local networking systems division on the block at the same time. IBM’s Rios successor to the RT did not appear, and was now expected at UniForum in January 1990.
November: At Unix Expo in New York, Unix International Inc and the AT&T Unix Software Operation unveiled Unix Sys tem V.4, confirming that al though the Open Software Foundation had won the most support for its interface, Unix System V.4 had taken the operating system battle hands down. OSF/1 was not now ex pected until late 1990, and talk at the show suggested that the most concrete merger talks so far between the Foundation and Unix Internat ional were now beginning, with discussions round a sale of the Unix Software Operat ion to a joint consortium along the lines of X/Open. In other news, Intel Corp unveiled an applications bin ary interface for Unix System V.4 on the 80X86 line of processors, and entered the operating system software market in competition with Interactive Systems Corp and Santa Cruz Operation, while Santa Cruz itself revealed the first shrink-wrapped mul tiprocessor version of Unix with extensions from Corol lary Inc. MIPS Computer Systems Inc also plotted a c
ourse through the byte-or dering minefield created by DEC by announcing a binary interface standard for its RISC chips, and launched new ECL R6000 processors and sys tems, saying it would make an initial public offering in the New Year. DEC launched the top-end VAX 9000S series. Compaq Computer Corp unveiled its Deskpro 486 systems, and found a bug in the Intel chip, delaying system manu facturers all round. AT&T set up a new division to sell computer systems directly in Europe previously handled by Ing C Olivetti & Co SpA. Evans & Sutherland Computer Corp gave up on its ambitious ES-1 supercomputer, which was launched only in July.
December: Sun Microsystems Inc introduced its first purpose built Sparc servers, and Sony Corp unwittingly revealed two more MIPS Computer Systems Inc RISC chips in the pipe line, while newly-wed Star dent Inc produced its first sibling, a MIPS RISC-based system from the Ardent side of the firm and promised 80860 models in 1990. Amdahl Corp abandoned its efforts to market Fujitsu Ltd’s IBM- compatible supercomputers and laid plans for its own, as well as taking Fujitsu’s M760s and offering them as UTS Unix-only mainframes. AT&T Co and Unix Internation al Inc got a further boost when Japan’s Sigma project opted for Unix System V.4. Norsk Data A/S’s Dolphin Ser ver Technology A/S subsidiary signed with Motorola Inc to do a 1,000 MIPS ECL version of the 88000. IBM launched the 80486-based version of the PS/2 Model 70. The year ended with a launch date for the IBM Rios box touted as the end of February of 1990 and finally Apple Computer Inc’s chickens came home to roost – Xerox Corp slapped in a $150m lawsuit against it for royalties from its iconic graphical user interface.
