Pegasos/AmigaONE confusion.

[minator]

What I'm primarily concerned with is whether or not it is possible to run MorphOS on an A1 or AOS4 on Pegasos. For that matter, is there any way to run AOS4 or Morphos on a Mac?
The reason I want to know all this is that I want a computer that will let me play with as many exotic OS's as possible. I'm not looking to replace my PC or anything like that.

If it's just for playing around with different OSs then the Pegasos has a bunch of different OSs either running or in development, at the moment it's MorphOS and a number of Linux distros (and MacOnLinux) but Haiku (formally OpenBeOS), Zeta, QNX, NewOS and several more should appear at some point.  (I used to work for the folks selling the Pegasos and was the one organising this, I'm not sure of their status at this point though).

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OS4 does not run on Pegasos but my understanding is that it's a question of licensing. As to whether anyone will ever do the licensing is another question altogether.

MorphOS will not run on the AmigaONE, it did run on a previous version of the same board (I've even seen it) but the BIOS is different now so it would need modified to run, I don't expect those changes will be made.

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I'm sure someone else can fill you in on the AmigaONE details.

[Karlos]

Rogue wrote:
Argh... I feel it.. I can't stop it... it's coming...

I told you not to have the extra hot vindaloo... :-)

[Fats]

redrumloa wrote:
@kedawa

There is a handfull of Linux builds for the AmigaOne, but they all suffer from a lack of DMA support and this will not change ever.

Also I think this statement is inaccurate. It was made clear to the A1 kernel developers that all new changes should go into 2.6. So DMA won't work fully on 2.4 kernels ever that's right.
And from what I understand some people are looking into making new drivers for the Articia chipset for the 2.6 kernel. Only it is happening at a very slow pace.

Staf.

[kedawa]

So I guess it really comes down to whether I want MorphOS or OS4 then, right?  
I'm not really sure which I would prefer at this point.  I'm not planning on running any older amiga software, so I don't really care about that aspect of it.  
What I really want is a machine that has at least one OS that is mature enough to do everyday tasks (web browsing, a bit of C programming, some basic graphics editing, etc.) and several other OS's to dink around with.  
I would also like to run some sort of classic amiga emulator, as well, just so I can play the games that I had as a kid, when I had an A500.  
As I said, I'm not looking to replace my windows box just yet, but I do want to branch out a bit, and perhaps switch over entirely some time in the future.

[Hooligan_DCS]

"So I guess it really comes down to whether I want MorphOS or OS4 then, right?
I'm not really sure which I would prefer at this point. I'm not planning on running any older amiga software, so I don't really care about that aspect of it. What I really want is a machine that has at least one OS that is mature enough to do everyday tasks (web browsing, a bit of C programming, some basic graphics editing, etc.) and several other OS's to dink around with."


Well that made it very easy then: neither MorphOS or OS4 is for you, as you can't live even a day without old Amiga software.
Linux would be your choise then, on the other hand that is {bleep}e on A1, so we come to the conclusion that Pegasos is for you. Njet.
From there we continue and remember that you can run Linux on x86 much cheaper and better, so there you go. And as a bonus you can also run Win Xp if you want.

Your choice is everyday home-pc.

[jeffimix]

Well he says he doesn't want to replace his windows box... PegasOS and AmigaOne are pretty similiar really, OS4 is only out as a prerelease (but thatt's free on the upside). MorphOS is free with the computer, and is on version 1.4? 1.5?. Both have support for Linux. There is a DMA issue right now with the AmigaOne board but as far as I know that's being fixed, Eyetech don't want that as they are trying to sell the boards for Linux, much as the pegasos boards are being sold as linux machines. Outside of those two OSs I don't know what the AmigaOne supports, but pegasos supports a few different OSs for sure. The G4 pegasos is 1GHz and the G3 is 600MHz, AmigaOne XEs are both 800MHz (G3 and G4). Pegasos has some onboard bits that MorphOS doesn't support, same as the AmigaOne and OS4. There seems to be more publicly stated development for the PegasOS. Both use IDE drive controllers with PCI slots. Judge for yourself which is better  8-) .

[Acill]

The Pegasos is the choice for you hands down. As a Pegasos user and owner I cay that. I've used an A1 and linux is not supported nearly as well as it is on the Pegasos II. The pegasos is now supplied and used by Freescale (Used to be the semiconductor division of Motorola) as PPC dev machines and is also a partner with IBM now with many others comming on soon. Its got masive linux support. The whole concept of the Pegasos is designed to be open to as many OS choices as possible. Its a fantastic machine.

[kedawa]

Hooligan_DCS wrote:

Well that made it very easy then: neither MorphOS or OS4 is for you, as you can't live even a day without old Amiga software.
Linux would be your choise then, on the other hand that is {bleep}e on A1, so we come to the conclusion that Pegasos is for you. Njet.
From there we continue and remember that you can run Linux on x86 much cheaper and better, so there you go. And as a bonus you can also run Win Xp if you want.

Your choice is everyday home-pc.

I see your point, but I also would like to run OSX at least some of the time, and I can't do that on x86.  If neither OS4 nor morphos are appropriate for everyday use, then I'll just be using OSX more often, I suppose.  
btw, I didn't realise that there's such a lack of native software for MorphOS and OS4.  I guess I'll have to track down some older amiga apps if and when I setup one of these OS's.  
The one concern I have at this point is that the Pegasos II apparently doesn't have USB 2.0 onboard, so I'm wondering if MorphOS has support for it.  If so, which chipsets have drivers available?  

[Holley]

The native stuff is mostly 'in progress' - the Peg comes with a bundle of native software (mostly in 'lite' form), but using old programs on either Peg or OS4 works well, apparently.

[smithy]

There is no plans to port OS4 to any other platform.

If you believe what Mr Hare tells us about AmigaOS running on mobile devices, then OS4 will have to be ported to ARM (99.9% of all mobile devices being ARM).

[kedawa]

Well, it's been over a year since I first posted this thread, and I still don't have a Pegasos or an A1.

My x86 machine was stolen, so I caved in and bought a Mac mini, which is more than adequate for messing around with BSD and linux, at least for me.

Anyway, my interest in the Amiga was recently rekindled after procuring some classic Amigas for a customer, and reading an article about the A1 Micro (http://arstechnica.com/reviews/os/amiga.ars).

I'm now very interested in building a new Amiga for a hobby machine.

I've been out of touch with the Amiga scene for the last year, and I've recently begun trying to catch up on what's been going on.

It's my understanding that there isn't much happening with MorphOS anymore, and AOS4 is finally nearing completion, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

The Pegasos II seems to be the same spec as it was a year ago, but I've read that a newer Peg mobo is in the works.
The thing is, I don't think I'd have much use for one, as I already have a similarly capable PPC system, and MorphOS has lost much of its appeal for me if it is in fact 'dead.'

The A1, on the other hand, is far more tempting to me than it was a year ago.  The A1 micro's mini-ITX form factor and onboard video and audio make it a perfect fit for one of those cube-shaped SFF cases.

I do have a few specific questions, though.

Are the pricing and availability of the A1 likely to improve a lot after AOS4 is released?

How is the USB keyboard/mouse support in the firmware and also in the OS itself?

Lastly (I think), are there any vendors in North America offering complete A1 micro systems?

[Piru]

@kedawa

It's my understanding that there isn't much happening with MorphOS anymore, and AOS4 is finally nearing completion, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Well, this needs to be corrected. MorphOS is far from dead.

Latest public releases include release of MorphOS 1.4.5 for PowerUP and 3D driver update.

The work continues on MorphOS, like before. We're just not advertising features and release before release actually happens (like it has always been for us).

Considering the hardware: Yes, Mac Mini provides better CPU specs than Peg II, however, Peg II is in my knowlege the best upgradable and affordable PPC system for now. Peg II is available and has proper guarantee (with track record of working guarantee repairs by the manufacturer).

[kedawa]

I suspected that might be the case, but it's hard to find information on Morrphos for some reason.  Google only returnred four results when I searched for it.

I guess the Pegasos/MorphOS option is still on the table.  :-)

[Lando]

kedawa wrote:

AOS4 is finally nearing completion

Yes, according to rumours I've heard, it's "almost done" "99% complete" and "nearly finished".

The A1, on the other hand, is far more tempting to me than it was a year ago.  The A1 micro's mini-ITX form factor and onboard video and audio make it a perfect fit for one of those cube-shaped SFF cases.

Absolutely.  It is certainly a fantastic piece of hardware.  I think many people in the PC world could learn a thing or two from Eyetech's hardware engineers.

Are the pricing and availability of the A1 likely to improve a lot after AOS4 is released?

Yes, absolutely because when OS4 is released to the public then people will see that Amiga is alive again and many millions of ex-Amigans and new users will come flocking back to the platform, buying up AmigaOne boards like hot cakes.

This will enable Eyetech's engineers to reduce costs due to higher volume, and so the cost of the boards to the end user will come down.

I have also read Fleecy mention that Amiga Inc. have been in discussions with some big High Street names who are interested in stocking the A1, so we can expect to be seeing Micro-A1 systems in Dixons, Currys, Comet, PC World etc before too long. This will bring the Amiga the mass-market exposure that it needs.

How is the USB keyboard/mouse support in the firmware and also in the OS itself?

USB works perfectly on A1.  anyone saying otherwise is just spreading FUD.

Lastly (I think), are there any vendors in North America offering complete A1 micro systems?

Maybe software hut.

[Ryu]

@Lando

Whatever happened to you :-(

@kedawa

Perhaps www.IntuitionBase.com might be of use to you?

[coldfish]

...I think many people in the PC world could learn a thing or two from Eyetech's hardware engineers.

LOL!