CompuServe Thread

what is IBeM ?

10 messages in this thread
#26873From: Paul WhittemoreJul 1, 1991 3:07 PM
IBeM is a dog… I ran it on my 1000 (2.5M) and run some PC benchmark programs. It was pathetic. Totally unusable. I don't recall the exact numbers, but it was well UNDER a ONE MHz XT. And the disk access was worse. Of course, I ran the 68000-compatable one, not the 68030 code…
#26905From: Daryl AndersonJul 1, 1991 8:00 PM
Paul, That sounds like the old "Transformer" that ran at about 30% of a 4.77Mhz PC – also only handled Text to screen and took over machine… does IBeM multitask ? does it handle graphics at all ? – da – via Whap!
#27209From: Donald GrossJul 3, 1991 11:27 PM
Daryl, It's nothing like Transformer. I've used both & IBeM, believe me, is well worth the $30.00 fee if you have no other IBM emulator. The program runs quite nicely on an accelerated Amiga much faster than Transformer. It multitasks with a full size window. I have gotten 2 drives & hard drive to work. Transformer did not support hard drives. It also works well under Workbench 2.0 on an Amiga 3000. ———————————————-Don- via Whap!
#26949From: Brian BartlettJul 2, 1991 2:35 AM
Paul, according to the docs I have, it won't run at anything resembling normal speed without an '020 or an '030. I guess it feels like a 6 MHz XT here, but the only thing I'd use it for is the odd game my brother loans me. Then again, I won't be using it for a while since my '030 board died the day before yesterday and I'm back to a normal floppy only 2000 for now. Take care. Brian J. Bartlett
#26956From: John GagerJul 2, 1991 3:15 AM
Paul, you can't expect much from a software based emulator, especially if it has to emulate another microprocessor. One reason the Amax emulator run's just as fast as a basic Mac is because the processors are the same. But to emulate a yucky Intel chip is quite a feat in software, so give the author some credit. Besides, if you upgrade to a 25mhz 3000, then IBeM will run just as fast as an XT 8^) John (in beautiful downtown Walla Walla) – via Whap!
#27123From: Christopher TolmieJul 3, 1991 12:34 PM
John, I had the understanding that AMAX is NOT an emulation of a Macintosh but actually a HOSTILE takeover of the Amiga and its hardware! chris ACCU-TYPE & GRAPHICS
#27234From: John GagerJul 4, 1991 2:12 AM
Yep, with the Mac roms, it probably is more like a hostile takeover rather than a emulation. I guess the roms are getting harder to find now that Apple has clamped down on the distribution. I'm beginning to see a lot of MAC ROM'S WANTED messages here on CIS$. John (in beautiful downtown Walla Walla) – via Whap!
#27552From: Paul WhittemoreJul 6, 1991 10:03 PM
I didn't mean to cause a stir… IBeM is an incredible achievement; they seem to have put a lot more thought into the design than was put into the Transformer. I considered the Transformer unusable, and the 68000 version of IBeM is probably even a little slower. Since I knew there would probably be a fair amount of interest in the stock 68000 version (by those of use without accelerated systems), I thought I better throw up a red flag of warning so that others won't download it hoping to see something near 4.77 MHz. (The numbers I got were something near 0.3 MHz XT equivalent, if I recall correctly). If you have a 68020/30, or desperately need to run PC programs on your 68000, IBeM is probably a better choice than the Transformer. It runs in an Amiga window and is a lost more practical in design than Transformer.
#27068From: Black Belt SystemsJul 3, 1991 1:07 AM
To run at 25% of the target systems speed with a 7.14 mhz 68000 is a very impressive feat. Just so you know. Usable, probably not. Ben Amateur Radio Callsign is A A 7 A S
#27294From: Mentor TechnologiesJul 4, 1991 1:10 PM
I ran IBeM on my A1000, and ran Turbo Pascal 5.5. I compiled some fairsized graphics programs to RAM and ran them! Yes, its very slow (about 20% XT speed) but it ran my graphics program and returned me to the Turbo Pascal IDE when finished. I'm VERY impressed. A genuine bargain. Scott Horn, Mentor Tech. :',