Unix box for $10 a month! Is this a scam?

[Bdale Garbee]

In article <1637 at ncoast.UUCP> btb at ncoast.UUCP (Brad Banko) writes:
>Has anybody heard of, or actually have one of the Symmetric 375 machines
>from SYMMETRIC Computer Systems, San Jose?  I just got info from them today
>from BYTE... what they offer seems incredible... it is a portable box with
>a "750" inside running BSD 4.2 with all utilities... everybody's favorite
>languages  f77, Pascal LISP PROLOG BASIC apl, and even C... it has half the
>speed of a 750 (hence the name "375", a 50 meg Winchester drive... four
>serial ports... AND, you can take it home at night!  They sell it for
>$4995 (about $9000 with ethernet) and their number is:

This machine does exist.  I have owned one for just shy of a year.  With
recent software upgrade to full 4.2bsd with extensions/utilities, I'm VERY
happy with the box.  Has a couple shortcomings, and a couple lingering
software bugs, but nothing that isn't fixable or work-around-able.  Other than
one bug in the current C compiler that I haven't chased yet which keeps ELM
from compiling, everything I've moved off Vaxen and Suns has compiled on the
first try... and run fine.

There have been reviews posted in net.micro.ns32k before, I won't repeat
it all here.  Much of the review material is out of date with the new
software release anyway.  

If anyone has any questions, send mail and ask.  If I get too many responses,
I'll summarize.  In addition to winfree, I know that 'crash' and 'vixie' are
also S375 sites on the net... and we have a sort of informal user's group
going with a private newsgroup.  Other S375 owners who are interested, give
me a call or send mail and we can add you...
-- 


Bdale Garbee, N3EUA		phone: 303/593-9828 h, 303/590-2868 w
uucp: {bellcore,crash,hp-lsd,hpcsma,pitt,vixie}!winfree!bdale
fido: sysop of 156/8		packet: n3eua @ wb0blv, Colorado Springs