Unix(r) 3.5 and 3.51 compatibility

[robert.a.littlefield]

The first attempt at posting this got garbled in transmission, I'll
try again:


Here is a copy of the internal release notes that I saw in Oct, 1987..

Okay, first some background:
3B1 Release Glossary
1.0 (Mythical) Original GA Release
2.0 Oldest GA Release I've ever seen on anything, lottsa bugs.
3.0 Upgrade to 2.0, some things fixed, tty system hosed.
3.04 Maintenance kernal releases to 3.0
3.[24]  Pre-releases of 3.5
3.5 Second newest GA release; new flexname compiler, many compatibility
    issues, etc.
3.5.1 Maintenance kernal releases to 3.5
3.5.2 Pre-release of 3.51
3.51 Current (and last) GA release
3.51a Maintenance kernal releases to 3.51 (on fix disk)

Okay, now that we (hopefully) have the names semi-straight (After all, the 
numbering scheme is *so* straightforward...(Heavy sarcasm)), maybe we 
can gain some enlightenment.

3.51 is the current and last full release. There may be* some maintenance
kernals, etc on the fix disks from the Hotline in the future, but they will
only be bug fixes. Don't expect any major changes/new features on the 3B1.
Ever.
*(Ed note: there was a final fix disk released in May of 1987, vers 3.51A)
3.51 is also considered an upgrade from *any* of 2.0, 3.0, or 3.5, 
and therefore has warnings about compilation compatibility for the 2.0 and
3.0 folks out there who have flexnames and a new archive format to mess
with, just as you folks did when you went from 3.0 to 3.5.

There are *no* major changes to the 3.51 compiler over the 3.5 compiler,
just a few bug fixes. In fact, you can probably continue to use the 3.5 
development set if you want.

The 3.51 Utilities which contain the development set are available 
through normal channels, in fact they shold be the only ones you can
order.

So, your var may want to upgrade to 3.51 if he's seeing any of the problems
in the bugs fixed list; new machines will come with 3.51, but there shouln't
be any compatibility problems compiler-wise between 3.5 and 3.51.

3.51 does have some snazzy new features like hardware flow control, and
some new bells and whistles on the Phone Mangler..er, Manager, and it
would of course be a good idea to test the application thouroughly on
the new release, but I don't anticipate any problems.

(End of release note)

>From HOTLINE (OCT 8, 1987) (800) 922-0354
unix pc list of available patches

order number 1001 - UnixpPC V3.5  Fixdisk V.2.0

Contents (2 Floppy Disks (Unix 3.51A. FixDisk V2.0) and 5 page installation
instructions.

-----------
Bug List of 3.51 fixed on fixdisk vers 2.0
-The UNIX(r) PC Custom Kernal Provides:
	1) Working ipc message queues.
	2) Higer ipc tuneable parameters than 3.5.
	3) 4 times longer wait for a remote modem to respond than 3.5.
	4) Default maximum line length of 1024 columns on parallel 
	   printers.
	5) Smoother serial port performance at 20 chars/sec and faster.
	6) Fix for bug causing "panic: setrun" messages
	7) Fix for phone line 1 getting stuck in "Ring" when calls
	   are answered on an extension.
	8) Fix for parallel printers with large buffers hanging on
	   the parallel port.
	9) Fix for hangs and panics on closing/using the serial port.
	10) Fix for last few characters being printed twice on serial I/O.
	11) Fix for phone dialer not waiting for dialtone.
	12) Made phone device open act like 3.0 for applications using the 
 	    modem.
-The Phone Manager Update fixes the following problems:
	1) The code that is suposed to update the status line got "lost"'
	   and no longer did so under some conditions.
	2) Data profiles for 300 baud were actually done at 1200.
	3) Data calls using the (external)  modem could not be made if all of
	   the available phone lines were in use.
	4) The phone manager would crash after making 12 calls over
	   the serial port.

-The SDB update fixes the following bug:
	1) if a program compiled/linked with the -n option generated a core
	   file, sdb claimed that it was not a core.
-The update fixes the following user agent bug:
	1) The user agent threw out environm,ent variables whose names
	   contained non letters.
-The new termcap fixes the Following bugs:
	1) 510D terminals were not supported.
	2) The f5 and f4 keys were mislabeled for 610 terminals.
	3) Boldface was not accessable on 610 terminals or the console.
(End of notes from National Support Center)

I hope this answered some of the 3.51 questions you may have had. Get
the 3.51 fix disk and install it. I also have the official 3.5 release notes
and will be glad to fax them to you if I can.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bob Littlefield
AT&T Bell Labs
North Andover, MA. 01845 
(508) 960-4689                  |        What Skeets, Mr. Hay?