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When Atari shipped UNIX: 1992's Atari System V
The Atari TT030 Workstation was an early 1990s, UNIX powered beast... that has long been forgotten.
September 10, 2023
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Back in 1990, Atari released the TT030 workstation.

It was a beastly machine. Powered by a 68030 CPU at 32 MHz. A dedicated FPU. Two different types of RAM - System RAM (up to 10 MB) and TT RAM (up to 256 MB). A 3.5” floppy, a 50 MB hard drive, SCSI, MIDI, VGA, RS-232 (four of ‘em). And a resolution of up to 1280×960 (monochrome) or 320×480 (256 colors).

In 1990. This was one seriously powerful rig.

Originally the TT030 shipped with a version of Atari TOS.

AtariTOS is a fork of GEM. Learn more about GEM (and Atari TOS and Multi TOS) in “Looking at 1980's GEM in 2021”. It is a fascinating system.

But, by 1992, a variant of the TT030 (known as the TT/X) shipped with a full blown UNIX operating system: Atari System V

From the official Atari TT030 brochure

So what did a UNIX System V look like on an Atari? Well. It looked like this:

Screenshot courtesy of AtariUNIX.com

For the modern day UNIX (and Linux, etc.) users out there… this is going to look immediately familiar. A nice little xterm shell, xedit, even good old xeyes.

You can find a full listing of the packages included in Atari System V developer pre-release release notes. Which include, you’ll note, X-Windows, Motif window manager, and a complement of GNU compilers and build tools

The Atari System V Developer Prerelease notes courtesy of Archive.org

An Atari TT030 workstation could dual-boot both TOS and Atari System V UNIX. System V even included a graphical tool to select the preferred operating system to boot.

Screenshot courtesy of AtariUNIX.com

When Atari System V shipped in 1992… this is the box it came in…

The Atari System V box (courtesy of AtariUNIX.com)

And the floppies it installed from…

A version of NCSA Mosaic was even ported. Which means the early web is accessible from an Atari TT030.

AtariUNIX.com hosts a small collection of software ports (including Mosaic). As well as some disc images for Atari System V, MINIX, and Net BSD for the TT030.

Neither the TT030, nor the Atari port of System V, saw much success. The TT030 workstation was abandoned in favor of the, more consumer focused, Atari Falcon. And, rather quickly, Atari’s adventures into the land of UNIX were forgotten by almost all.

It was, just the same, an incredibly powerful OS, backed up by what was (for the time) one heck of a machine.

What could have happened in the workstation space had Atari seen some additional success in the market? Could Atari have effectively competed against SGI, SUN, HP and the rest of the UNIX workstation crowd?

It certainly would have been interesting to see.

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Last call for the "Amiga" Lifetime Subscriber Wall. It's almost full!

Holy smokes, that was fast.

The 6th Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Wall (aka the “Amiga OS 3.1” Wall) was introduced… what… a week ago?

I kid you not, the darn thing is already almost full! I was wildly unprepared for how popular this would be!

There’s enough space left for maybe 5 or 6 more names. Tops. Then I’ve gotta declare “Wall 6 (Amiga) is Full” and start Wall Number 7!

Here’s what all of the Lifetime Subscriber Walls look like (each shown at the end of every Lunduke Journal video):

 

If you want to get onto the Lifetime Subscriber Wall (and have any chance of making it onto the Amiga Wall before it’s full) here’s what you need to do (and do it quickly):

  1. Grab a Lifetime Subscription to The Lunduke Journal (if you don’t already have one).

    1. A Lifetime Sub includes all the standard perks (plus a few) and can be picked up via Locals, Substack, or Bitcoin (whichever you prefer).

  2. Email “bryan at lunduke.com” and let me know how you would like your name displayed (“Joe A.”, “Joseph Arnold”, “JoeyPants”, “SirJJMcManly”, etc.)

It’s first come, first served.

If you’ve already emailed me about being added to the wall, your spot is secured.

For the rest of you: Chop chop. At the current rate, I would be very surprised if the “Amiga Wall” wasn’t full by some time this weekend.

“Lifetime Wall 7” will be unveiled after the final name is added to the Amiga Wall. And, yes, it will be a different (awesome) retro computing platform.

As always, a huge thank you to every subscriber to The Lunduke Journal. Absolutely none of this would be possible without your support.

-Lunduke

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Amiga Lifetime Wall & March Lunduke Journal Stats!

Hello all of you amazing Lunduke Journal subscribers!

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The Amiga Wall!

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Every Lifetime Subscriber Wall (which I show at the end of each video) is a real screenshot from a different computing platform. Mostly retro. All awesome.

 

If you’d like to see your name listed on the new AmigaOS 3.1 wall, grab a Lifetime Subscription (if you don’t already have one) and toss me an email. I update the walls about once each week with new names.

The last few Lifetime Walls filled up incredibly quickly. So if the Amiga Wall interests you, I wouldn’t wait too long. Hint, hint.

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Lifetime Wall Number 6, Plus How to Access MP4s & Forum

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First: If you have any kind of payed subscription (Monthly, Yearly, or Lifetime) there are a bunch of cool perks available to you. MP4 Downloads, PDF eBooks, and access to the Lunduke Journal Forum. All the details on how to gain access to everything is right here.

Enjoy.

Second: At the end of this next week I’ll be unveiling “Lifetime Subscriber Wall of Shame” number Six at the end of all new Lunduke Journal videos.

 

At that same time I will be updating and permanently locking down Walls 1 through 5.

If you are already a Lifetime Subscriber, and would like to be added to the new Wall number 6 (or to one of the couple remaining spots on Walls 4 and 5), email me (bryan at lunduke.com) with how you would like your name to be displayed (full name, first name only, nick name… any way you like).

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  6. Mystery Wall: Open

Those final spots on the MacOS and PalmOS Walls are first come first served. The first people to request those spots get them.

Everyone else will roll over into Wall 6. Which is a secret, retro computer platform. You’ll dig it.

If you have already contacted me regarding being added to one of these walls (or changing the way your name is displayed), I’ve already got you on the list for the changes later this next week.

If you don’t already have a Lifetime Subscription, grab one and get yourself on the wall.

It’s pretty sweet.

-Lunduke

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