Nebula 1 (1993)/nebula.bin/Documents/FAQ/NeXT/FAQ.general

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NeXT-FAQ.general: General FAQ


*** Subject: G0. Where can I find additional questions and answers regarding the NeXT computer?

Every NeXT machine owner has access to manuals to a
degree.  Network and System Administration (NSA), for
example contains answers to many of the questions asked
to comp.sys.next.  Some of the important man pages are
reproduced in the NSA as appendices.

User manuals are shipped with every NeXT.  Additional
copies available from NeXT (N6002/N6003/N6014/N6026)
$25.

NeXT Technical documentation.  (How to program in the
NextStep environment)  Order from Addison-Wesley
(1-800-447-2226)

Title                                     ISBN #/A&W order#   Price
-------------------------------------------------------------------
NeXTstep Reference........................0-201-58136-1/58136 $44.95
NeXT Development Tools....................0-201-58132-9/58132 $26.95
NeXT Operating System Software............0-201-58131-0/58131 $24.95
Sound, Music, and Signal
Processing on a NeXT Computer: Concepts...             /58137 $19.95
Sound, Music, and Signal
Processing on a NeXT Computer: Reference..0-201-58146-9/58146 $39.95

These are packaged ten volumes in two slipcases; the
whole stack is 8-1/2 inches high.  They look just like the
other documents that come with the machine, 8.5x11",
perfect-bound paperbacks.

    Operating System Software
    NeXTstep Concepts
    NeXTstep Reference, v. 1
    NeXTstep Reference, v. 2
    Development Tools
    Sound, Music, and Signal Processing: Concepts
    Sound, Music, and Signal Processing: Reference
    Writing Loadable Kernel Servers
    Technical Summaries
    Supplemental Documentation

The "Extended" OS release contains online versions of
the "Reference" (but not "Concepts") chapters.

Get NeXT's Concepts and Tutorial sections
electronically from the ftp archives.  These were not
included in the 2.0 distribution but are included in
hardcopy form with the NeXT Technical Documentation.
This is perhaps the single most important reference for
people wishing to develop software for the NeXT.

man pages, included with "Extended" release.

BSD unix documentation (MISC, PS1, PS2, SMM, USD).
Available from to USENIX site members.  A lot of this has
been  integrated into the NeXT documentation.  Some of
this is sorely missing.  The SMM Unix System Manager's
Manual is really useful!

    USENIX Association
    2560 Ninth Street, Suite 215
    Berkeley, CA  94710
    USA
        [phone]
    fax [phone]
    [e-mail]

    PS1 = Programmer's Supplementary Documents, Volume 1
    PS2 = Programmer's Supplementary Documents, Volume 2
    SMM = System Manager's Manual
    USD = User's Supplementary Documents

Adobe documentation.  Available machine-readable by
e-mail from [e-mail].  Hardcopy
available from Adobe Developer Support Line +1 415
961-4111 for a nominal charge.  NeXT last shipped these as
part of the 1.0a release; hardcopies appeared in 0.9
Technical Documentation, were omitted in 1.0, and have
returned in updated form in _Supplemental
Documentation_ of the 2.0 Tech Docs (which is not
available on-line).

Get NextAnswers for Digital Librarian from one of the
many ftp sites (see below) that have NeXT software.
NextAnswers is a series of questions and answers that the
NeXT technical support staff has compiled.  They tend to
clarify issues not covered or poorly covered in the
on-line documentation.  Anyone can send bugs  or
suggestions to [e-mail]

Get NeXT _Support Bulletin_ from the archives.  It is
meant for support centers.

Another good source of information is the archives of
previously posted notes from the comp.sys.next
newsgroup.  Note that since the split of comp.sys.next,
it is unclear if anyone is maintaining an archive of all
the groups.

NeXTstep Advantage book is available electronically
from the archive servers:

    cs.orst.edu:           pub/next/documents/NeXT/
    sonata.cc.purdue.edu:  pub/next/docs/ (still in submissions
                              directory?)
    etlport.etl.go.jp:     pub/NeXT/documents/NeXTstepAdvantage/

The file name is NeXTstepAdvantage.tar.Z; (its
compressed size is 1.3 megabytes; uncompressed, it's
9.5 megabytes).  It is a good introduction to the NeXT
programming environment.

There is a tutorial on how to use IB on the archive servers
under the file name IB_tutorial.ps.Z which is the
postscript only file and IB_tutorial_Source.tar.Z
which contains example source code for the tutorial.  In
addition NeXT has released an updated tutorial

It can not be overly emphasized that getting the on-line
documentation from 2.0 extended will help enormously in
researching problems with the aid of digital librarian.


*** Subject: G1. How may I contact NeXT Computer, Inc.?

NeXT Computer, Inc.
900 Chesapeake Drive
Redwood City, CA 94063
Voice: 800-848-NeXT (Redwood City #)
Voice: (415)-366-0900


NeXT marketing div. of Canon - Japan
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

NeXT Europe

Stockholm: 46-7-068-8930
Netherlands: 31-20-653-0333
Denmark: 45-45-41-2200
London:  44-81-565-0005
Italy/Milan: 39-2-95302510
Munich: 49-89-996-5310
Paris: (331) 46-45-1414
Japan: 81-44-549-5555


Note: numbers abroad are listed with the country codes
first.  You will need to dial the international access
number of your long distance carrier before proceeding
to dialing the country code, area code and phone number.


*** Subject: G2. Is there a mail order company that sells NeXT-related peripherals?

    NeXTconnection
    9 Mill Street
    Marlow, NH 03456
    Voice: 1-800-800-NeXT


*** Subject: G3. Is there a NeXT specific magazine?

Yes.  There are also many NeXT specific newsletters, many
of which are available via ftp from the NeXT specific ftp
sites (look in pub/next/newsletters on cs.orst.edu and
pub/next/Newsletters on sonata.cc.purdue.edu -
purdue seems to carry more newsletters on line than
orst.).  Some cost money, others don't.


Available from purdue:

SCaNeWS - Southern California NeXT Users Group
Newsletter, first issue came out January 1991.  Edited by
Mike Mahoney ([e-mail])

BaNG - Bay Area NeXT Users Group, one item on-line on
Purdue.  Edited by  Joe Barello ([e-mail])

rmNUG NeWS - Rocky Mountain NeXT Users Group Newsletter,
latest issue  May 1991 (monthly).  Edited by David Bowdish
([e-mail]).

VNUS Newsletter - Vancouver NeXT Users Group The last
issue  was in Nov 91.  Edited by three people, including the
Chairman of VNUS, Lawrence Clarke
([e-mail]).

NeXT Users' Journal, latest issue December/January
1990-1.  Edited by Erica Liebman
([e-mail]).


Hardcopy:

NeXT on Campus.  NeXT developments in academia.  Call NeXT
at 1-800-848-NeXT for free subscription info.

NeXTworld.  Published quarterly with monthly ad-free
newsletters ($23.95). NeXTWORLD, 501 Second Street,
San Francisco, CA 94107 415 978 3182 (phone),  415 978 3196
(fax) NeXTworld email address:
[e-mail]

NeXUS.  Published bi-monthly for $36/year. Contact
Alfonso Guerra at {emory|gatech}!nanovx!nexus.

What's NeXT?  The Boston Computer Society NeXT User group
produces a NeXT newsletter called "What's NeXT?" edited
by Michael Burress
(pro-angmar![e-mail]) and Eric Celeste
([e-mail]). The Boston Computer Society,
One Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA 02139-1562 Phone
617-252-0600, M-F 9:30-5:30

Nextwatch - published by Skylee Press.  Edited by Arthur
Kyle ([e-mail]).  For more information, contact
[e-mail].

Bulletin - Gotham Users of NeXT, Inc., latest issue May,
1992 (monthly).  Edited by Robb Allan
([e-mail])


*** Subject: G4a. What are the names of some of the ftp sites that have NeXT-related files?

There are too many to list them all, so are here are just a
few.

NeXT:

    cs.orst.edu
    nova.cc.purdue.edu
    sonata.cc.purdue.edu
    umd5.umd.edu
    fiasko.rz-berlin.mpg.de / 141.14.140.32

MIT GNU:

    aeneas.mit.edu

MIT X:

    export.lcs.mit.edu

music:

    princeton.edu


See NextAnswers for more sitenames.


*** Subject: G4b. If I am not on the internet, how can I get to the ftp sites via email?

cc.purdue.edu is configured as an email archive server.
This means you can upload and download files via email.
Send mail to: [e-mail] with the
subject line help and you will get a complete description
of this service.

Submissions:

Mail should be sent to [e-mail]
with the subject of 'submission' (no ticks) if a person is
submitting material to the archives.  They need to
include a 1-2 sentence description of the submission,
the OS release the product runs on, and if it is source,
binary, newsletter, etc.


*** Subject: G5. What is the claimed performance of the 68040-25 MHz NeXT machines?

NeXT advertises the 68040-25MHz machines at 15 MIPS and 2
MFLOPS. [e-mail] (David Lakritz) posted SPEC
results for NeXT on comp.benchmark

    Model:  NeXTstation Color
    Hardware: 25 MHz 68040
    4K+4K integrated cache
    16 MB memory
    400 MB internal scsi disk

    Software: NeXTstep 2.1 OS
    default tuning parameters
    multiuser, normal background load
    no source code changes to benchmarks
    compilers:
        GNU C 1.36
        Absoft FORTRAN 77 3.1
        Greenhills Fortran-68000 1.8.5 (Grh)

Benchmark       Time       SPECratio    Compiler Flags

001.gcc         96.2            15.41   GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
008.espresso    214.5           10.56   GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
013.spice2g6    2497.7          9.59    Absoft   -f -O
015.doduc       235.9           7.90    Absoft   -f -O -N1 -h4 -H4
020.nasa7       1709.7          11.75   Absoft   -f -O
022.li          408.4           15.20   GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
023.eqntott     113.5           9.70    GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
030.matrix300   426.1           10.62   Grh      -f -OLMA
042.fpppp       274.1           11.08   Absoft   -f -O -Z
047.tomcatv     281.8           9.40    Grh      -f -OLMA

SPECint 12.45
SPECfp 9.97
SPECmark 10.90

    Model: NeXTstation
    Hardware: 25 MHz 68040
    4K+4K integrated cache
    16 MB memory
    330 MB internal scsi disk

    Software: NeXTstep 2.1 OS
    default tuning parameters
    multiuser, normal background load
    no source code changes to benchmarks
    compilers:
        GNU C 1.36
        Absoft FORTRAN 77 3.1
        Greenhills Fortran-68000 1.8.5 (Grh)

Benchmark       Time       SPECratio    Compiler   Flags

001.gcc         103.6           14.31   GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
008.espresso    222.8           10.17   GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
013.spice2g6    2706.6          8.85    Absoft   -f -O
015.doduc       252.2           7.39    Absoft   -f -O -N1 -h4 -H4
020.nasa7       1875.6          10.71   Absoft   -f -O
022.li          425.3           14.59   GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
023.eqntott     116.5           9.45    GNU      -O -fomit-frame-pointer
030.matrix300 464.3             9.75    Grh      -f -OLMA
042.fpppp       309.9           9.80    Absoft   -f -O -Z
047.tomcatv     297.4           8.91    Grh      -f -OLMA

SPECint 11.90
SPECfp  9.17
SPECmark 10.18


*** Subject: G6. What are some good references on Objective C?

Objective-C and other useful Object-oriented
programming references:

Budd, Timothy, _An Introduction to Object-Oriented
Programming_ (Addison-Wesley) [It discusses
Smalltalk, Object Pascal, C++ _and_ Objective-C]

Cox, Brad J., _Object Oriented Programming: An
Evolutionary Approach_ ISBN 0-201-10393-1.
(Addison-Wesley) [Note: 2nd edition - ISBN# is
0-201-54834-8 and has coauthor A.J. Novobilski]

Huizenga, Gerrit, "Slides from a short course on
Objective-C" available via anonymous ftp from
sonata.cc.purdue.edu in
pub/next/docs/ObjC.frame.Z, ObjC.ps.Z, or
OldObjC.wn.tar.Z

Meyer, Bertrand, _Object-Oriented Software Construction_
(Prentice-Hall).

NeXT Technical Documentation

Pinson and Weiner, _Objective-C:  Object-Oriented
Programming Techniques_ (Addison-Wesley).  350 pages,
ISBN 0 201 50828 1, paperback.

User Reference Manual for Objective-C which is
available from Stepstone Corporation. [phone].
Note: There are some differences between Stepstone's
Objective-C and NeXT's.


*** Subject: G7. How much does the NeXT cost?

A retail price list may be obtained by contacting NeXT at
the number or address mentioned in a previous question.
Educational prices vary depending upon the university.
The typical educational discount is between twenty and
thirty percent.  NeXT offers registered developers a
significant discount.


*** Subject: G8. Where can I buy a NeXT?

From NeXT, Computer Attic (three locations in southern
San Francisco Bay Area), Abacus Inc (San Francisco),
Random Access (Denver), Essex Computers (N.J.),
Farnsworth Computer Centers (Chicago Suburbs), and
Advantage Computers has three locations in Vancouver,
Burnaby, and Victoria (British Columbia). Also
possibly from your university if you are a student,
faculty or staff.  if your university does not offer the
NeXT, you may be able to buy from a "hub" university if the
hub program is available in your state (contact NeXT for
more info). Cambridge Electronics is now selling NeXT
systems.


*** Subject: G9. How do i become a NeRD?  What does it cost?  What is involved?  Who do i contact if i am interested?

NeRD - NeXT Registered Developer

Call the 800 number to get a registration form, fill it out
and send it back to NeXT.

You may register to go to a 5 day developer's camp either in
Redwood City, CA, Chicago, IL, Westport, CT, and Toronto,
Canada.  Cost is $1,500  They will teach you the essential
information needed for developing applications on the
NeXT.  Often reported as an informative and enjoyable
experience.

Attendance at Developer Camp is no longer a prerequisite
for receiving technical support.

On the other hand, technical support for developers is no
longer free.


*** Subject: G10. How do I start an official NeXT User Group?

To start a NeXT group, just send email to
"[e-mail]".


*** Subject: G11. How do I file a complaint with NeXT?

A number of postings to comp.sys.next indicates that
NeXT really should have a formal channel for complaints.
Complaints are about machines not arriving, and about
the company.  The current mechanism for doing this is to
call the 800 number and be directed to the correct support
center.  This seems a bit backwards, as it seems a lot
easier to post a gripe to comp.sys.next.  However posting
complaints to comp.sys.next does little other than make
you look like a whiner. So be PATIENT and hang in their
while being channeled to the proper authority.


*** Subject: G12. Where can I communicate to others interested in doing music on the NeXT?

Since NeXT has become for now the platform of choice for
much of the computer music composition and research
community, the newsgroup comp.music is one good place to
find people with information and interest in music on the
NeXT.

There is also a mailing list specifically for NeXT music:

    NeXT Music SIG ([e-mail])

To subscribe, send email to:

    [e-mail]


*** Subject: G13. Where can I get NeXTAnswers?

See the answer to G0.


*** Subject: G14. What special interest groups exist?

Adobe Illustrator NeXT SIG
    To join, email: [e-mail]
AFS NeXT SIG
    To join, email: [e-mail]
Berkeley Mathematics Software Group
    Email: [e-mail]
Classroom: NeXT Courseware SIG ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send the following text message to
    [e-mail] --"Subscribe next-classroom <your name>"
Communications/TeleCommunications SIG ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
    Data GROUP NeXT SIG
    To join, email: [e-mail]
Create Users
    To join email: [e-mail]
DataPhile Users
    To join email: [e-mail]
Executor SIG
    To join, email: [e-mail]
Finnish: FUNeXT (Finnish Users of NeXT)
    To join, send email to: [e-mail]
     and write in body text:
        HELP
        LIST
        SUB FUNeXT
Frame: FUN (Frame Users Network)
    To join, email: [e-mail]
Frame User Network - New England (FUNNE)
    To join, email:  [e-mail]
GIS(Geographical Information Services)SIG ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
Lotus Improv Email User Group
    To join, email: [e-mail]
Mathematica:Special Interest Group
    To join. email: [e-mail]
Medical: NeXTMed SIG ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
Music: NeXT Music SIG ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
NeXT Icon Enthusiasts: [e-mail]
    To subscribe: send e-mail to [e-mail]
NexLAW: Legal NeXT User Group
    To join, email: [e-mail]
NeXTManagers (quick & technical answers) ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
NeXT Q&A's
    To join, email the text:
     "SUBSCRIBE NEXT-L <your> <name>"
    to [e-mail]
Network & Security Management for Labs & Large Installations ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
Programmers:  NeXT Programmers SIG ([e-mail])
    To subscribe: send email to [e-mail]
Publishing Interest Group
    To join, email: [e-mail]
Japanese: Kanji and Japanese on the NeXT
    To join - Email: [e-mail]
SCIENCE NeXT User Group (SNUG)
    To join, email: [e-mail]
United Kingdom SIG
    To join, email: [e-mail]
    and [e-mail]


*** Subject: G15. Is it true I can get inexpensive 030 cubes from Businessland?

This was true many months ago, but Businessland no longer
has anymore of these machines for sale.  Businessland is
no longer in business.


*** Subject: G16. How may I let the NeXT user community know of an upcoming NeXT-related event?

Please send any announcements of upcoming NeXT-related
events to [e-mail]  Patrick
Hayes at [e-mail] maintains
the posting service.

These events will be posted to comp.sys.next in a weekly
"NeXT Week" posting.  Be sure to send your announcement in
plenty of time to have it posted prior to the event.  One to
two weeks in advance would be a good idea.


*** Subject: G17. What are the guidelines for posting to comp.sys.next.announce?

Submissions can be sent to [e-mail].

Since postings will be carried across many networks,
commercial announcements may be edited down to reflect
network usage policies.  Program announcements should
contain as much information as possible (which ftp
sites, are sources included, is it
shareware/freeware/commercial...)  Programs made
available via anonymous ftp should not be in submissions
directory.


*** Subject: G18. Where can I get NeXT paraphernalia?

The Company Store carries NeXT pencils, pens, decals,
t-shirts, mugs, sweatshirts, tote-bags, turtlenecks
and mouse pads.

    The Company Store
    3073 Corvin Dr.
    Santa Clara, CA 95051
    Voice: 800-288-0443
    Voice: [phone]
    FAX: [phone]



--
Editor:
Nathan Janette [e-mail]