Re: SQL*Net for PowerMac?

In article <gust-1204951220240001_at_95.40.med.umich.edu>, gust_at_umich.edu (Gus Teschke) wrote:

>Can anyone illuminate the SQL*Net situation for the PowerMac?
>My murky understanding is that Oracle has no supported release (!) for
>the PowerMac, though V1 and V2 releases for the Motorola chip
>will run on it. We run V1 on it. I believe a supported release is in
>the works, but will it be a native PowerMac release?

Currently, Oracle does not support the Power Macintosh line of computers. With the exception of our database products, all our tools appear to run in a seemingly stable fashion. However, there are known potentials for problems between the Power Macintosh runtime architecture (the Code Fragment Manager) and the old 68K runtime architecture (Segment Loader), so be advised that you may experience instability. Again, Oracle does not officially support the Power Macintosh line of computers yet.

In the very near future, we will be releasing our products for the Power Macintosh. Initially, the Power Macintosh releases will not support 68K Macintoshes. However, when Apple releases the Code Fragment Manager for the 68K based Macintoshes (expected later this year), we will be revving applicable software to be fat (i.e. able to run on either 68K or PPC based Macintoshes).

This is going to be somewhat confusing, but it is crucial for you to understand the following:

• There are two distinct runtime architectures on the Macintosh line currently:
  1. Code Fragment Manager which is what the Power Macintosh line of computers uses. Apple is going to be releasing Code Fragment Manager for 68K based Macintoshes, so soon there will be a similar runtime environment for both kinds of Macintoshes.
  2. Segment Loader. This is the old runtime architectures currently used by 68K based Macintoshes.
• Think of our software in two pieces: software and drivers. Software would be the tools themselves (i.e. Forms, Reports, Graphics, Browser, SQL*Plus, etc). The drivers would be things like SQL*Net and our Required Support Files.
• You will need to use similarly architected drivers with our software. That is to say, if you are using 68K Segment Loader software (i.e., all our current tools for the Macintosh), you will need to use 68K Segment Loader drivers (i.e., out current SQL*Nets). Similarly, when we release our CFM Power Macintosh software (e.g., CDE2), you will need to use CFM Power Macintosh drivers (i.e., new CFM Power Macintosh SQL*Nets).

I hope this helps,
--Doug

-- 
Doug Bitting
Oracle Worldwide Customer Support / Apple Desktop Products Group
Oracle Information Highway Support Section Co-Designer
http://www.oracle.com/support/support.html
Disclaimer: All opinions are mine, not my employer's!