Altos 586
{{Short description|Microcomputer}}
{{Infobox computer
| photo =
| caption =
| name = Altos 586
| manufacturer = Altos Computer Systems
| type = Microcomputer
| releasedate = {{Start date|1983}}
| price = {{val|p=US$|7990|–|10990|fmt=commas}}
(circa {{US$}}{{Inflation|US|7990|1983|r=-2|fmt=c}}–{{Inflation|US|10990|1983|r=-2|fmt=c}} today)
| media = 1 MB floppy drive
| cpu = Intel 8086 16 bit @ {{val|10|ul=MHz}}
| memory = 512 KB to 1 MB RAM; 12, 32, and 42 MB hard drive options
| connectivity = 8x RS-232C serial port, expandable to 16; parallel printer port
| service =
| discontinued =
| logo = Altos586Logo.jpg
}}
The Altos 586 is a multi-user microcomputer that was intended for the business market. It was introduced by Altos Computer Systems in 1983.
Description
Introduced in 1983,{{r|halamka19831107}} a configuration with 512 KB of RAM, an Intel 8086 processor, Microsoft Xenix, and 10 MB hard drive cost about US$8,000.{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1983-10/1983_10_BYTE_08-10_UNIX#page/n161/mode/2up | title=Unix and the Standardization of Small Computer Systems | work=BYTE | date=October 1983 | access-date=30 January 2015 | author=Yates, Jean L. | pages=160–166}} Altos designed a custom memory management unit as the 8086 lacks the functionality.{{r|halamka19831107}}
3Com offered this Altos 586 product as a file server for their IBM PC networking solution in spring 1983.{{citation needed|date=February 2014}} The network was 10BASE2 (thin-net) based, with an Ethernet AUI port on the Altos 586.
Reception
"Unlike the rest of the Altos product line", InfoWorld said in November 1983, "the 586 is amazingly lightweight, full-featured, powerful and fast". The review praised the "amazing" 10MHz 8086 and other hardware, reported excellent single- and multiuser performance, and approved of the large software library and "much improved" documentation. While advising having a "UNIX guru on staff", the review concluded that the 586 was "one of the few inexpensive supermicros to cross the multiuser barrier successfully".{{Cite magazine |last=Halamka |first=John |date=7 November 1983 |title=Review: Altos 586 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0C8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=altos+586+3-com+server&pg=PA89 |magazine=InfoWorld |pages=89–90 |volume=5 |issue=45}}
BYTE in August 1984 called the Altos 586 "an excellent multiuser UNIX system", with "the best performance" for the price among small Unix systems. The magazine reported that a {{US$|10,000|1984|round=-2}}{{Cite web |title=Altos 586 |url=https://oldcomputers.net/altos-586.html |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=oldcomputers.net}} Altos with 512 KB RAM and 40 MB hard drive "under moderate load approaches DEC VAX performance for most tasks that a user would normally invoke."{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-08/1984_08_BYTE_09-08_Modula-2#page/n137/mode/2up | title=Benchmarking UNIX Systems | work=BYTE | date=Aug 1984 | access-date=23 February 2016 | author=Hinnant, David F. | pages=132–135, 400–409}} A longer review in March 1985 stated that "despite some bugs, it's a good product." It criticized the documentation and lack of customer service for developers, but praised the multiuser performance. The author reported that his 586 had run a multiuser bulletin board system 24 hours a day for more than two years with no hardware failures. He concluded that "Very few UNIX or XENIX computers can provide all of the features of the 586 for $8990", especially for multiuser turnkey business users.{{cite news|title=The Altos 586 with the XENIX Development System |url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1985-03-rescan/1985_03_BYTE_10-03_Bargain_Computing#page/n255/mode/2up | work=BYTE | date=March 1985 | access-date=19 March 2016 | author=Corson, Greg | pages=247}}