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NeXTcube
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| NeXTcube | |
 |
|
| Type | Workstation |
|---|---|
| Released | 1988 |
| Discontinued | 1993 |
| Processor | Motorola 68030 (NeXT Computer) Motorola 68040 (NeXTcube) |
| Memory | 8MB - 16MB (NeXT Computer) 8MB - 64MB (NeXTcube) |
| Operating system | NeXTSTEP, OPENSTEP, NetBSD (limited support) |
The NeXT Computer and NeXTcube were high-end workstation computers developed, manufactured and sold by NeXT from 1988 until 1993. They ran the NeXTSTEP operating system. The NeXT Computer (often informally referred to as "the Cube") was released as a 1-foot (305 mm) die-cast magnesium cube. It cost US$6500.
The NeXT Computer has achieved a small degree of notability for being used by Tim Berners-Lee as the world's first web server, and also to write the first web browser, WorldWideWeb at CERN.
Contents |
Uniquely, the NeXT Computer featured a magneto-optical drive in place of the more usual hard disk, though the latter was available as an option. The workstation came with a 1120×832 pixel four-level grayscale MegaPixel 17" monitor (with built-in speakers).
The 68030 CPU was supported by a 68882 FPU for faster mathematical performance, a 56001 digital signal processor (DSP) for multi-media work and two custom-designed 6-channel direct memory access (DMA) channel controllers, which allowed much of the input/output (I/O) processing to be offloaded from the CPU to boost the speed of common tasks.
In 1990, a revised model, now named NeXTcube, was launched with a 25 MHz 68040 processor, larger hard disks in place of the MO drive and an optional floppy disk drive. A 33 MHz NeXTcube Turbo was produced later.
NeXT also released the NeXTdimension for the NeXTcube, a circuit board based on an Intel i860 processor, which offers 32-bit PostScript color display and video sampling features.
The NeXT Computer and NeXTcube were not a great commercial success, owing to their high price. However, some are still used around the world as servers and hobbyist desktops.