thanks both of you for the replies and info...
sorry to have taken so long to get back about what i've found on IRIX, i forgot about the man pages that are on there *blushes*, ive read some of the stuff SGI have on there site which has helped me through a few things, such as getting the Octane i bought onto the web thru my LAN at home (took almost a whole day), all i need now is that damned external cd drive and some media....

shame im in australia, otherwise i woulda got meself an I2 instead, mainly for the cdrom drive convenience....