> "There's no fundamental problem with getting a modern Unix to run on a VAX except for all the details"
Pretty much. The main issue with modern Unx on a VAX is memory size & performance, which combine to make native compiling under recent gcc versions "problematic", so cross building in gcc-10 or 12 is much easier.
The profusion of (from today's perspective) whacky addressing modes have made maintaining gcc for VAX more effort that it would be otherwise, but it's still there and in use for one modern UNx https://wiki.netbsd.org/ports/vax/ :)
Pretty much. The main issue with modern Unx on a VAX is memory size & performance, which combine to make native compiling under recent gcc versions "problematic", so cross building in gcc-10 or 12 is much easier.
The profusion of (from today's perspective) whacky addressing modes have made maintaining gcc for VAX more effort that it would be otherwise, but it's still there and in use for one modern UNx https://wiki.netbsd.org/ports/vax/ :)
You can download https://opensimh.org/ to get a VAX emulator and boot up to play
Simh also emulates a selection of other interesting and unusual architectures https://opensimh.org/simulators/