phillips@reed.UUCP (Patrick Phillips) (02/15/86)
I'm about to buy a Mac+, and would like to buy a hard disk too. It seems odd to me, however, that there has not been much talk on the net about the new SCSI interface. Are there any drives out there to be had? Why hasn't Apple brought one out (they brought out the HD20 not too long ago. Isn't it now obsolete [except for normal Mac users]). I would like any and all information on hard disks which are SCSI & Mac compatible. Please send me (1) the name of the company (and address if possible) (2) prices (3) experience with this product Please email responses to me, I'll summarize to the net. As they used to say, Thanks in advance. Patrick Phillips ...!tektronix!reed!phillips
spector@acf2.UUCP (02/17/86)
If you take a look in the current (3/86) MacWorld, there is an ad for a company called MDIdeas, they sell SCSI Hard disks, in 20 and 30 MB sizes, and claim they are available, and the prices are good. AST Research also sells a product called the AST4000 that (I think) is a 70Mb disk w/built in tape backup system. There are a few other companies but you won't start seeing ads for them until the next magazine cycle (read: the April issues), this is because of the long advertising lead times, that are on the order of 3 months. Hope this helps, David Spector NYU/acf Systems Group (Of course, I don't work for AST, or MDIdeas, I've just seen the ads and was responding to a call for information)
rb@ccivax.UUCP (rex ballard) (02/27/86)
More info on SCSI and ANSII draft standard X3T9.2 (the formal standard) can be found on net.micro.atari and net.micro.amiga if it hasn't expired (Discussion started 9/85 and has calmed since about 11/85). SCSI is a little like the AUX connection on the back of your stereo. With the right pre-amp on the accesory, you can use any number of accessories. The hope is the for short distances, SCSI will replace RS-232 as the "Standard Peripheral Interface". The main advantages of SCSI: Speed - 0 to 4 megaBYTES/sec "as needed", no baud rates to set. Simplicity - Standardized commands and data format Flexibility - Arbitration and handshaking support multiple hosts and a variety of different peripheral "types". Cost - Although extra hardware/software is required, only one interface is required, reducing "integration costs". Compatibility - No baud rates to set, no parity settings, no "word length" settings, no "special encoding" required, no "critical timings". Performance - Besides speed, modestly buffered devices can operate in the "background", leaving the processor free for real work. some transfers (like device to device copies) can take place without intervention from the host(s). Modularity - SCSI is the hardware counterpart to the UNIX stream I/O "device driver". The commands for writing to a "modem" is the same as for a printer, tape or disk. Although types are identified, and special commands are available to each type, much of the drivers for all types can be "common code". Expandability - up to 8 devices can be "Daisy Chained" on a given circuit. Many devices contain "SCSI IN" and "SCSI OUT" connectors to make chaining even easier, but "T Connectors" or "Ribbon Cables" can also be used. One SCSI port is actually an 8 slot "Flexible Backplane". Many manufacturers produce SCSI compatible products ready to connect. Mini/Micro systems has published several "catalogs" of what's available. I don't remember where (Mini/Micro probably) but there are a few manufacturers producing SCSI->ST-506 interfaces. I am told that SASI drives are also SCSI compatible. Apearantly, SCSI is a superset of SCSI. Also available in the SCSI stable are, tape drives, laser printers, A/D and D/A converters, removable cartridge (hard) drives, CD-ROMs, WORMS, and of course, built in networking if full SCSI is supported. A total of 8 devices (Hosts or Peripherals) may be connected. It looks like Amiga and Atari are also planning to go SCSI. IBM has SCSI interfaces available as well. It's nice to see some level of compatibility at least. Rumor has it that Sony and other audio CD-ROM makers are pushing hard for SCSI to eliminate the extra interfacing required with other standards. We may see "Personal Mini's" with SCSI interfaces to "PC workstations" such as the Mac before the end of next year (1987). Ampro has a number of interesting accessories. Disclaimer: I don't support any of the above products, but I do support SCSI. I don't know what my company supports.
tim@hoptoad.uucp (Tim Maroney) (03/02/86)
Does anyone know of good SCSI-Ethernet hardware? I would appreciate any and
all information concerning such hardware, whether in development or released.
Respond to me or to net.lan and net.micro.mac.
Tim Maroney, Centram Systems West, Berkeley CA
{ihnp4,pstfa,well,frog}!hoptoad!tim