cowgilc@uranus.CS.ORST.EDU (Clayton Cowgill) (06/30/90)
Hello PC people, I'm new to the PC world (My 'el cheapo PC clone has been working for 24 hours- built from parts $142 :-), and am curious if there is a VGA card that will work in a PC/XT type machine and also in a 386. I'm just getting my feet wet with an 8088, I believe I'll want a '386 "soon". Trying to avoid having to re-buy everything. Thanks, Clay cowgilc@uranus.cs.orst.edu
dlow@hpspcoi.HP.COM (Danny Low) (07/06/90)
> I'm new to the PC world (My 'el cheapo PC clone has been working >for 24 hours- built from parts $142 :-), and am curious if there is a VGA >card that will work in a PC/XT type machine and also in a 386. I'm just >getting my feet wet with an 8088, I believe I'll want a '386 "soon". Trying >to avoid having to re-buy everything. You need an 8 bit VGA card. Paradise is the only one that makes such a beast as far as I know. The alternative is a 16 bit card that can operate in 8 bit mode. Danny Low "Question Authority and the Authorities will question You" Valley of Hearts Delight, Silicon Valley HP SPCD dlow%hpspcoi@hplabs.hp.com ...!hplabs!hpspcoi!dlow
drp@vpnet.chi.il.us (Douglas Pokorny) (07/06/90)
If you're looking for a fully-featured VGA card, I'd suggest that you try the Paradise 1024 vga card. It not only supports all VGA modes, but super vga as well. The maximum resolution of the card is 1024x768x16, with several hi-res 256 color modes. (640x480x256 and 640x400x256) It is user-expandable to 512k, and best of all it is a 16-bit card which will operate in an 8-bit slot. To clarify, the vga card itself is 16-bit, (with the 2 connector halves, one the standard 8-bit, and the other the 16-bit extension) When plugged into an AT/386 machine with 16-bit slots it is just that, a very fast 16-bit super VGA card. However, if you plug just the 8-bit portion in, and leave the 16-bit extension dangling, it is now an 8-bit card. The greatest advantage to this, is, as you requested, that it is fully upword compatable from 8088 to 80286 to 80386 machines. -Douglas Pokorny (drp@vpent.chi.i.us) Note: I happen to own a Paradise 1024vga card, and a SamSung SyncMaster II monitor, which is capable of the 1024x768x16 resolution. +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | How do icons work? | | What is an address bus? | | How does a mouse let me move the cursor around the screen? | | Answers to all this and more in Time/Life's new series.... | +-----------------+-----------+----------------------------------------------+ | Douglas Pokorny | drp@vpnet | "I've sold my OS/9 machine and gone 80386.." | +-----------------+-----------+----------------------------------------------+
dhinds@portia.Stanford.EDU (David Hinds) (07/06/90)
In article <1640126@hpspcoi.HP.COM> dlow@hpspcoi.HP.COM (Danny Low) writes: >>... [I] am curious if there is a VGA >>card that will work in a PC/XT type machine and also in a 386... > >You need an 8 bit VGA card. Paradise is the only one that makes >such a beast as far as I know. The alternative is a 16 bit card >that can operate in 8 bit mode. The ATI VGA Wonder is a 16-bit card that claims to be able to work in either 8-bit or 16-bit slots; it autodetects the bus width. So, according to the manual, it should do the job. I haven't tried it in an 8-bit slot, though. -David Hinds dhinds@popserver.stanford.edu
mvp@hsv3.UUCP (Mike Van Pelt) (07/07/90)
In article <1640126@hpspcoi.HP.COM> dlow@hpspcoi.HP.COM (Danny Low) writes: >>am curious if there is a VGA card that will work in a PC/XT type >>machine and also in a 386. >You need an 8 bit VGA card. Paradise is the only one that makes >such a beast as far as I know. The alternative is a 16 bit card >that can operate in 8 bit mode. I think most 16-bit VGA cards will work in 8-bit mode. I know that the Video 7 boards will; I'm using a 1024i in my old Sperry XT clone at home. -- "How can three dozen computer designers beat | Mike Van Pelt a team of over a thousand?" -- Thomas Watson | Headland Technology "I believe Mr. Watson has answered his own | (was: Video Seven) question." -- Seymour Cray | ...ames!vsi1!v7fs1!mvp
baer@uwovax.uwo.ca (07/08/90)
In article <1990Jul6.161746.11546@portia.Stanford.EDU>, dhinds@portia.Stanford.EDU (David Hinds) writes: > In article <1640126@hpspcoi.HP.COM> dlow@hpspcoi.HP.COM (Danny Low) writes: >>>... [I] am curious if there is a VGA >>>card that will work in a PC/XT type machine and also in a 386... >> >>You need an 8 bit VGA card. Paradise is the only one that makes >>such a beast as far as I know. The alternative is a 16 bit card >>that can operate in 8 bit mode. > > The ATI VGA Wonder is a 16-bit card that claims to be able to work in > either 8-bit or 16-bit slots; it autodetects the bus width. So, according > to the manual, it should do the job. I haven't tried it in an 8-bit slot, > though. > > -David Hinds > dhinds@popserver.stanford.edu -- Many other 16-bit VGA cards work on the 8-bit bus; then, too, 8-bit VGA cards are sometimes a few bucks cheaper -- check any Computer Shopper or PC magazine. I have a 16-bit Oak Technologies (cheap) SVGA card working fine in my XT -- and when I upgrade to a 386 I will pull the card and use it there [I'm not particularly happy with the SVGA drivers which came with this card -- no OS/2 drivers for my pending upgrade to a 386 -- but its VGA operation is just fine]. My 16-bit card "hangs over" the 8-bit slot (which is smaller than the 16 bit slot). --------------------------------------------------------------------- Douglas Baer, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada N6A 5C2 Internet: BAER@UWO.CA Bitnet: BAER@UWOVAX Telephone: [home] (519)-657-4799 *most reliable number [office] (519)-661-3859 [leave messages, M-F 9-4pm EST] (519)-661-3606