keithl@loop.UUCP (Keith Lofstrom) (04/05/90)
In article <6951@timbuk.cray.com> cmfb@timbuk.cray.com (Chris Bone) writes: >I am a (potential) new Mac user. I have been offered a used Lisa 2/10, >converted to Mac XL spec (this doesn't mean a whole lot to me!). I mainly >want to use the system for Word-processing, some spread-sheet work, and >some database stuff. >Can anyone advise me on: >1) The suitability of this machine for these tasks >2) Is this machine able to be upgraded for either memory or to the 128k ROMs? >3) What would be a "fair" price for this system. It has a built in 10M hard >drive and a 400k disk drive. The places to get upgrades for the XL are Sun Remarketing and Dafax. At bare minimum, you would need: MacWorks Plus $200 (128K rom compatable) SCSI Upgrade $195 (works just like Mac) 800K floppy + ROM upgrade $295 (or $30 for rom, find a drive & mount) (Sun Remarketing, (801) 752-7631, PO Box 4059, Logan UT 84321) This gives you something a little slower than a Plus. Since Sun Remarketing sells reconditioned Pluses for $1095, and you can find a used Plus with a hard drive for $1200 if you shop a bit, don't spend more than $300 for the the raw XL - you'll be spending at least $700 to upgrade to a slow, crippled Mac. RAM upgrade to 2M is $495. If you want to go a little farther, you can get the Dafax 16 MHz XLerator with SCSI for $795, and 2MB of SIMMs ($200?) for the card, which will bring the XL up to MAC II speeds. You get a crippled II for $1500 plus what you spend on the XL. (Dafax, (800)-782-7823, 14 North Drive, Melba NY 11357) Crippled? Well, some things won't work on the XL. Sound doesn't work. Many games, and programs that bypass the toolbox, won't work. Most things WILL work, if the programmer doesn't do anything "funny". I run Illustrator, CricketDraw, Word, Hypercard, Fastback, Think C, and parts of Nosy, and talk to a Laserwriter, 90MB of disk, and a CD ROM - there are a few quirks, but nothing TOO bad. But then, I cobbled up most of the upgrades myself, so the price/performance ratio is acceptable. When I can afford it, I will probably get a "real" Mac. By the way, the machine should have a 180 watt supply, especially with an internal hard drive. If it has a 150 watt supply, plan on spending $200 for a replacement after this one burns up. The number shows through the power cord hole. And if your friend with the XL is offended at being offered 5% of new price, tell them they are lucky they're not trying to sell a Mac 128. Those are even harder to upgrade! -- Keith Lofstrom keithl@loop tektronix!psueea!qiclab!loop!keithl Launch Loop, P.O. Box 1538, Portland, Oregon 97207 (503)-628-3645