mac3n@babbage.acc.virginia.edu (Alex Colvin) (10/04/88)
Is there a device available to link a PC bus to a VME bus? I have a PC that I'd like to make a peripheral on the VME bus. If I can't share memory among the machines, is there a fast, simple, short-haul link? I'd rather not use a 2.5 meter ethernet.
dan@rna.UUCP (Dan Ts'o) (10/05/88)
In article <363@babbage.acc.virginia.edu> mac3n@babbage.acc.virginia.edu (Alex Colvin) writes: >Is there a device available to link a PC bus to a VME bus? >I have a PC that I'd like to make a peripheral on the VME bus. > There are several manufacturers of PCbus to VME bus adapters, generally designed to allow a PC/AT computer to driver VME bus peripherals. I believe Bit 3 is one such company. There are several others. Image Technology uses such an adapter to have a PC/AT use their VME-based image processing box. Let me know if you're interested further and need phone numbers, etc. Cheers, Dan Ts'o 212-570-7671 Dept. Neurobiology dan@rna.rockefeller.edu Rockefeller Univ. ...cmcl2!rna!dan 1230 York Ave. rna!dan@nyu.arpa NY, NY 10021 tso@rockefeller.arpa tso@rockvax.bitnet
mikez@radix (Mike Zuhl) (10/06/88)
In article <363@babbage.acc.virginia.edu> mac3n@babbage.acc.virginia.edu (Alex Colvin) writes: >Is there a device available to link a PC bus to a VME bus? >I have a PC that I'd like to make a peripheral on the VME bus. > >If I can't share memory among the machines, is there a fast, simple, >short-haul link? I'd rather not use a 2.5 meter ethernet. Ajida Technologies make a unit that gives the PC a lot of control of the VME bus -- you can watch the bus lines, do all the funny transfers, etc. The drawback is that as far as I know they make just a MASTER-ONLY version, not a slave version, so your PC cannot be addressed by a VME master. You can detect interrupts and "DMA" out of memory on the VME bus. Their address is: Ajida Technologies, Inc. 613 Fourth Street Santa Rosa, CA 95404 PH: (707) 545-7777 If that fails to suit, we make 386 PC-compatables that plug into VME and/or VXI buses and do both master and slave. Send me email for more info. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mike Zuhl | tektronix!ogcvax!verdix\ Radix MicroSystems, Inc.| !radix!mikez Beaverton, OR 97006 | decvax!decwrl!mipos3!omepd/ Phone: (503) 690-1229 | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
fred@inteloa.intel.com (Fred Christiansen) (10/06/88)
I believe one answer would be Radix Microsystems PC hw/sw on VME boards.
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Fred Christiansen ("Canajun, eh?") | {ihnp4!verdix, sequent!ogcvax} \
BiiN Corp., Hillsboro, OR | {uunet!tektronix, siemens} - !inteloa!fred
"Children spell love T-I-M-E." | {uoregon!omepd, ucbvax!mtxinu} /jsnow@esunix.UUCP (John Snow) (10/07/88)
From article <363@babbage.acc.virginia.edu>, by mac3n@babbage.acc.virginia.edu (Alex Colvin): > Is there a device available to link a PC bus to a VME bus? > I have a PC that I'd like to make a peripheral on the VME bus. A company called Bit 3 makes a Model 403 IBM PC/AT to VME adapter which is fairly sophisticated. It will allow the VME bus to use the AT as a peripheral and visa-versa. The board is available with either an 8 foot or 25 foot interconnecting cable. The cost of the link is $1280.00 -- not cheap, but what is these days? Bit 3 is located in Minneapolis -- phone # (612) 881-6955. -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- John F. Snow UUCP: {ihnp4,decvax}!decwrl!esunix!jsnow Evans & Sutherland Computer Corp. Compuserve: 71550,1152 BIX: johnfsnow Salt Lake City, Utah "Apple ][ forever!"
dtynan@sultra.UUCP (Der Tynan) (10/08/88)
In article <363@babbage.acc.virginia.edu>, Alex Colvin writes: > Is there a device available to link a PC bus to a VME bus? > I have a PC that I'd like to make a peripheral on the VME bus. > > If I can't share memory among the machines, is there a fast, simple, > short-haul link? I'd rather not use a 2.5 meter ethernet. Sorry to have to post this, but vnews core-dumps when I try to reply (some incentive not to post, huh?). Unfortunately, the IBM-PC bus is pretty stupid, when it comes to things like this (I know, I know, don't send me a lot of mail about what the designers motivation was, it's still dumb!). The problems are numerous. The biggest, is that you can't address INTO the PC box. The address drivers are unidirectional, and cannot be tristated. Thus, the PC could possibly see your VME box, but not vice-versa. There are other problems that I won't go into unless someone else is interested, but all-in-all, it's not easy. Of course, this isn't really what you asked, so a direct answer to your question; 1/ I don't know of any hardware to do it. 2/ The ethernet is the most elegant solution -- that way, you also get an ethernet link, if you ever get another system. What's wrong with a 2.5m ethernet? - Der -- Reply: dtynan@sultra.UUCP (Der Tynan @ Tynan Computers) {mips,pyramid}!sultra!dtynan Cast a cold eye on life, on death. Horseman, pass by... [WBY]