roy@phri.UUCP (Roy Smith) (03/21/89)
I'm looking for opinions on some fiber-optic ethernet repeaters
made by a company called Raycom Systems. I'd never heard of them until
they sent me some literature on their products. We're looking for a fiber
optic ethernet repeater (or maybe a bridge; we havn't decided which we need
yet) and Raycom makes what looks like a nice unit, the 3550, for $2000
(i.e. $4000 a pair). Cabletron makes a similar unit for a similar price.
I have heard of Cabletron, and know they have a generally high reputation,
but I'd like people's opinions on Raycom.
Our application calls for pulling about 200 meters of fiber through
a conduit connecting two buildings. I've been told by both Cabletron and
Raycom that the way to go is to pull raw cable and terminate it in the
field. Unfortunately, I've never done this before and I'm having a hard
time getting a handle on just how complicated it is to terminate fiber. As
this is going to be done in a somewhat remote area (Cuernavaca Mexico), it
pretty much has to work the first time. You can't just pick up the phone
and get the supplier to FedEx you a new connector because you botched it
the first time. Given that it will be done by people of unknown technical
skills, it can't be too difficult to do. We may end up buying
pre-terminated cable, but I'm told we risk damaging the termination when we
pull it. Anybody who's done their own fiber terminations willing to share
their experiences?
--
Roy Smith, System Administrator
Public Health Research Institute
{allegra,philabs,cmcl2,rutgers,hombre}!phri!roy -or- roy@phri.nyu.edu
"The connector is the network"