[comp.sys.mac.hardware] Jasmine DirectServes

t1f4387@helios.TAMU.EDU (Michael Farlow) (02/23/90)

I am looking for any information on Jasmine's DirectServe product.
Specifically any experinces good or bad with the DirectServer and
Jasmine in general.

For those not familiar with the product, the DirectServe is basically a
hard drive that has the AppleShare software built into it and is to be
used as a headless (no keyboard or monitor) server.

*ANY* information is appreciated and needed ASAP.

Thank you,

Michael Farlow
Texas A&M University 

amichiel@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Allen J Michielsen) (02/23/90)

In article <4308@helios.TAMU.EDU> t1f4387@helios.TAMU.EDU (Michael Farlow) writes:
>I am looking for any information on Jasmine's DirectServe product.
>Specifically any experinces good or bad with the DirectServer and
>Jasmine in general.
>

   While this isn;t a direct reply to the question asked, I do have the
following comments.
1. I really like the jasmine backpak family of products.  Can't say one bad
   thing besides the serial number shouldn't be hiden inside after assembly.
2. I have heard a couple complaints about what I consider minor things.
   a. the exact drive size seems to change daily; i.e. 40 MB, 45MB, 40MB,...
   b. If a drive goes bad, that case seems to always get a bad drive.
      1. This is related to a. after they stop using 40MB from 1 MFG they
         hold repairs on the availability of drives from the same MFG.
3. I have a current order for a 40MB (about) backpak.  It was ordered in
   NOVEMBER, was supposed to be shipped in december, january, february, &
    now we are up to a expected MARCH ship.  This isn't a special thing, it
    was just a simple 40 Mb backpak for a ++, any model drive I didn't care
    or even try to specify.
   Jasmine is VERY close to loosing all of my future recommendations.
My purchasing Dept is saying we told you so, we always have this problem....
And I'm getting sick of hearing it, besides having a 1 floppy + sitting
running out the warranty.

al

6600bike@hub.UUCP (Puneet Pasrich) (02/24/90)

> In article <4308@helios.TAMU.EDU> t1f4387@helios.TAMU.EDU (Michael Farlow) writes:
>I am looking for any information on Jasmine's DirectServe product.
>Specifically any experinces good or bad with the DirectServer and
>Jasmine in general.

I run a Mac network and have a DirectServe w/ the DirectServe 180 hard
drive.  They have worked _beautifully_ for me and the network!  It
rarely crashes, and when it does  --get this-- it reboots itself!  So,
network productivity is almost always up (well, if that's the intent of
the network.  :-)
DirectServe drive is pretty fsat (18ms, I believe).  Setting up toook
about a whole five minutes, in contrast to AppleShare where it took me
about two hours.  

I'd say 'Go for it!'.  Good deal for me.  Relativiely cheap - and fast.
  ___________________________________________________________
  |Puneet Pasrich  |  Internet:  6600bike@ucsbuxa.ucsb.edu  |
  |Karate Kid      |  Bitnet:    6600bike@ucsbuxa.bitnet    |
  |'Just do it!'   |                                        |

sivagnan@handel.CS.ColoState.Edu (S. Vasanthan) (02/24/90)

In article <2194@rodan.acs.syr.edu> amichiel@rodan.acs.syr.edu writes:

In article <4308@helios.TAMU.EDU> t1f4387@helios.TAMU.EDU writes:
   >I am looking for any information on Jasmine's DirectServe product.
   >Specifically any experinces good or bad with the DirectServer and
   >Jasmine in general.
   >

   3. I have a current order for a 40MB (about) backpak.  It was ordered in
      NOVEMBER, was supposed to be shipped in december, january, february, &
       now we are up to a expected MARCH ship.  This isn't a special thing, it
       was just a simple 40 Mb backpak for a ++, any model drive I didn't care
       or even try to specify.
      Jasmine is VERY close to loosing all of my future recommendations.


Wait till you try to get your disk repaired. Have you tried calling
their customer support phone line, let along the sales phone-line.

It took me 2 weeks of continuous calling to get a work order, then
another two weeks to try to know the repair status. Now I am awaiting
parts, expected in a month for my Inner 70/SE. I don't know how long
its going to take them to get it repaired after the parts arrival.
--
Vasanthan
Dept. of CS, CSU.

clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu (Chaz Larson) (02/27/90)

In article <4308@helios.TAMU.EDU> t1f4387@helios.TAMU.EDU (Michael Farlow) writes:
>I am looking for any information on Jasmine's DirectServe product.
>Specifically any experinces good or bad with the DirectServer and
>Jasmine in general.

The most recent BYTE magazine features a review of the DirectServe.  I found it
very interesting and informative.

<chaz>


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
                 Chaz Larson - clarson@ux.acs.umn.edu
"Great Scott! This 9 foot alien woman is a swinger! 
 ...and she has the hots for me!!!"                - Flaming Carrot

LGEORGE@insted.unimelb.edu.au (Lord Vader) (02/27/90)

In article <4308@helios.TAMU.EDU>, t1f4387@helios.TAMU.EDU (Michael Farlow) writes:
> I am looking for any information on Jasmine's DirectServe product.
> Specifically any experinces good or bad with the DirectServer and
> Jasmine in general.
> 
> *ANY* information is appreciated and needed ASAP.
> 
> Thank you,
> 
> Michael Farlow
> Texas A&M University 

I was playing with such a beast on the weekend.  We seem to have found a funny 
problem with it.  We were setting it up for a local hard disk, and we dragged 
55+ meg onto the hard disk.  This was fine until we found that the 55+ meg was 
occupying 68+ meg of disk space!  Why? Who knows!  One thing that I did notice 
in comparing this to a normal appleshare installation is that the device is no 
longer a mac hd, ie you can't connect it to another mac, say like to recover 
files from a crash.  Once configured it does not have a system folder, and the 
desktop is of a special format, that is ResEdit [1.2] refused to open it, 
saying that it was locked, and trying to copy it to another device wouldnt work 
either, same reason.  We concluded that the extra space was the device keeping 
track of priviliges and the such.  The owner is going to ring the supplier and 
find out why he had lost ~20 meg off of his hard disk.
The DirectDrive was attached to an 80 Meg Jasmine drive, so you can't get more 
compatable than that.
Hope this helps.  Sorry if it is a bit long.

-- 
George Stamatopoulos					#### ###
La Trobe University -					#### ###
	Lincoln School of Health Sciences		#### #####
Computing Unit						#### ##### incoln
Melbourne						####
Victoria						##########
Australia						########## a Trobe