Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ukma!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!CS.WM.EDU!fjmora From: fjmora@CS.WM.EDU (Fredric Mora) Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st Subject: Slots for the (Mega) ST Message-ID: <8908010836.AA07638@nh.cs.wm.edu> Date: 1 Aug 89 08:36:15 GMT Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Organization: The Internet Lines: 95 In Info-Atari16 Digest V89 #344, Larry Rimal writes: >As a side note, hardware hackers love the ST. Easy to modify, tough >as nails, and quite versatile, it is a joy to play around with. All that >is missing are slots! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ I definitely second that. In fact, I sent a mail to John Townsend at Atari about the possibility of Atari making an expansion box for the Mega ST. Such a box would have a slot plugged in the Mega internal connector and reproduce the connector (say, 4 to 6 slots) in a Mega-like box. John answered briefly: >It has been suggested before.. however, I think it is harder than it >sounds.. > >-- John The following is my detailed answer to J.T. explaining why I think it's not complicated at all. Please feel free to flame me if you think what I say is wrong. If you agree with this expansion box suggestion, please make sure some people at Atari know it (for example, E-mail to JT at portal!atari!towns@uunet.UU.NET). Ken Badertscher and Allan Pratt seem to be more software oriented, I am not sure that this should be sent to them. I think that such a peripheral is now needed by ST users and that Atari could sell it and make money while responding to users' wishes. I know that Atari wants us to upgrade to the TT and buy VME boards when it becomes available, but I don't want to trash my ST for a new toy, even a nice one. I welcome any feedback. ---------------------------- >To: portal!atari!towns@uunet.UU.NET >Subject: Re: A little suggestion Thank you very much for your answer about my suggestion of a bus extension box for the Mega ST. You write: >It has been suggested before.. however, I think it is harder than it >sounds.. > >-- John Certainly, I agree. First, the box would have to include a power supply (say, 65W. Costs $39 in retail PC-compatible shops). Careful connection of the 2 grounds (the Mega's and the box's) is required. That can be done, at least by dealers. Second, we are talking about plugging a connector into the internal Mega slot and sending the signals on a backplane. This requires buffering the 68000 bus and shielding the box. The designers would probably need to alternate each signal with a grounded trace on the printed circuit board for better noise immunity. Also, mechanical shielding problems may appear and need to be addressed carefully because of the FCC standards. I don't think that this is a major problem. It's more a mechanical design problem than an electrical engineering problem. Thus, it seems to me that this extension box could be designed and marketed without major troubles. After all, no software revision or hard architecture change is considered. Maybe there is a major problem that I do not see here. Please feel free to flame me if I forget an important technical detail. And as more and more cartridges or boards are competing for the cartridge slot of the ST or the internal connector of the Mega, the customers will increasingly feel the need for this bus extension box. It would give ST owners a reason to upgrade to the Mega ("Tired of plugging/unplugging your Spectre, sound digitizer and video digitizer cartridges? Here is the solution," the ads would say) that they don't really have now (they make good RAM extension boards for the ST, why should I get a Mega just for more RAM?). Also, don't forget that the European market already offers two uncompatible "standards" for this kind of extension boxes. I can send you the ads in the German "ST-Magazin" and the French "ST-Magazine" if you want a proof. This actualy hurts the ST, like all incompatibility problems. It's about time Atari Corp. pushes its official standard, the Mega bus board format, and support it with such an official extension box. Developpers would feel much more confident. Than you for your consideration. Regards, Frederic Mora GEnie: The College of William and Mary F.MORA Dept. of Computer Science INTERNET: Williamsburg, VA. 23185 fjmora@cs.wm.edu USA ************************************************************************** * "Was uns nicht toetet, macht uns staerker." - Friedrich Nietzsche * * What does not kill us makes us stronger * ************************************************************************** - Come, come, little line eater, I won't harm you (evil grin)...