Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!wuarchive!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!apple!amdahl!esf00 From: esf00@uts.amdahl.com (Elliott S. Frank) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac Subject: Re: Another type of interface card? Message-ID: <31V.02ve5dZP01@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com> Date: 5 Oct 89 21:15:27 GMT References: Reply-To: esf00@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com (Elliott S. Frank) Distribution: na Organization: The Beige Building Full of Bright Engineers, Inc. Lines: 32 In article storkel@rudist.shell.com (S. Storkel) writes: > >Maybe I'm being short-sighted here, but it seems incredibly stupid >for Apple to have four totally incompatible interface slots. Only >IBM would do something this stupid. It would seem to me that the >smart thing to do would be to make ONE type of interface slot that >would be the same across the entire Macintosh family. What happened? Take a look at the _Guide to Desiging Cards and Letters for the ..._. On the SE, the SEx, and now the Portable, they created an interface that provides aftermarket access to the internal processor bus. This keeps aftermarket products from having to either modify or clip onto the Apple Mother board. :-) And all of the internal processor busses are different... Unlike the classic Macs, problems in the Apple part of a processor- direct-slot-Mac with an aftermarket product in it can be fixed by the average (and some of them are *very* average :-)) dealer. (I.e., if it doesn't fail with your video/accelerator/etc. board removed, then it's not a problem with the Mac. If it does fail with the board removed, then the service tech can do a board swap on the Apple board and send the removed part back to Apple for refurb....) Yes, you only get one slot. But if you wanted a Mac with slots, you would have gotten a Mac II[cx][ix]....... -- Elliott Frank ...!{hplabs,ames,sun}!amdahl!esf00 (408) 746-6384 or ....!{bnrmtv,drivax,hoptoad}!amdahl!esf00 [the above opinions are strictly mine, if anyone's.] [the above signature may or may not be repeated, depending upon some inscrutable property of the mailer-of-the-week.]