Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!mit-eddie!uw-beaver!Teknowledge.COM!unix!hplabs!motsj1!mcdchg!ddsw1!ddsw1!karl
From: karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Karl Denninger)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: IEEE-488 Interface?
Message-ID: <[255124f1:6351.3]comp.ibmpc;1@ddsw1.MCS.COM>
Date: 3 Nov 89 06:00:06 GMT
References: <8910250801.AA04854@euler.Berkeley.EDU> <2550667D.13046@maccs.dcss.
Lines: 25

Another note on GPIB (IEEE-488):

I used to work for a company that made embedded controllers.  You wouldn't
believe how difficult it is to do a truly complete IEEE implementation.  It
is a REAL bitch to handle the multiple master/slave stuff, and do it
properly, not to mention polling and all the other subtleties of that
interface.

EVERY piece of equipment that I have seen (and that is dozens, including
some mdade by HP) either took the easy way out and said "ok, this is all we
handle" or botched it in some way.  NONE were consistant.

Single-master IEEE interface busses are relatively easy to deal with. 
Multiple master, especially those in which any device can decide it wants to
be bus master at any time, are a lot of fun.  

I haven't checked out the PC-type boards in detail, but there are several
that work.  The good ones are NOT cheap.  In fact we sell one; it's
somewhere in the area of $300-400 with the software (MSC library).  As for
how good it is?  I have no idea.... but one of our customers buys a lot of
them.

--
Karl Denninger (karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM, <well-connected>!ddsw1!karl)
Public Access Data Line: [+1 312 566-8911], Voice: [+1 312 566-8910]
Macro Computer Solutions, Inc.  "Quality Solutions at a Fair Price"