Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!apple!sun-barr!lll-winken!arisia!sgi!shinobu!odin!odin.corp.sgi.com!portuesi From: portuesi@tweezers.esd.sgi.com (Michael Portuesi) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: A1000 + LUCAS + FRANCES + Chassis + SCSI + HD + AMAX - experience Message-ID: Date: 28 Nov 89 10:25:13 GMT References: <1989Nov28.003433.7505@gpu.utcs.utoronto.ca> Sender: news@odin.SGI.COM Reply-To: portuesi@sgi.com (Michael Portuesi) Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc., Mtn. View, CA Lines: 67 In-reply-to: craig@gpu.utcs.utoronto.ca's message of 28 Nov 89 00:34:33 GMT >>>>> On 28 Nov 89 00:34:33 GMT, craig@gpu.utcs.utoronto.ca (Craig Hubley) said: craig> the answers will be of interest to anyone planning craig> to expand an A1000. Since the above is the cheapest way to get a Mac II craig> clone and loaded Amiga running, I imagine there'll be some interest in it... Two points: 1) while it may be the cheapest way to get a Mac *emulation* and a loaded Amiga running, it certainly doesn't sound like the most reliable. Depending on your particular machine, A1000's can be very difficult to upgrade. In fact, you outlined many potential expansion problems yourself. 2) AMAX is Mac *emulation*. You aren't getting a Mac II clone, by any stretch of the imagination. The emulation you are getting is closer to an SE/030 than it is to a II. You aren't getting any of the following: * the NuBus and color video. Does the AMAX support color video in its emulation? * the other half of the 256K ROMs in the II series, or the 512K ROM in the IIci. * a memory management unit. When System 7.0 comes out next year, this and the expanded ROMS are going to make your emulation rather obsolete. If you are going to have need of your "Mac II" in the future, you should consider this carefully (as well as anybody contemplating buying a real Macintosh with anything less than an '020 in it). craig> and I need a Mac II. If you really, truly need a Mac II (as in you have to depend on it to get something important done), you should buy one instead of spending the money on making your A1000 a Mac wanna-be. You can get educational discounts, and people are selling used Mac II's in anticipation of upgrading to newer models. craig> If it works, this will scare hell out of the local Mac dealers... heh heh. I doubt it. Most people who buy Macs buy them to get a job done. They aren't interested or knowledgable enough to kludge togther several piecese of obscure, potentially incompatible hardware and software to arrive at a solution that still isn't as good as the real thing for their needs. And given that very few of them know anything about the Amiga, it would be difficult to justify to them how they could benefit from owning an Amiga, especially if the Mac is capable of meeting their needs on its own. I'm not trying to slam your effort; putting together anything, including an '020-based Mac emulation, via the hacker route is a groovy project, saves money, and is a lot of fun. But you also have to be realistic: it has its limitations, and it is not a solution for the computer consumer, a much different person than the computer enthusiast. --M -- __ \/ Michael Portuesi Silicon Graphics Computer Systems, Inc. portuesi@SGI.COM "you might not think so now, but just you wait and see..." --Kate Bush