Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!newstop!texsun!csccat!camdev!sscott
From: sscott@camdev.UUCP (Steve Scott)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.zenith
Subject: Zenith Z150 video board question
Message-ID: <279@camdev.UUCP>
Date: 12 Aug 90 18:31:00 GMT
Reply-To: sscott@mot.com (Steve Scott,6317)
Distribution: na
Organization: Motorola Inc., Ft. Worth, Tx
Lines: 27

I have a circa 1985 Z150 computer with a Z309 video board and a ZVM-123-A
green screen monochrome monitor.

Okay, the monitor bit the dust (the horizontal sweep went out and there
is only a single horizontal line on the screen).  So, I went to find
another.  Not a whole lot of luck.  I DID find an old Tandy VM-4 that
the local Radio Shack had used as a demo and sold to me at a reasonable
price. So, I am back in business.  

But, I got to thinking:

What if the Z309 board went out?  Or, what if I had to get another composite
video monitor and I couldn't find one?  Zenith says that they will take the
old board in and exchange it for $150.  Not too bad BUT what I really
want to know is this:

aan I remove the Z309 video board and replace it with an 8 bit
Paradise VGA (for example) board.  I have heard rumors that the Zenith
video board uses I/O port $3D0 - $3DF and this is NOT where normal
PC-type video is I/O mapped.  Is this a problem?  Can I use anyone's
video boards and monitors?  OR, am I constrained to using Zenith video
boards?


-- 
Steve Scott            UUCP: uunet!csccat!camdev!sscott
Motorola, Inc.         Internet : sscott@mot.com  Telephone : 1-817-232-6317