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From: barry@pico.math.ucla.edu (Barry Merriman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: Don't upgrade---bifurcate!
Message-ID: <433@kaos.MATH.UCLA.EDU>
Date: 28 Sep 90 21:20:06 GMT
Sender: news@MATH.UCLA.EDU
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Organization: UCLA Dept. of Math,
Lines: 46

Regarding my plan to bifurcate an old Cube into two new machines:
I've been informed by a NeXT Systems Engineer (thanks J.M.!) that
this is not possible, due to:

Me:
>What I mean is: buy a Slab chassis, a NeXTDimesion board and a color
>Monitor; pair the slab with the MegaPixel from the old Cube. Pair the old cube
>itself with the color board and monitor. Then, switch the CPU's
>so the 030 is in the slab, 040 in the Cube.

J.M.:
----------------------------
This is not really feasible.  The '040 board for NeXTstation and for NeXTcube
are different.  The NeXTcube board (both the '030 and '040 versions) have
a backplane connector (which is where the power for the board comes from).
The NeXTstation board has a connector plug on it where the power supply plugs
in.

Also, the NeXTstation board has two large areas on it that are fairly empty
where the disk and floppy drive sit.

Finally, the Optical Disk VLSI chip is not on the NeXTstation CPU card.
Therefore, there is no way that the NeXTstation CPU can ever drive the OD
unless we rework the board.
-----------------------------

Tag a :-( onto that last paragraph. Anyway, it looks like exotic ideas
for mutating NeXTs aren't practical. Still, note you can buy the Monitor,
chassis, keyboard+mouse, etc, separately, according to the NeXT List Prices.

However, on a happy note: My personal problems are solved. I've 
traded away my 19'' Color GX SPARCstation 1 w/ Mathematica 
for a B&W NeXTStation and the promise to upgrade my old Cube to 
a NeXTDimension as soon as possible. (Plus a  bonus Absoft Fortran Compiler!). 
Is that a deal, or what!

But, uh, Steve, lets have a word. I'm putting _all_ my computing 
in the NeXT basket, now, home and office---in a hostile SPARC/MAC II environment. 
I'm counting on you...lets kick some ass!!


--
Barry Merriman
UCLA Dept. of Math
UCLA Inst. for Fusion and Plasma Research
barry@math.ucla.edu (Internet)