Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!jarthur!nntp-server.caltech.edu!gumby.cs.caltech.edu!tim From: tim@gumby.cs.caltech.edu (Timothy L. Kay) Newsgroups: comp.periphs.scsi Subject: Re: Future Domain Address? Message-ID: Date: 12 Dec 90 16:40:56 GMT References: <1990Dec4.153234.19666@ucs.sfu.ca> <4e661f55.20b6d@apollo.HP.COM> Sender: news@nntp-server.caltech.edu Distribution: na Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena Lines: 33 Nntp-Posting-Host: gumby.cs.caltech.edu angelini@apollo.HP.COM (Bob Angelini) writes: >>Does anyone know if Future Domain is on the Net? I'd like to send them a >>letter. I just purchased a FD TMC-885 and received a dismal amount of >>documntation and software with it. I'd expect this from a Taiwanese >>Clone manufacturer, but not from a company with a fairly decent reputation. >>Steve "Skillman" Hillman "Everyone generalizes" >Steve, >I think what you have, IS actually a "Taiwanese Clone". FD sells the 885 chip >and BIOS set to OEMs who build up a SCSI board. Many mailorder houses are >selling these clones as Future Domain boards. The software and docs that FD supplies >with their board is quite a hefty package all bound in a three ring binder. >Bob Angelini It seems that Steve bought the bare card from Future Domain. He didn't get any documentation. You don't get any documentation when you buy a raw Western Digital disk controller either, for example. Future Domain is a large OEM supplier of SCSI cards for PC's (as well as SCSI chips). It doesn't make sense for Future Domain to include a lot of documentation with each of their cards because nobody would read it 99% of the time. If you buy the raw drive, then you might also want to buy the technical manual which costs $25 and is complete but skimpy. What Bob is familiar with is their kit that includes not only the raw card, but also their MS-DOS software package. This also costs more money than just the raw card, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you are using MS-DOS and have the need to write to a SCSI tape.