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From: rich@VAXKILLER.AGI.ORG (Richard E. Showalter)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: Is there an 8+ serial port mux for NeXT cubes available?
Message-ID: <9105010219.AA00499@.vaxkiller.agi.org.>
Date: 1 May 91 02:19:13 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Lines: 74

>In article <573@rosie.NeXT.COM> bloschen@next.com writes:
>>In article <9104240831.AA01164@lhs.woodside.ca.us>  
dick@lhs.woodside.ca.us 

>>(dick benster) writes:
>>> We would like to hook up many modems to a NeXT '040 cube, and 

>>>   [text deleted  --SJB]
>>
>>I have seen products from UNINET that do this.  They have several 

>>configurations of 4/8 serial and parallel ports.  They have done  
some clever 

>>things things using pty's and the SCSI port to do this.  The  
particulars are:

(Scott Bennett) writes:
>     Clever, perhaps, but not very smart.  I would like a serial  
port
>controller, too, but one that comes with a *real* driver, not one  
that
>mucks things up by involving tty/pty code and its overhead, extra  
daemons,
>effective loss of available pty's, etc.  I also can't see paying  
twice
>as much for it as for serial port controllers for pee cees.
>>
>>  [remainder deleted  --SJB]

	I am sorry Scott but I don't agree.  As the *first* person to  
use a
UNINET slat on a NeXT I can speak from experience.  I have the 8-port  
model
and have all 7 ports running VT100 emulation type terminals or PC's,  
one
port running a modem and both serial ports on the NeXT used for a  
MacII and
another modem.  Price performance wise compared to a Ethernet serial  
port server this is a better system with faster throughput on the  
SCSI port
compared to that of the Ethernet system.  I work in a research lab
where we run a lot of DNA sequence analysis programs.  I have  
terminals all
over this building running 19.2K and I have not seen any of the so  
called
overhead problems that you talk about.  I agree that ADVERTISEMENT  
should not
be broadcast to the usenet. (sorry Neil) These responses to user  
needs such as
Dick Benster's should be sent to the person who posted the request  
and if that
individual finds a reasonable solution to his/her problem a summary  
to the
group would be helpful to all and not considered ADVERTISEMENT.   As  
I see it
from here Scott Bennett does not seem to be a UNINET employee so his  
advice
is perfectly appropriate to this list.  You flamed Neil awhile back  
for his
indiscretion and I think justifiably so, but if other individuals  
want to
reference useful solutions to a problem don't be so quick to condemn  
them.

Disclaimer: I do not work for UNINET I just use their products.  I  
don't work
for NeXT either but I use their products too.

Rich Showalter
SYS ADMIN
Agouron Institute
La Jolla, CA
rich@vaxkiller.agi.org