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From: garnett@cs.utexas.edu (John William Garnett)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: How to make a NeXTstation Color drive a grayscale monitor?
Message-ID: <1486@nada.cs.utexas.edu>
Date: 26 May 91 00:12:06 GMT
References: <1991May22.082130.19581@share.UUCP>
Organization: University of Texas at Austin
Lines: 48

In article <1991May22.082130.19581@share.UUCP> MBParker@Athena.MIT.Edu writes:
>Subject: For all machines, 16-bit color standard, or the option for $375 to later upgrade to 16-bit color
>
>Reasoning from these close prices a bit further, one might ask, Why doesn't
>NeXT provide the inexpensive 16-bit color circuitry as an option or as standard
>on all their machines?  From the following two list prices:
>
[some info deleted -- see original article]
>
>one can infer that the cost of a NeXTstation Color motherboard is only $375
>list dollers more than a NeXTstation Grayscale motherboard.  Since the 16-bit
>color circuitry is the only difference, we see the circuitry required for color
>is relatively inexpensive.
>
>So I ask, why is NeXT producing Grayscale motherboards at all -- for either the
>station or the cube?  Since the motherboard color support is not that
>expensive, why not build color upgradability into ALL NeXT computers?  Or offer
>it as an option?

I would like to second Mr. Parker's suggestions.  NeXT currently does
not offer a expandable machine that has inexpensive color support.

If you want color on a NeXT, you either have to get a color slab (NeXTstation)
or a cube with a NeXTdimension.  The slabs have no slots for expandibility
(at the very least, this makes it very difficult to ever upgrade to the
next latest and greatest CPU (68050 or multi-processor support etc.
whatever it might be).  And the NeXTdimension appears too expensive for
people who aren't doing professional graphics work or scientific
visualization or who don't have a lot of money burning a hole in
the pocket.

Why not offer a motherboard for the cube that has the 16-bit color
support builtin?  I would pay $375 dollars for such support even
if I didn't plan on going with color right away.  I may be wrong,
but I can see many others doing the same thing.  With NeXT's
sophisticated factory, it shouldn't be any problem to add support
for one more type of motherboard, should it?

Furthermore, why not offer a slab that contains support for grayscale
and color?  (A multi-headed slab would then be a possibility).

These sound like good ideas to me.

-- 
John Garnett
                              University of Texas at Austin
garnett@cs.utexas.edu         Department of Computer Science
                              Austin, Texas