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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!caip!topaz!think!nike!ucbcad!ucbvax!hplabs!well!perry
From: perry@well.UUCP (Perry S. Kivolowitz)
Newsgroups: net.micro.amiga
Subject: Re: Fraud And Deceit In The Memory Board Market
Message-ID: <1400@well.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 8-Jul-86 13:46:49 EDT
Article-I.D.: well.1400
Posted: Tue Jul  8 13:46:49 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 9-Jul-86 03:27:52 EDT
References: <1353@well.UUCP> <1811@shark.UUCP> <567@3comvax.UUCP>
Organization: Whole Earth Lectronic Link, Sausalito, CA
Lines: 34
Keywords: A *purported* Buyer's Guide
Summary: damn straight

In article <567@3comvax.UUCP>, mykes@3comvax.UUCP (Mike Schwartz) writes:
> know what (maybe someone who knows can fill us in).  Also, the AddBuffers
> command in 1.2 uses chip memory exclusively, so it is not possible to add
> as many as 750 buffers (I wish I had 2MB and could add 1788 buffers to

This is because DMA is controlled done on the internal (512K limited) bus.

> I do not have any flames for Perry, as I think he would have mentioned
> CardCo IF HE HAD KNOWN about them or it must have slipped his mind.  He did
> not mention any companies with bad boards, only those that he knew were
> good ones.  I'm sure it is safe to say, he will add CardCo to his
> "approved" list.  I appreciate the fact that Perry was simply warning us
> to beware.  I would hope that if someone gets burned, we all would find
> out so we don't get burned ourselves.  

Damn straight, however, I am not maintaining an ``approved'' list. How am
I to do so? You hit it right on the head - I'm simply making people aware that
all memory boards are not created equal.

Is the CardCo card multilayered? If you hold it up to the light can you see
(easily) through it? In my original article I argue that a ground plane is
important. Someone argued that a well designed grid of power and ground lines
is good enough. Well, fine - those who agree with me can be memory boards with
ground planes and KNOW what they get. Those who don't can hope that the board
they bought (without a ground plane) was ``well designed.''

What does CardCo suggest as to how many cards can be added after the CardCo
RAM card? Related question: how much current does the board draw? Are there
any by-pass capacitors on the board? By-Pass cap supress noise but drive the
cost of the board (more holes to drill) up (plus the cost of the caps). Many
would argue, however, that having them (one or two per ram chip) is worth 
while.

Perry S. Kivolowitz