Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!rochester!rocksvax!rocksanne!sunybcs!jmpiazza From: jmpiazza@sunybcs.UUCP (Joseph M. Piazza) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: Would like information about "Insider" memory expansion. Message-ID: <3141@sunybcs.UUCP> Date: Fri, 24-Apr-87 23:50:48 EDT Article-I.D.: sunybcs.3141 Posted: Fri Apr 24 23:50:48 1987 Date-Received: Sun, 26-Apr-87 20:15:06 EDT References: <1524@zeus.TEK.COM> Reply-To: jmpiazza@gort.UUCP (Joseph M. Piazza) Distribution: na Organization: SUNY/Buffalo Computer Science Lines: 102 In article <1524@zeus.TEK.COM> you write: >I am wondering if anybody has any information about the Insider One Meg >Memory expansion board with built in clock. It plugs into the 68000 socket and >the 68000 plugs into it. >... The ad for the product says the following: >... >o ADDMEM program included Yes, but only needed for AmigaDOS 1.1. 1.2 auto configs (or is it autorecog?). >o Exhaustive Memory test included Unfortunately it only runs under 1.1. This is the only feature I was disappointed with. Everything else I take their word for it. I leave testing to hardware technoids. >List price : $349.95 I got mine from a local shop for $299(!) plus sales tax (NY 8%) which made it $323. >I am curious about what kind of experiences people have had with this product >and Michigan Software. The price and features seem very good. The price assumes you install it yourself. It is fairly simple. If *I* can do it, most others should too. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, though not exhaustive. They labeled crucial steps with WARNINGs and NOTEs, and pointed out other steps that required patience. There's three major steps: 1. Disassembling your Amiga. Lots of screws. The instructions also list how many screws for each step (nice). You need to remove the top cover; the RF shield (accounts for most of the screws); and the floppy drive (to get clear access to the 68000). My worst problem was getting a tool behind the 68000 to pry it out of its socket since it was blocked by the rear of the case (front end is clear once you remove the drive). tend to get "bow legged" so you must bend each row against a hard flat surface. Now put it in its new socket on the Insider board. You then insert an extender socket in the original 68000 socket (so the Insider board will clear cables etc. on the mother board). 3. Make three connections with clips -- one connects under the Amiga's daughter board (256K RAM). This is a bit tricky; you have to clip to the 4th pin down. Dangerous only to you patience The next connects to a easily accessible thingie (ferrite bead). The last makes an extra ground connection to from a screw on the motherboard to a capacitor on the daughter board. There is a section in the instructions for dealers and those who really know what they're doing which I didn't read untill after I made the installation so I wouldn't get any bright ideas, (ok, maybe I peeked), that deals with soldering the connections and making a tool out of a cheap screwdriver to remove the 68000 with out removing the floppy (recommended for dealers who would make many installations). 4. Test the sucker. If there's a problem it's probably just a loose con- nection and now's the time find it. On my first try it didn't work. I went over all the connections and tried again. It worked! So, now you put the whole mess back together. There seemed to be fewer parts and they somehow seemed to fit better when putting it together. Great! 1.5 Meg! For four days ... then it wouldn't get past the green screen during Kiskstart. "OK," I says, "I'll check them there connections." So I opened the sucker up and fiddled with all connections. No dice. In fact, it didn't even flash its on/off light when powering up. "Probably fried something," said the guy at the shop after a few fiddles yielded nothing. So he then he put it back to its original configuration. It worked! Now he rein- stalled the board and all the connections (this time with the daughter board off making it much easier). It worked! It seems that I didn't quite put the board securely in the 68000 socket and let the cables lying under the board to put it a a slight angle. It's been fine for the past two weeks. MORAL: make sure there's a hardware guru can crawl to when you f*ck up. For me, buying it from my shop was essential since they would be the ones I'd fall back to. No charge. Thanks Paul. SUMMARY: the price, full speed, and autoconfig/recog, hardware support, and the clock (hallelujah!) makes the Insider real nice pick-me-up. Now, if only it can only meet Perry's standards :-) Flip side, joe piazza --- Cogito ergo equus sum. CS Dept. SUNY at Buffalo 14260 (716) 636-3191, 3180 UU: ...{rocksvax|decvax}!sunybcs!jmpiazza CS: jmpiazza@buffalo-cs BI: jmpiazza@sunybcs GE: jmpiazza