Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!mit-eddie!bu-cs!kwe
From: kwe@bu-cs.BU.EDU (kwe@bu-it.bu.edu (Kent W. England))
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.lans
Subject: Re: Adaptors for thinwire to thickwire
Summary: Repeaters required
Message-ID: <18578@bu-cs.BU.EDU>
Date: 12 Jan 88 19:21:11 GMT
References: <3872@ames.arpa>
Reply-To: kwe@buit13.bu.edu (Kent England)
Followup-To: comp.dcom.lans
Organization: Boston Univ. Information Tech. Dept.
Lines: 43

In article <3872@ames.arpa> lamaster@ames.arc.nasa.gov.UUCP (Hugh LaMaster) writes:
>Does anyone have any recommendations for adaptors to connect a
>thinwire-only controller (on the back of a VAXstation) to a
>regular drop cable.  

>All the rest of the cable plant in question is regular Ethernet.

Assuming you don't want to actually cut-up your existing thick cable,
there isn't much choice.  If you are going to install a lot of these
you have to run thinnet and use DEMPRs (actually I would use Cabletron
multiport repeaters, but you know what I mean).  
DEC and/or 3Com's "PairTamers" that convert coax to unshielded twisted
pair might save some cable installing.
If you have a few VAXstations, there are vendors that will be selling
single-port, compact repeaters for maybe around $800 or so that will
do the job of repeating between the thin segment and the thick one,
but any repeater will do the job (with the right transceivers).
If you cluster these renegade workstations, the per station cost of
the repeater will come down accordingly.  You can daisy-chain a
cluster of workstations in a lab and not run into too many maintenance
headaches. 

Demonstrates pretty convincingly that DEC has learned how to
out-arrogate IBM.  Don't ask DEC whether you need thin Ethernet or
not, they know their business and to make sure you don't make any
mistakes they will leave the $3.18 MAU connector off their
workstations and PC cards.  It MUST be by the book, the DEConnect
book, that is.  And the book says thin.  
Anybody ever ask a DEC salesman or engineer whether DEC will offer
anything other than Ethernet?  Like StarLAN or token ring?  They look
at you funny and say "You don't need anything other than Ethernet."
And, for workstations, you don't need anything other than thin
Ethernet.

-- 
     -------------------------------------------------------------------
     Kent W. England                      |       Boston University
     Network & Systems Engineering Group  |       Information Technology
     kwe@bu-it.bu.edu        internet     |       111 Cummington Street
     itkwe@bostonu           BITnet       |       Boston, MA      02215
     harvard!bu-cs!kwe       UUCP         |       (617) 353-2780
     -------------------------------------------------------------------