Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!hao!gatech!mcnc!ecsvax!hargrove
From: hargrove@ecsvax.UUCP (William F. Hargrove)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc
Subject: Re: Choosing network boards
Message-ID: <4660@ecsvax.UUCP>
Date: 24 Feb 88 16:28:48 GMT
References: <8802211750.aa13471@Louie.UDEL.EDU> <8802221702.AA07616@vax.ftp.com>
Organization: UNC Educational Computing Service
Lines: 68
Summary: The comming extinction of the original pc Etherlink card




My organization is currently planning to connect serveral pc's
to vax using Ethernet boards and the MIT/CMU PCIP software. Therefore
the following interchange across the net (combined with the knowledge
that drivers for the 3C503 cards are not available with the original
public domain package came as quite a shock:

Article 532 of comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc:

"Sorry, but the 3C503 (3Com Etherlink Plus) is *not* identical to the WD8003
(Western Digital Ethercard Plus).  They have the same LAN controller chip
on them, so there are some common factors in their drivers, but you can't
expect to even do one driver that works for both...

BTW, I finally figured out what was wrong with our 3C503 driver, and we're
shipping it as of today..."

							--James VanBokkelen
							  FTP Software Inc.


Article 539 of comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc:

"My local supplier says that 3COM are terminating manufacture of the 3C501
and that they are increasingly difficult to get.  Does anyone have
the true story about this?  Its of interest because so few PC/Ips support the
3C503."
						--Michael Walsh
						  University College Dublin
						  Ireland.


Article 540 of comp.protocols.tcp-ip.ibmpc:

"3Com certainly intended to discontinue the 3C501 at some point, when they
introduced the 3C503, and I've heard the same stories of 501s being hard
to get.  However, I recently heard a rumor that one of 3Com's big OEMs refused
to port their code to the 3C503, and that the manufacture of the 3C501 may
be continued, for a while anyway."

						--jbvb


And now my personal experience in ordering Etherlink cards from GTE - which
certainly ought to be a big enough OEM for 3Comm to take notice. The GTE
sales rep. said:

"Unless you have a specific reason for ordering the EtherLink card (3C501) 
you really ought to order the EtherLink II (3C503) because it's a better 
card and 3Comm has said it intends to stop making the EtherLink card in
six months, and the old EtherLink cards are really short inventory 
now anyway...."

BTW: this conversation took place on February 22, 1988.

So it would seem the rumor has some basis in fact. My question now (mainly 
of Mr. VanBokkelen is: Does your organization (FTP Software) sell the 
3C503 driver separately and if so for how much? and (2) if you do not what
does the PCIP package with the 3C503 driver go for?

I am assuming that it makes good sense to go with the 3C503 cards since the
3C501's are destined to go the do-do bird.
.....OR DOES IT ?

Bill Hargrove
UNC Educational Computing Service
Research Triangle Park, NC