Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!think!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!violet.ico.isc.COM!dougm
From: dougm@violet.ico.isc.COM ("Doug McCallum")
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re(2): maximum Ethernet throughput
Message-ID: <8803120316.AA02125@violet.ICO.ISC.COM>
Date: 12 Mar 88 03:16:19 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 16

In reply to your message of Thu, 10 Mar 88 22:21:49 PST
-------
> falsehoods. Sun uses standard chips supplied by both Intel and AMD for
> our ethernet interfaces, and while they may be the fastest
> implementations available on the market, they are completely within
> Ethernet specifications. Next time you hear one of these stories from

Just having controllers made with standard chips does not ensure that they
are within specification.  I don't remember the details of the LANCE chip,
but the Intel 82586 can be configured to violate just about every parameter
you might think of.  The interpacket spacing is one such parameter.  The
parameterization makes it useful for implementing different speed networks
(like Starlan) with the same chips.

So, even though Sun's products are made with standard parts doesn't
guarantee that someone hasn't changed parameters to something non-standard.