Path: utzoo!dptcdc!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!bloom-beacon!athena.mit.edu!captkidd
From: captkidd@athena.mit.edu (Ivan Cavero Belaunde)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: What kind of Mac for AS server?
Message-ID: <10692@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU>
Date: 18 Apr 89 20:26:24 GMT
References: <9684@bmc.uu.se> <1529@ccnysci.UUCP> <1782@thor.acc.stolaf.edu> <1576@ccnysci.UUCP>
Sender: daemon@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU
Reply-To: captkidd@athena.mit.edu (Ivan Cavero Belaunde)
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Lines: 47

In article <1576@ccnysci.UUCP: alexis@ccnysci.UUCP (Alexis Rosen) writes:
:In article <1782@thor.acc.stolaf.edu: sobiloff@thor.stolaf.edu (Blake Sobiloff) writes:
::Why spend all that extra money on a fully-functional Mac?  Use something like 
::the Jasmine DirectServe!  The DirectServe uses a 68010 @ 10MHz with zero
::wait states, and 1, 2, or 4MB of RAM available, plus it cashes to increase
::response 20-40% more.  The DS doesn't waste time with screen refreshes or bus
::scans- it just plows through network traffic.  True, it doesn't work with
::EtherNet, but if you just want to use it as a server for up to 40 users/
::bridges on LocalTalk and use AppleShare (which is included in firmware), its
::a great deal.  Just add a disk drive and you're set.
:
:Well, at 10Mhz of course it has no waits.
:Anyway, there are two answers. First, despite its long and colorful history
:(this is probably the oldest networking product for the Mac available today)
:the DirectServe is in the "new and untested" category. Second, until someone
:tests it heavily, I won't trust it for AFP record-locking stuff (if TOPS can't
:get that right, maybe others are playing fast-and-loose too?)

Regarding the desirability of having just a simple box (not a full-blown
Mac) as an AppleShare server, has anybody heard/done something similar to
the Hackintosh project that appeared not too long ago in computer shopper?
Throwing in a power supply, a Mac motherboard (whichever model you need) and
a SCSI hd in a case could be an interesting (and cheap project).  I seem to
remember Mac+ motherboards could be had for ~$400 (possibly much lower now in
the year of the CPU)  and other models' motherboards were available as well.
Toss in a high powered HD (a high capacity Wren Runner) which you loaded with
AppleShare while hooked up to a normal Mac, and you could have a high
performance dedicated server at a lower price than the dedicated SE30 or
the DirectServe (you'd probably need an SE30 board for optimum performance,
but I'm sure those can be obtained).  If anyone has tried anything along
these lines (or has any thoughts on it) drop me a line or post if you'd rather
do that.

God I'm in a rambling mode today.

-Ivan

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