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From: lunatic@ucscb.UCSC.EDU (Lunatic)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: Rom 04 comment
Message-ID: <1562@darkstar.ucsc.edu>
Date: 1 Mar 90 21:39:24 GMT
References: <17420.apple.net@pro-sol>
Sender: usenet@darkstar.ucsc.edu
Reply-To: lunatic@ucscb.UCSC.EDU (Lunatic)
Organization: UCSC Renegade User
Lines: 86


In article <17420.apple.net@pro-sol> lbotez@pro-sol.cts.com (Lynda Botez) writes:
>In-Reply-To: message from toddpw@tybalt.caltech.edu
>
>>>UPGRADE PATH.
>>>You heard me.
>
>>I heard you.  I am not an employee of Apple, but I ask you this:
>>HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW IMPRACTICAL IT IS TO GIVE YOU WHAT YOU ASK?
>>What's Apple going to do with your old machine? Recycle it?  [stuff
>>deleted]   This is the age of disposable motherboards.
>
>Hummm.  I somehow disagree with that.
>
>When you buy the CPU for the Apple IIGS, it comes with a case, a power
>supply, a motherboard, a keyboard and a mouse.  Now with a motherboard
>swapout; you're just looking at the motherboard.  (Let's see.. a new keyboard
>costs $129 give or take a few bucks, and the mouse is somewhere around the
>same price... at least retail list).  


    ][f the new machines (ROM 04?) include a built-in SCSI port
(hope! hope!) then you would either also need a new backplane (is
the backplane on the GS separate from the rest of the case?  I don't
think so.) or slightly modified motherboards ala the IIe-to-IIGS
upgrade, with an SCSI connector on a cable to fit in one of the
punchouts.  The ROM 04 machine is rumoured to come in a different,
smaller case, as well, is it not?  (I personally can't see how
Aplle could expect to fit it in a smaller case and be able to hold
a full load of peripheral cards unless they take the power supply
out of the case.)


>I'm sure there are some parts that are salvagable on the old motherboard; but
>maybe not.  If they were totally worthless, why would Apple require them
>returned when you have to buy a new one when yours fries?

    ___
     |hey don't want third parties to get ahold of Apple propriety
hardware/microcode cheaply.  There's a product for the Atari ST
called Magic Sac (or something like that - used to be called
Macartridge?) that lets an ST do hardware emulation of a Mac.  All
it needs is original Macintosh ROMs.  Sure, there are plenty of them
around, as witnessed by the availability of this product, but if
Apple requires that all old ROMs be returned to them, then it's that
much harder to actually find any without going out and buying a whole
Macintosh.  As long as you're buying a whole Mac, Apple is happy, and 
why pull the ROMs from it?  Something similar could be done with GS 
ROMs, video firmware, etc, by a company such as Video Technologies
(the makers of the Laser computers, who actually DID do just this
and exhibited it at the first KansasFest developer's conference).
Also, certain components on the motherboard are socketed, most notably
the VGC (at least on early machines) and the ROMs.  Old ROMs might not
be too usable, but the VGCs certainly would.  Then also there are tax
considerations.  Remember all those unsold Lisas that were bulldozed
into a hole in the ground?  Apple actually saved money by destroying
them.


>I would imagine there could be a swapout.  I would expect a fairly high charge
>to do it, but certainly a lot less than the cost of an entirely new CPU.
>
>Also, I would suspect that a great number of the older models would not be
>upgraded.  Many people are satisfied with the Apple IIGS the way it is now.
>Old motherboards could be reconditioned for service on the olders models.

    ___
     |hat's another use for them.  What happens when an owner of a
ROM 01 machine comes in for repairs that require a motherboard
swapout and the ROM 01 machines are no longer being made?  (Which
has already happened with the release of ROM 03.)  Unfortunately,
Apple is not going to swap in a newer model motherboard.  I can't
remember the exact reason they won't give you a newer motherboard, 
but please take my word for it, I've checked.


>Lynda


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