>Hi all,
>
>I just acquired a DuoDock which is equipped with an old ethernet card
>(System profiler informs me it�s a MacCon NuBus -A, vs. 1.1), no
>additional hard- or software came with it.
That was a card made by Asante. Check with them for drivers if the
standard Apple drivers don't work. If they don't I probably have a
floppy somewhere, so mail me off-list.
> Being not familiar with
>Ethernet, my first question is probably a dumb one: Looking at the card
>interface from the rear of the dock I see a COAX connector (which I
>assume to be destined for the ethernet cable)
Yes. The coax connection is for "thinnet" aka 10base/2. It is a coax
cable that is almost, but not quite exactly like cable-tv type cable.
It requires a "T" connector wita minimum of 1 meter of cable between
devices and a 50ohm terminator at either end of the cable strand. You
can daisy chain (ala LocalTalk) up to a couple hundred devices like
this in a bus topology.
>but right next to it is a
>connector which looks like a video interface - in fact I plug my monitor
>cable into it, but with no palpable effect. What could it be?
That is an AUI (Attachment Unit Interface) which was the method for
connecting the original "Thicknet" aka 10base/5 ethernet. This was
the original Triassic form of ethernet invented at Xerox PARC that
required a garden-hose sized cable and "vampire taps"... it is now
officially extinct having been Darwinned out of existence by thinnet
and later "twisted pair" aka 10base/T. You can however still buy a
transceiver that converts AUI to an RJ-45 jack for use on 10base/T
ethernet wiring.
This of course is not to be confused with an AAUI aka "Apple
Attachment Unit Interface" which was an attempt by apple to create
yet another new universal connector standard. Every one of the
first-generation built-in ethernet Macs (Centris, Quadra, NuBus
PowerMacs, a few PCI Pmacs, and even the DuoDock2) had one. 10base/T
won the standards battle even as Apple was starting to ship this.
Paying $60 for a transceiver sort of negated the supposed cost
benefits of having a built-in ethernet port. But they persisted for
about 2 years before eventually shipping only an RJ-45 option for an
ethernet port. I am still shocked when I see an AAUI on the odd Sun
Microsystems server or IBM machine... like "what were you thinking!?"
If you got something comprehensible on your monitor from an ethernet
port then it would be time to run from the room screaming. I could
make jokes about packet sniffing and traffic monitors, but I'd only
bore most of the list to tears.
>Second, I dimly recall a discussion on this list (some weeks ago) on the
>pros (no cons) of using ethernet to connect to the internet via external
>modem. I have a 3JTech 56k and would be very interested in finding out
>what the options are.
To connect to the Net via ethernet you require some sort of router or
bridge, such as a cable "modem", DSL, ISDN, or even an
analog-modem-equipped router. Your modem does not have this ability,
nor would having it make it any faster... it would just allow more
than one computer (ie your whole home network) connect to the net ...
provided a few other ducks were lined up with your ISP.
>Also I wonder could I speed up my printer (GCC PS
>printer, presently accessed through OT/AppleTalk) by installing an
>ethernet connection? What devices and software would I need, and where
>find it?
Maybe. Depends on the printer. If it has a built-in ethernet port (or
space for an ethernet card) then yes... it will probably speed things
up a bit. If you have to use some sort of ether/localtalk/serial
converter, then no, you will see no real improvement other than
allowing sharing over a larger network (which Localtalk is already
doing for you anyway...)
-chuck goolsbee
seattle, wa
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