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Xref: sserve comp.os.linux:47658 comp.os.386bsd.questions:3744 comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware:60002 comp.windows.x.i386unix:2460 Newsgroups: comp.os.linux,comp.os.386bsd.questions,comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware,comp.windows.x.i386unix Path: sserve!newshost.anu.edu.au!munnari.oz.au!news.Hawaii.Edu!ames!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!noc.near.net!uunet!wyvern!taylor.wyvern.com!mark From: mark@taylor.uucp (Mark A. Davis) Subject: Re: SUMMARY: 486DX2/66 for Unix conclusions (fairly long) Organization: Lake Taylor Hospital Computer Services Date: Mon, 12 Jul 1993 17:51:21 GMT Message-ID: <1993Jul12.175121.3826@taylor.uucp> References: <1993Jul12.022002.16965@taylor.uucp> <mr2CA1Az4.J2E@netcom.com> <1993Jul12.122937.20476@taylor.uucp> <21s0p0$s6q@umd5.umd.edu> Lines: 52 mark@roissy.umd.edu (Mark Sienkiewicz) writes: >>Yes, you are more than satisfied.... but what are you going to do when you >>need more than 2 hard drives, or want a SCSI CD-ROM or Tape drive or such? >I'm going to buy another IDE controller and attach 2 more IDE disks >to it. This limits me to 4 disks, compared to 5 for a single SCSI bus >(if the CPU, tape, and CDROM use up 3 of the addresses). It also saves >me the price difference between a SCSI disk and an IDE disk. >And I'll buy a CDROM drive that plugs into an ISA bus for roughly half >the price of a SCSI CDROM drive. >And I'll try to find a non-scsi tape drive too, but that's a bit harder. >It seems that tape drives now come in 3 forms: > - attach to the floppy controller and use weird protocols > - SCSI > - direct ISA bus 9-track drives for > $3000 >So I may break down and buy a SCSI tape drive and controller for it. I >don't look forward to spending > $1000 on it, especially when there are >tape drives that cost only $200. Exactly my point. Many will have to pay for it later anyway. Wouldn't you rather have just one adapter card, one cable, one main driver, etc. than all those different things? You can get good SCSI QIC drives for way under $1000. One really can't compare the speed or quality of a true QIC drive to those small (QIC80?) drives. There really is a world of difference. But on that subject, I wonder why there has been no SCSI version of those kind. Wrong market, I guess. BTW: SCSI CD-ROM's should not be much more expensive to make. Just the few low-end models (Mitsumi comes to mind) chose not to use it for some strange reason. I guess it would add about $5 - $10 to the drive. >It's all a matter of what is cost effective for the individual. If you can >afford SCSI disks (and don't have something else you would rather use the >money for) get them. If you have other priorities, get the IDE disks. The SCSI disks are hardly more expensive. $10 on average. It is the need for the controller which costs the $. >And if someday, you wish you had SCSI, go out and buy some SCSI devices. >The IDE drives will still work in your computer. If you are able to configure it that way. I was unable to get ISC to work that way..... maybe Linux will. -- /--------------------------------------------------------------------------\ | Mark A. Davis | Lake Taylor Hospital | Norfolk, VA (804)-461-5001x431 | | Sys.Administrator| Computer Services | mark@taylor.wyvern.com .uucp | \--------------------------------------------------------------------------/