some miscellaneous AUX questions

[Jim Jagielski]

In article <18767.2755adc6 at windy.dsir.govt.nz> sramtrc at albert.dsir.govt.nz writes:
>In article <1990Nov27.041826.15302 at julius.cs.uiuc.edu>, coolidge at cs.uiuc.edu (John Coolidge) writes:
>> 
>>>If you plan on upgrading to the SuperDrive OR using the 4MB RAM SIMMS, then
>>>you NEED the ROM upgrade, whether you're running a 68030 or a 68020.
>> 
>> Is this implication correct: if I shell out the $150ish (I think) for
>> the ROM upgrade, I can a) use the Dove accelerator and b) also use
>> 4MB SIMMs in my Mac II? Hadn't heard the one about 4M SIMMs --- that
>> makes the ROM upgrade a lot more reasonable. Of course, I'd still like
>> to do the fx upgrade one day :-).
>> 
>No this is not correct. You don't need the ROM upgrade for the SuperDrive
>or for 4MB SIMMS. After all, what's in a ROM? Just software, and software
>can be provided in other ways than by ROM. What you DO need for the
>SuperDrive upgrade is the SWIM chip that comes with the ROM upgrade kit
>and if you want to boot from the drive then you also need the ROM upgrade.

You can't buy the SWIM chip itself, it only comes with the ROM Upgrade. There
have also been reports that using the SWIM chip w/o the ROMs have caused
occasional trouble. So let's see, you can either buy the ROM upgrade, install
the SWIM chip but NOT the ROM's then shell out more bucks to do what the ROMs
do... make sense to me :)

>
>For 4MB SIMMS you need special SIMMS with a pal on them but you don't need
>the ROM upgrade. But to use 3 of the 4 megabytes in each SIMM you need
>some software. This software is part of the new ROMs or it can be provided
>by a program called MAXIMA (from the company that makes VIRTUAL) for MacOS.

Again, see above. The point is that to make maximum use of the 4MB SIMMs and
the SuperDrive, you need software. True, you may not need the ROMs per se,
but you get them with the SuperDrive upgrade and kills 2 birds with 1 stone.

In other words, if you want to upgrade to the SuperDrive AND use 4MB SIMMs,
then you can do it getting the ROM upgrade and that's all (except, of course,
for the SuperDrive itself and the SIMMs :). For the SuperDrive, you need to
buy the ROM Upgrade which comes with the needed SWIM chip. Doing so, you
already have 4MB SIMM "compatibility" software you need in the ROM chips and
need no additional software. If you just want the use of the SIMMs, then you
can buy the SIMMs and software that supports them. But if you upgrade to the
SuperDrive in the future, then you have to buy the ROM upgrade and you'll be
paying again for the SIMM "software".

Of course, someone will follow up on this and say what kind of 3rd party
SuperDrive upgrade paths are available  and how you don't need the SWIM chip
OR the ROMs... :)

>
>Better than the fx upgrade is the 68040 upgrade. It is free with A/UX
>2.1 which is a free upgrade to 2.0. 
>

Yeah, but you gotta pay $10 for the upgrade from A/UX 1.0 to 2.0 :):):)

--
=======================================================================
#include <std/disclaimer.h>
                                 =:^)
           Jim Jagielski                    NASA/GSFC, Code 711.1
     jim at jagubox.gsfc.nasa.gov               Greenbelt, MD 20771

"Kilimanjaro is a pretty tricky climb. Most of it's up, until you reach
 the very, very top, and then it tends to slope away rather sharply."