Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!floyd!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!microsof!decvax!genrad!mit-eddie!smh From: smh@mit-eddie.UUCP Newsgroups: net.misc Subject: Re: Artificially different products Message-ID: <390@mit-eddi.UUCP> Date: Mon, 11-Jul-83 01:01:10 EDT Article-I.D.: mit-eddi.390 Posted: Mon Jul 11 01:01:10 1983 Date-Received: Thu, 7-Jul-83 13:26:30 EDT References: <144@flairvax.UUCP> Lines: 37 The recently posted descriptions of product lines with artificial pricing for essentially identical hardware prompts me to add two more: - When PDP11's were young, the common tty interface board was the DL11 (approximately a single-line DZ) which came in five flavors differing in their modem-control capabilities, RS232 vs. current loop, etc. I had a machine with a current loop board which I wanted to `convert' to a RS232. My DEC salesman could sell me a `converter' to do the job at about $50. This seemed reasonable at the time, but I was in a rush, so I thought to check the board to see if perhaps positions had been left for adding RS232 converter chips (MC1488,9). I was astonished to find them already present. Reading of the charts while being careful to ignore the fictions of the accompanying user manual proved that the only difference between the DL11A,B,C,D,E versions were jumpers on its 40-pin tty connector socket! - In the days of unit record (card) tabulator equipment, there was an IBM beast called a 407 which could actually do fairly sophisticated stuff, but was generally used around real computers as a slow card listing device. The machine was a wondrous and curiously reliable maze of cams, levers, and strange gizmos. There were undoubtably zillions of options, but two printing speeds were available: 120 and 180 CPM (cards per minute!). I never worked with the 180 CPM version, but I still remember the pleasant 3 Hz cycle of the slower (and more common?) kind: PRINT-PRINT-swish-PRINT-PRINT-swish-PRINT-PRINT-swish Make of it what you will -- I never looked inside at the cams... Actually, in sympathy with these two largest and allegedly reputable computer manufacturers, I can imagine pressures for such artificialities arising from the developmental history of a product line. A faster, cheaper, or better version of a frob if priced `honestly' can cause hard feelings in the poor slob who just bought the old style. Then too, what does a manufacturer do who leases out most of his units and has a huge inventory? Steve Haflich genrad!mit-eddie!smh