Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site aesat.UUCP
Path: utzoo!aesat!bmw
From: bmw@aesat.UUCP (Bruce Walker)
Newsgroups: net.micro.pc
Subject: Re: Compatablity of Mega-Board
Message-ID: <295@aesat.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 6-Dec-84 12:23:14 EST
Article-I.D.: aesat.295
Posted: Thu Dec  6 12:23:14 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 6-Dec-84 13:00:29 EST
References: <361@hou2e.UUCP>
Organization: AES Data Inc., Mississauga Ont., Canada
Lines: 26

[Articles are packed by weight; contents may settle during shipping]

My info has it that the Megaboard is a pricey but safe route to getting a
PC-Clone.  The MegaBios is a good BIOS in any event, and can be used with
other people's boards.  In the Toronto area, there must be more than 10
or 20 PC-Clone boards for sale (no joshing!), and a lot of them have some
inherent design flaws (memory timing, DMA chip clock duty cycle problems, etc.)
but the MegaBoard is OK on that score.  The biggest problem with the MB
(shared with others as well) is availability of parts.  Just *TRY* to get a
74LS322 8 bit, all singing and dancing shift register some day (needed for the
keyboard serial port).  It also uses two different analog delay line chips
which are anywhere from $8.00 to $15.00 (when available).

Moral:  get a documentation package *FIRST*.  Go through the parts list and
make sure that you have sources for all the parts.  Otherwise, you could be
sitting on a bargain board that won't run 'cause one lousy LS part is missing.

Moral #2: Buy a populated board (with no memory, you can get that cheaper
yourself).

BTW, my 'clone has an LS299 designed into where the LS322 used to be, and
clocked logic where the delay line was.

---
Bruce Walker     {allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!aesat!bmw