Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/13/84; site intelca.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!mtuxo!mtunh!mtung!mtunf!ariel!vax135!timeinc!phri!pesnta!amd!intelca!cem From: cem@intelca.UUCP (Chuck McManis) Newsgroups: net.micro Subject: Re: servo computer products Message-ID: <17@intelca.UUCP> Date: Thu, 11-Jul-85 13:40:57 EDT Article-I.D.: intelca.17 Posted: Thu Jul 11 13:40:57 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 13-Jul-85 11:32:20 EDT References: <732@abnji.UUCP> Organization: Intel, Santa Clara, Ca. Lines: 67 > > I am considering the purchase of the Servo 8 single board Z80 > system. It features: ... List some features ... > > The only competing product I see is the new Little Board > > 1) Does anybody have any first hand information on either of the > above or similar boards? I own a "Little Board" so yes the information is "First Hand" (left to be specific :-)) > 2) The Servo is approx. $600 for everything. > The Little Board is $350 + $100 for the SCSI adapter, > but it is a Z80 A (4 Mhz). Looks like the L.B. is $150 cheaper, just so happens that is the exact cost of the Integrand enclosure designed for it. > I am deciding which to buy. I favor the Servo system > since it is all integrated, faster and +5 volt only, > but that is not taking into account the company's and > product's reliability. Of your three points a.) More integrated may also mean larger, the L.B. has the identical form factor to a 5-1/4" disk drive so that it can be mounted on top of one, additionally I believe the L.B. plus has the SCSI adapter builtin to the system. c.) 5 Volt only is great if you are not running this thing with a disk, since the standard minifloppy power supply provides +5 and +12 you can run the L.B. from the same supply that is running the disk. Note : the little board cannot control 8" drives. As for reliabilty I believe they are both relatively new, Ampro less so. There is a thriving user community and Ampro does provide a generous amount of software such as CP/M 2.2 and ZCPR3 (which is pretty damn powerful) I don't know if Servo provides any such. > Have any of you made a similar choice? Yes. > What is the difference between the SASI and SCSI busses? The Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) is an outgrowth (ie ansi standard) of the Shugart Associates Systems Interface. It is mostly upward compatible. The Ampro people extend it a little further than that for their own purposes while still maintaining compatiblity. > Jeff 'very soft and furry' Skot > at the microprocessor based ATT IS Somerset More and more of these systems are appearing (makes you wonder about CP/M sometimes) and the level of integration is getting amazing. For a bit more CPU power Ampro announced the Little Board/186 which is based on the 80186, has .5 Mbytes of RAM and the SCSI builtin. It is also the same form factor as the 5-1/4" disk drive. Don't know what they will be selling them for. [Not affiliated with Ampro just happen to have some info.] --Chuck -- "Unix, the Teco of Operating Systems." - - - D I S C L A I M E R - - - {ihnp4,fortune}!dual\ All opinions expressed herein are my {qantel,idi}-> !intelca!cem own and not those of my employer, my {ucbvax,hao}!hplabs/ friends, or my avocado plant. :-}