Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!wasatch!cmos.utah.edu!jacobs
From: jacobs%cmos.utah.edu@wasatch.UUCP (Steven R. Jacobs)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.next
Subject: Re: Possible cheap next machine for students
Message-ID: <673@wasatch.UUCP>
Date: 3 Dec 88 21:00:30 GMT
References: <8798@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu>
Sender: news@wasatch.UUCP
Reply-To: jacobs%cmos.utah.edu.UUCP@wasatch.UUCP (Steven R. Jacobs)
Organization: University of Utah, Computer Science Dept.
Lines: 17

In article <8798@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> woolstar@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (John D Woolverton) writes:
[stuff deleted, re: making a cheaper version of the NeXT box]
>	1. It cost ~$6500
>	2. It includes a optical drive even if you don't need it.
>
[ stuff deleted]
>So for the student who wants a $4000 Next machine, who can get
>a network feed to boot off of, could just buy the Next machine
>and sell the optical drive for ~$2500 to someone. (look in ca.wanted,
>post in ?.forsale, etc...  We could even create a group
>comp.next.optical_for_sale :-)

The tricky part is ripping out the VLSI chip (a very large PGA) that
controls the optical disk, and using it to make a controller board
for the buyer's machine.  NeXT will sell a second optical drive for
about $1500, so selling a "used" drive for $2500 would also be difficult.
Steve Jacobs  ({ihnp4,decvax}!utah-cs!jacobs, jacobs@cs.utah.edu)