What are the differences between the Eventide WLZ-320 and the HP 98643A?
Let's first look at the similarities: Our board does EVERYTHING the HP board does, i.e., it functions as the hardware that connects the HP computer to the Ethernet.
Now for the differences:
1. Ours is far less expensive. Roughly HALF the price.
2. Ours requires less power. You cannot use the HP board in the 9816 computer (Series 200 model 16) because it will overload the 12 volt supply. Ours won't.
3. Ours contains a built-in Thin MAU, so you don't have to use a separate, clumsy piece of hardware to connect to the thin version of the Ethernet. It also has a connector (AUI, Attachment Unit Interface) for a Thick MAU, just like that on the HP board. You can buy the MAU from us or, for that matter, use HP's if you happen to have one.
4. Ours contains a "boot ROM extension" that lets older computers talk over the Ethernet EVEN BEFORE ANY OPERATING SYSTEM SOFTWARE IS LOADED! This means that Series 200 and older Series 300 computers can, under certain circumstances, boot over the Ethernet LAN. This feature is especially neat since HP says it can't be done!
Items 1 through 3 really don't require too much explanation. "Half the price" is a pretty persuasive feature all by itself. We'll explain item 4 after some introductory material.
What is the purpose of the Eventide Ether Board?
It allows HP Series 200/300 computers to be networked. Using it allows compatible computers to connect to a high-speed network called "Ethernet." This is the standard that Hewlett-Packard has implemented for networking its current series of workstations. Two major advantages of networking are the ability to share (and back up) files on a central "server," and the elimination of "local disks."
Don't HP workstations network already?
Some do, some don't. HP's initial try at networking desktop computers (they weren't "workstations" in those days) comprised the "SRM" system, which stood for "Shared Resources Manager." The capabilities of this network are quite advanced, and include file sharing, printer/plotter spooling, and the ability to work from a central server. The SRM network suffers in two areas: its performance is limited by its slow raw data transfer rate, and SRM is totally incompatible with the more modern networks.
In order to use the SRM, a dedicated central server is required, and an interface card (which also is incompatible with modern networks) must be installed in each computer to be networked.
Beginning with the Series 300 computers, HP espoused a new networking standard using "Ethernet," whose physical attributes are the subject of an IEEE standard and whose interfacing software is also highly standardized among computer manufacturers. In addition to the advantage of standardization, Ethernet sports a raw data transfer rate over an order of magnitude greater than SRM!
Before networking became so popular, HP considered it to be strictly optional. No computer came with an SRM card as standard equipment. As the Series 200 evolved into the Series 300 and then 400, the Ethernet interface evolved from unavailable to unavoidable. Virtually all of HP's current workstations come with a standard Ethernet interface.
If the card is now standard, why do people need yours?
There are literally hundreds of thousands of older HP desktop computers and workstations that can benefit from our card. These machines fall into three categories: Those that have never been networked, those currently on SRM networks, and those that are network-ready but don't have interfaces already installed.
If there are hundreds of thousands of these machines, why doesn't HP offer a solution?
Well they do, sort of. But, as a "plug-compatible manufacturer," it is our job to offer a solution too. And, of course, to be successful in the marketplace, our solution has to be better and/or cheaper. Of course, we believe it is, both, and will now amplify the 4-point explanation presented above.
What is HP's solution?
Almost all Series 200 and 300 computers have the capability of using what HP calls "DIO" accessory cards. DIO is an electronic bus structure having 16 bits of data and 24 bits of address. It was the native bus of the earlier machines, and is available, standard or as an option, on the later ones. HP has a card called the "98643A" which plugs into the computer and the DIO bus, and has a connector for an Ethernet "MAU," or Medium Attachment Unit. One of two available MAUs can be used to connect the card, and hence the computer, to the Ethernet. The "Thin MAU" connects to a version of Ethernet dubbed "cheapernet." The "Thick MAU" connects to a thicker piece of cable that can carry signals a greater distance. In either case, the data transfer rate is the same. Although the Thick MAU connects to the standard Ethernet, the Thin version is far more popular and is what is supplied as "standard" with current HP hardware.
This same "98643A" card is also the heart of what HP calls its "98171A LAN/9000 Series 300 Link." This product includes a software "right-to-use" and other add/delete options, such as the selection of a thin or thick MAU. While the "98643A" is no longer available under its own number, it is available as the "98171A, option 1AW."
The fourth difference you mentioned was the "boot ROM extension." Please explain.
All computers have a "boot ROM" that performs such basic functions as testing and initializing hardware, and in some cases, provides firmware routines that tell the operating system how to talk to the computer's hardware. The boot ROM usually contains only enough firmware to assure that the computer is operating and to allow it to load the desired software from wherever it resides, be it local disk, SRM, network, or whatever. Because the boot ROM is part of the computer hardware, you can't change or update it as easily as you can the operating system. Once the computer is shipped from the manufacturer, it's pretty hard to modify.
Loading operating system software MUST be performed by the boot ROM. When the first Series 200 computer came out (the 9826), it had only an internal floppy disk. The boot ROM knew little more than how to read the floppy. And, back before operating systems grew so large, the OS fit on the floppy, too. So far, so good. As the Series 200 computers progressed, so did the boot ROMs. They learned to read bubble memory, EPROM cards, SRM interfaces, and HP's new series of disk drives.
But, they never learned to read data from the Ethernet card, which did not exist when the Series 200 went obsolete. And, according to HP's manual, they never will, because HP has no plans to issue new boot ROMs for them. That's where the Eventide Boot ROM extension comes in. This extension, as part of our Ether Board, is always present in the computer, and is always readable. It gives the computer the new capability of reading data on the Ethernet, and so allows it to boot from this medium. Once it boots, of course, the operating system software takes over. The HP-UX and BASIC 6.x operating systems contain all the software necessary to continue using the Ether Board. The boot ROM extension allows you to do away with all local storage devices. You don't need a bunch of floppies or an expensive and power-hungry hard disk just to allow you to access the network.
OK, I understand that I can boot from the network. How do I communicate with the network?
That's an entirely separate issue, and one that's complicated by HP operating system compatibility questions. The simple answer is that, once the OS, whichever one it may be, is booted, the system reverts to operation identical to that experienced with the HP 98643A LANIC card. This means, in effect, that the two Series 300 computers capable of supporting an Ether Board and capable of running HP-UX are now fully networked. Your 320s and 332s are covered.
Unfortunately, we can't leave it at that. Although HP- UX originally was released for use with the Series 200 machines, the operating system has advanced and grown to the point where it is now not only incompatible with the Series 200 computers, but it can't even be used (as of version 7.x) with the first Series 300 model, the 310. Since the only standard operating system that works on the HP-UX clustered (Ethernet) environment is HP-UX, the Ether Board alone is not a panacea. This brings us to an excellent HP software product, SRM/UX. As the name implies, this is a blending of SRM capabilities with the UNIX operating system. By installing SRM/UX on your cluster server, it can act as an SRM server as well. By doing so, it allows all Ether Board-equipped Series 200 and 300 computers to connect to the Ethernet as if they were SRM clients. This means that when you turn on your Series 200 computer, it can boot normal workstation BASIC over the Ethernet! Furthermore, all files accessible to the cluster server are accessible to the workstation.
There are many implications of this connection. The main one is that, with our Ether Board and SRM/UX, you can combine the HP-UX clustered network with an SRM network on the same physical cable, using the same physical mass storage and other peripherals. This capability saves so much time and so much money in so many ways that you'll be contemplating them long into this evening.
I'd prefer to do something else this evening. At least get me started with a list.
OK, here are a few:
Chances are you already have an HP-UX cluster set up on a network. If you do, you can use the same physical cabling for the added workstations. (Of course, you might have to add extensions to get to the machines, but most of the in-wall wiring is done already.) Since cabling is one of the most expensive aspects of networking, this is the first saving.
If you already have an SRM network that you want to convert to Ethernet, you'll be pleased to know that both networks use the same type of cable and terminations. You can literally splice the two into one, providing the maximum length of cable isn't exceeded by the combination.
If you don't already have an SRM. . .
If you are not using an SRM network already, you don't have to buy ANY SRM cards for the workstation or the server. While the Eventide Ether Board costs the same as the SRM card, you only need to get them for the workstations. The server (by definition) has an Ethernet connection already. Before the Ether Board solution, if you wanted to use an SRM wire, you would have to put the SRM card in the cluster server. This is impossible on the Series 400 and Series 800, on which they're not supported, and very expensive on Series 300 servers if they don't have a spare I/O slot.
If you are using an SRM. . .
On the other hand, if you are already using an SRM network, the cost of the Ether Boards will almost certainly be offset by the money saved by taking your current SRM server and converting it to a workstation. (The SRM servers sold by HP are very similar to 310s.) And, if you have an old disk such as a 7912 or 7914 on the SRM, you'll be able to eliminate it, saving thousands of kilowatt hours over the life of the disks! The Ether Board may pay for itself in this saving alone.
If you value your time and that of your users. . .
Substantial time savings are obtained in system performance and convenience. Of course, the main reason networking is done at all is to obtain the advantages of connectivity. File sharing assures that everyone has current data; updates need be done only once. We are HP users as well as hardware vendors. At Eventide, we have been slowly but surely consolidating our business, engineering, microprocessor development, and administrative systems into a networked environment. If you still have your workstations scattered around the building, each with its own disk, its own set of software updates, and its own backup routine, you will love having it all together. (A personal note here: the writer of this Q&A is also the person who had to wander around making backups. Networks are better. Trust me.)
And, as mentioned above, Ethernet is much faster than SRM. It took 39 seconds to boot BASIC 6.0 from an otherwise unloaded true SRM server over the SRM cable. Using the same workstation, it took 6 seconds to boot the slightly larger BASIC 6.1 from an HP-UX cluster server running SRM/UX software.
OK, I'm convinced. I want to set up SRM/UX network. What do I do now?
SRM/UX is a Hewlett-Packard product. It runs on the server node of an HP-UX cluster, currently a Series 300, 400, or 800 machine. While you won't have to buy any additional hardware from HP, as of this writing, SRM/UX has a list price of about $4500. This may be somewhat pricey, but there are no node licensing charges, so you can amortize the price over the number of workstations you can connect, which is, for practical purposes, unlimited.
Once you have SRM/UX running on the server, you can connect your Series 200 and other computers to the Ethernet in the same physical manner that you connect the cluster nodes. For instance, if you have a network cable running past the workstation, you cut the cable and install two male BNC connectors on the cut ends, and connect them to the BNC "T" connector that we (and HP) provide with our respective boards. The third port on the "T" connector goes either to the BNC on our Ether Board, or to the BNC on HP's MAU, which is then connected by a cable to their LANIC card. (This discussion assumes you're using the "Thin LAN" wire. For Thick LAN, the theory is the same; only the connectors have been changed to accommodate the cable.)
That's all there is to the connection. After you have told the server that the new workstation exists on the network, the cluster server transparently simulates the "real" SRM that you may have been using previously. The new workstation now has access to the HP-UX environment, including printer and plotter spooling. (There are a few differences between the two environments, primarily in the area of passwords and security.)
Can I share files without using SRM/UX?
If you have a 320, 332, or other Series 300 computer capable of running HP-UX, you need not do anything other than add the Ether Board. (If you wish to use "Rocky Mountain" BASIC, the standalone BASIC used with Series 200/300 computers, you must purchase the HP-UX version, "BASIC/UX," from Hewlett Packard.)
Users who wish to bypass SRM altogether and use the industry-standard TCP/IP protocol to share networked file, disk, and print resources on an Ethernet network should look into Pacific Softworks FUSION product. It was developed for BASIC and Pascal users who need to connect on an equal basis to HP-UX, Sun, IBM, and DEC Ultrix or VMS machines. TCP/IP utilities of FUSION also allow the workstations to remotely log on to these machines, thus becoming remote users of the UNIX systems. FUSION is especially useful in process control and instrumentation applications where data collected on a BASIC or Pascal workstation needs to be shipped downstream to a UNIX machine for analysis and processing. Pacific Softworks can be reached at Fax (805) 484-3929.
I have an old 216 computer. I understand I can use your board, but where do I plug it in?
The 216 is the smallest of the Series 200 computers. In addition to, at most, 256K of memory on its motherboard, there are only two expansion slots available, and only one of these slots can be used for an I/O card like the Ether Board. If your 216 application requires a special I/O card, there is indeed no place to plug in the Ether Board. However, most 200s are filled with memory boards to augment the minimal motherboard RAM. At the time the 216 was introduced, HP 1-Megabyte boards did not exist, and so most 216s have two 256K boards which, along with the motherboard RAM, provide just barely enough memory for BASIC in its modern form. The only solution here is an easy one: add a larger RAM card. Eventide manufactures 1-, 2-, 4-, and 8-Megabyte memory boards that will work in the 216. You can replace both 256K boards with one of ours; this will leave a slot free for the Ether Board.
(We also manufacture memory boards for most other Series 200, 300, and 400 computers. Our prices are reasonable and our delivery is great. End of commercial.)
Is there anything else I need to know? At this point, we hope you only want ordering information! The Ether Board is officially named the "WLZ-320" and you can buy them direct from us in the USA. We also have various international agents. Our HP-compatible products are usually available from stock. There is only one standard version of the Board. In addition to this Q&A sheet, we have data sheets and a price list covering our HP-compatible products, including the Ether Board. If you don't have copies, please request them.
Eventide has been in business since 1971 and has sold thousands of HP-compatible products to Fortune 500 companies and many Federal Government agencies. In addition to this product line, we manufacture the Argus series of Moving Map Displays for aircraft navigation, and broadcast and audio products including the famous Eventide Harmonizer brand special effects processor and the "7-second delay" that keeps obscenity off the air! Eventide is a privately- owned Small Business.
