[NTLK] Newton Desktop (Was:SA-1100/Voyager: Only 2 PC Card ports...)

From: Goodwin, Greg (GoodwinG_at_aafes.com)
Date: Fri Mar 19 2004 - 08:07:43 PST


>Salvatore Denaro wrote:
> > Any idea if this new Newton will support the new Amiga OS?

   LOL! Amiga OS! I would go for that, Linux, and Atari's ST's GEM or Magic systems. :)

   I would just like the excuse to be able to take my Newton to Linux and Amiga meetings.

From: Victor Rehorst <victor_at_newtontalk.net>

>Actually most of the "stuff"
>from the Voyager chipset was integrated into the SA-1100 chip. See the
>datasheet:
>
>http://netwinder.oregonstate.edu/pub/netwinder/docs/intel/datashts/27808706.pdf

   Thanks for the tip!

>From: DJ Vollkasko <DJ_Vollkasko_at_gmx.net>

>Very interesting! So most of the Voyager chipset features *would* be
>available and even highly integrated - some things only in downgraded
>version, though. Voyager offered 4 cascadeable PCMCIA 2.01 ports, SA-1100
>only two. Sad.

>One question that really irks me: How are the PCMCIA ports of the Voyager
>chipset "cascadeable" - what does it mean? Are they all there or not? Could
>another two PC Card-adapters be readily run off the Newton, or is something
>else needed besides the sockets?

>Imagine two additional internal PC Card slots...

>DJV.

   Ahhh now this is the question I am currently asking.

   I would like to setup a Newton as a desktop. I've done it before, but last time I run into this problem...

   Newton 2000
   EZ2TV VGA adaptor
   56K modem
   Keyboard - Newton keyboard (Or serial input=Atari 800, or connection utility Macintosh keyboard.)
   Audio/Out adaptor for sound

   The problem I run into is we now have a fairly good computer... VGA display, sound, and you can do everything your heart desires ... with 4 meg internal storage! :)

   And that's the kicker I'm running into. Sure the Newton can run a lot of things off it's 4 meg internal storage. Here in the near future, I am thinking of making up for this by have a ethernet card rather than a modem, and having a Mac on the appletalk network to receive files from when I want them and for keyboard support.

   But this is a mess!

   I could forgo the ethernet card, connect to a external 56K modem, and have a MEMORY CARD (that's the big kicker... how to have a desktop setup like the one above with more than the internal 4 meg of ram). And then I could always forgo the in/out for the other serial port (have the SER-001) and use that for some kind of keyboard connect. Only problem is, that is when you learn that the two serial ports cannot work at the same time. Arrgg...

   I think at this point, this is where I was looking for a E-mate as a desktop computer. At least that has a built in keyboard.

    Any thoughts or suggestions?

    Thanks!

   Doctor Clu
@}<-- >------------------------

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