Date   : Fri, 10 Aug 2007 09:21:16 +0100
From   : julesrichardsonuk@... (Jules Richardson)
Subject: Emulating Econet hardware?

Jonathan Graham Harston wrote:
>> Message-ID: <46B7950E.4090406@...>
>  
> Jules Richardson <julesrichardsonuk@...> wrote:
>> I didn't realise that SJ did one. But then other than the MDFS and the BEN,
>> I've not really come across much of their stuff.
>  
> According to the list of MachinePeek values, they at least
> designed eight devices:
>  
>         &FFF8   SJ GP Server
>         &FFF9   SJ 80386 unix

Interesting; is that "SJ Unix" (i.e. software), or Econet hardware for some 
'386 Unix platform (in which case I wonder what?)

>         &FFFD   Research Machines 480Z

You know, I've never heard of an Econet interface for the 480Z - does anyone 
have any more details, or know if it actually happened? I think the 480Z's 
internal network sockets are pretty much tied to taking RML's board for their 
co-ax network, so I assume the SJ affair plugged in somewhere else (options 
port, or maybe even hanging off a serial link).


  >> I believe that's what Acorn did to add Econet support to their VAX
> fileserver
>> back in the day; it was simply a beeb with an Econet interface, hung off one
>  
> http://mdfs.net/Docs/Comp/Econet/RISCiX.txt obliquely refers to
> that VAX-Beeb-Econet combo.

Can't get much more oblique than a broken link ;) One ex-Acorn chap I talked 
to a couple of years ago remembered there being a bit of jiggery-pokery 
between the VAX and the beeb though - possibly just something to get the 
handshaking working, or maybe signal level conversion.

What I've never found out is how serious the project was (i.e. was it a core 
part of their networking - or just someone's lunchtime project to see if it 
could be done?). If the former, I wonder if it ever got replaced with anything 
better (such as parallel I/O between beeb and VAX) - or whether Acorn just 
moved over to using their own-brand fileservers anyway...

cheers

J.