Re: 760E Docking Alternatives

[Steve Hultquist <ssh@wwsi.com>]

At 09:11 AM 4/25/96 CDT, Dane Tyson wrote:
>Because of the added features, I would still like to get the Dock II if
>that makes sense.  However, I have the uneasy feeling that the line quoted
>above is really not directed at new buyers like myself, but rather at
>current Dock II owners, reassuring them that they need not toss out their
>$700 stations if  they upgrade to a 760E.  Thus, I have a number of
>questions on which I am hoping that members of this list might have some
>useful facts and/or opinions:

I actually came to the opposite conclusion; I'll transfer my Dock II to the
person that will get my 755CX and get a SelectaDock I. However....

>1.      Will the Dock II, equipped with the above-mentioned conversion
>card, perform as well with the 760E as it does with the 760C?

Yes.

>2.      Will the Dock II with conversion card perform as well with the 760E
>as the new SelectaDock system?

No. Because it's not PCI, I suspect there will be a performance difference.

>3.      If the answer to the above 2 questions is "yes," what is the price
>of a conversion card?

The internal IBM announcement letter said $34!

>4.      Is the lack of CardBus support on the Dock II something to worry
>about?  Is it something that can be "fixed" later on?

Perhaps; next generation PC Cards may require it, as I understand. I suspect
it cannot be fixed.

>5.      Does the "Selectadock I" designation imply the future release (no
>doubt within days of the expiration of my 30-day MBG on SelectaDock I) of a
>"SelectaDock II" which incorporates the Dock II features?  If so, is there
>any way besides investing in a $300 SCSI PC card to meet my short-term need
>for a SCSI port (so as to use my Zip drive) while waiting for a more
>complete SelectaDock system to be released?

My impression is that any SelectaDock II will be an upgrade for SelectaDock
I customers (the modularity they tout, don't you know). But, I don't know
anything that you don't...

>6.      Are there other advantages/disadvantages of the SelectaDock system
>vs. Dock II that I have missed?

The key difference for me is PCI versus ISA in the stations.

>Thanks in advance for thoughts, opinions, even facts.  Of course, in
>addition to the above, I would also like to hear opinions of current Dock
>II users on their units.

...and thanks for your e-mail on PC Compleat, as well. They have a Web site,
by the way, but it's not very compleat!   :-)

Cheers,
ssh
--
Steve Hultquist                                Worldwide Solutions, Inc.
Distributed Systems and Internet Engineering           Boulder, Colorado