EXPANDING AND NETWORKING MICROCOMPUTERS

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1 EXPANDING AND NETWORKING MICROCOMPUTERS

2 EXPANDING AND NETWORKING MICROCOMPUTERS The complete and upto date guideto over 600 boards forapple and IBM pes Dennis Longley and Michael Shain Compiled by Mick Card MACMILLAN PRESS LONDON Macmillan Reference Books

The Macmillan Press Ltd., 1985 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission.

3 The Macmillan Press Ltd., 1985 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1956(as amended). Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. First published in 1985by THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD. London and Basingstoke Associated companies in Auckland, Delhi, Dublin, Gaborone, Hamburg, Harare, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, Lagos, Manzini, Melbourne, Mexico City, Nairobi, New York, Singapore, Tokyo. British Library Cataloguing In Publication Data Longley, Dennis Expanding & networking microcomputers. 1. Computer networks 2. Microcomputers I. Title II. Shain, Michael '404 TK105.5 ISBN ISBN (ebook) DOI / shall The paperback edition of this book is sold subject to the condition that it not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise cover circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or eluding other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition inc this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser IMPORTANT NOTE in this Whilst every care has been taken in compiling the information contained 'orsor Handbook, the Publishers and Editors accept no responsibility for any err omissions. CORRESPONDENCE Letters on editorial matters should be addressed to: Dennis Longley and Michael Shain Expanding and Networking Microcomputers 4 Little Essex Street London WC2R 3LF Enquiries about despatch, invoicing or commercial matters should be addressed to: Customer Services Department The Macmillan Press Ltd. Houndmills, Basingstoke Hampshire RG21 2XS For information about placing advertising in this publication contact: Magazine Co-Partnership 100 Fleet Street London' EC4B 4AA (01)

4 CONTENTS Introduction vii How to use the Directory ix 1. HOW TO EXPAND YOUR IBM PC 1 2. IBM PC COMMUNICATIONS 5 3. IBM PC GRAPHICS IBM PC INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS IBM PC LANGUAGES AND OPERATING SYSTEMS IBM PC MEMORY EXPANSION IBM PC MULTIFUNCTION BOARDS IBM PC NETWORKING IBM PC PERIPHERALS IBM PC SCIENTIFIC APPLICATIONS IBM PC TERMINAL EMULATION IBM PC VOICE AND SOUND IBM PC SPECIAL PURPOSE HOW TO EXPAND YOUR APPLE II COMPUTER APPLE II 80-COLUMN BOARDS APPLE II COMMUNICATIONS APPLE II GRAPHICS APPLE II INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS APPLE II LANGUAGES AND OPERATING SYSTEMS APPLE II MEMORY EXPANSION APPLE II MULTIFUNCTION APPLE II NETWORKING APPLE II PERIPHERALS APPLE II SCIENTIFIC APPLICATIONS APPLE SPEED ENHANCEMENT APPLE VOICE AND SOUND APPLE SPECIAL PURPOSE HOW TO BUILD AN IBM XT LOOKALIKE THE RS232C SERIAL INTERFACE PERSONAL COMPUTER NETWORKING 221 APPENDIXES 1 UNDERSTANDING MICROCOMPUTER BUSES IBM's TOKEN PASSING RING AND THE PC NETWORK PERSONAL COMPUTERS IN TEST AND MEASUREMENT ELECTRONIC PROTOTYPING APPLE II COMPATIBILITY IBM PC COMPATIBILITY IBM/APPLE COMMUNICATION LOCAL AREA NETWORK STANDARDS GLOSSARY OF TERMS MANUFACTURERS' PRODUCTS MANUFACTURERS' ADDRESSES 12 SHORT BOARDS FOR THE IBM 291 PORTABLE PERSONAL COMPUTER (PPC) AND THE XT 305 INDEX 306 v

5 WANTED. Br itish made portable bu s. micro, incl. Fin. Plan, Exec. De sk Top, W.p. & filing software. Mu st have BT aprvd. on-board modem and auto-dial for direct connect to Prestel, Micronet 800, and other Viewdata systems. Bu ilt-in screen, RS232 and printer interfaces, twin di sk drive s and 64K bytes of memory req'd. Should be no or Distributed by: Wren Computers Limited Carry the companyinyourhand not on yourshoulders The Wren IS designed by teansarn Computers Llmlled Perlecl Software IS a trademark of Pe rtect Software Inc M,cronel 800 IS the trading style 01Te1em.ap Limited and Bnl lsh Telecom Executive DesktopIS the coovnqnt 01Ouan rec Systems and Software Llm, led Preslei ISthe tradema rk of B' lllsh Telecom.All pnces exclude VAT I send it to: Pony Microsystems Limited I For full details of the Wren Executive System complete tru s coupon and --, I Tel (06286) Tel Telex FCROFT G I 11 FrancisWay Cippenham Slough SL1 5PJ or 61HartflE!td Avenue Elstree Herts WOO 3JJ Name Company _ I Telephone _ Address _ L --.J

INTRODUCTION The major themes of this book are expansion and networking, This is a practical guide and has been written to cover all aspects of microcomputer enhancement, from identifying the area of

6 INTRODUCTION The major themes of this book are expansion and networking, This is a practical guide and has been written to cover all aspects of microcomputer enhancement, from identifying the area of relevant application through to board selection and operation. The basic principles underlying the ways in which boards are used are also fully explained. This book is about add-in boards (often referred to as cards) for the Apple II and IBM Personal Computers. It contains detailed descriptions of more than 600 board level products made for these computers by over two hundred independent third party manufacturers. In a dynamic growth sector like the add-in market it is inevitable that there will be some omissions and inaccuracies. However, great care has been taken in the compilation. Each manufacturer received a copy of their entry for checking and, in the few instances where there was no response, companies were phoned for latest product information and prices. Why add-in? Boards are used to enhance a personal computer to make it perform in new and better ways. Boards also enable one to get more cost effective performance out of a microcomputer. In this respect they can be considered as productivity tools used to enhance overall software performance, whether by increasing memory, improving graphics and text or speeding up overall processing. Almost every aspect of personal computer use involves an add-in board. Advances in spreadsheet software, for example, require more internal memory (RAM) and high resolution colour graphics for displaying financial information. Adding a new printer, disk drive or connection to a network involves using an add-in board for the appropriate interfacing or expansion. By using an appropriate add-in board for your Apple II or IBM PC you can customize your microcomputer to suit your own specific needs. As your computing requirements develop in line with new software packages or business expansion, choosing the right board becomes an important issue. This book will help you identify the relevant application areas, such as graphics, memory, speed enhancement or networking. It will also help you to choose the board most appropriate to your needs from the comprehensive listing of manufacturer's products. An expansion board will fit into one of five slots in the IBM PC or seven in the Apple lie. These slots are a precious commodity and they need to be filled prudently. If choosing the right software is one half of the battle in computing, selecting the right boards and peripherals is the other half. The Add-in Market When Apple Computers Inc launched the original Apple II back in 1977 they established an important precedent. The Apple II became known as an open system because it was easy to add in extra electronic circuitry to make it perform in more powerful ways. These add-in products were called boards, or cards, and very quickly a number of independent manufacturers started producing boards which would enhance the Apple in such areas as display, memory and sound, overcoming the performance limitations of the original machine. The IBM Personal Computer was introduced in the United States in August 1981 and to Europe in January 1983, and although it is based on a later generation of microprocessor components, its packaging was similar to Apple. The IBM was designed for cassette tape use as well as disk, the display monitor was sold separately and the system came with 64 Kb of RAM, the minimum required on the PC, the maximum available for the Apple. Also, like the Apple it was an open system. IBM, learning from Apple's success, encouraged other firms to make expansion boards by releasing detailed hardware and software specifications for the PC. IBM became the overnight industry standard. In retrospect it is now possible to see the IBM family of PC's as a well planned, integrated product line spanning consumer, small business and corporate computing. However, it has maintained its position as the dominant market leader, partly by encouraging third parties to make add-in enhancements. If no one else made things to fit in the PC, it has been argued, IBM might just be another major company producing microcomputers. By the end of 1984 it is estimated that there will be around one million each IBM and Apple II personal computers and in 1983 more Apple II computers were sold than in any previous year. How is it then that the Apple II still sells so well and that the IBM PC, in spite of the fact that it does not use the latest technology, is so dominant? There is, of course, no single answer, but the fact that both machines can be dramatically enhanced by adding the right board gives them a technological independence and a flexibility they would otherwise not have. A single board for the IBM PC, such as Quadram's Quadboard, comes complete with parallel and serial communication ports, clock and up to one-quarter Mb of memory. A few years ago this amount of memory and functionability would have been inconceivable. Similarly, boards are available for the Apple which increase its throughput several times over through the use of more powerful CPU chips, making the Apple II more powerful than some 16 bit microcomputers. The add-in after market enhancement sale is attractive for both manufacturers and dealers. Any add-on peripheral, such as a printer or screen, requires an add-in board to interface with the Apple or IBM PC. Research shows that within the first year of purchase of a personal computer, 50% of customers return for add-ins, spending over 25% of the original system purchase price. The add-in peripheral and board after-sale market is expected to grow at a somewhat faster rate than the basic microcomputer hardware market. The anticipated dollar volume for the hardware accessories market could increase from $800 million in 1981 to over $4 billion in vii

7 * Computers * Peripherals * Software * Consumables * Consultancy!!!!i!i! AXI~ for MICRO to MAINFRAME COMMUNICATIONS: * Apple and IBM PC Terminal Emulation boards * Modems * Protocol convertors AX I~ SPECIALISE in VERTICAL MARKET SOFTWARE: * Accountancy * Insurance * Fleet Management * Printing & Publishing * Medical * Construction * Retailing * Agriculture for PLOTTERS, DOT MATRIX, DAISYWHEEL and LINE PRINTERS from 220 i!iii!i... :~:~:~:... :.:.:.:....:.:.: i!i!i!i ~~I~ :-:.:. ~~~~~~~... 1~~f... m~m I~~~ :~:~:~: ~~!Iiii ~:~

8 HOWTO USETHE DIRECTORY The directory is essentially in two main sections, one dealing with the IBM PC and XT, the other covering the Apple II. Each section is subdivided i.tlto application areas such as graphics, multifunction, networking etc. and is accompanied by an overview to help the reader appreciate the benefits involved. The underlying principles of each mode of operation is established and even though add-ins are constantly changing, the reader will be able to assess the relative merits of one manufacturer's products against another's. The main index at the end of the book lists the entire contents in alphabetical order, including product brand names and manufacturers. It is supplemented by Appendix 10 which lists the add-in boards produced by each manufacturer, and Appendix II which gives the address, telephone number and overseas distributors, where relevant, of each manufacturer. The first time IBM PC buyer will need to consider the option of using a multifunction board and he should consult this section first. It is interesting to note that over 60 percent of the IBM PCs sold in the USA go out with a multifunction board. The more mature user may sooner or later be concerned to link his microcomputers together to gain access to a common database. This aspect is covered in Chapter 11, Terminal Emulation, which looks at mainframe/microcomputer connectivity. The linking of microcomputers is fully explored in Chapter 30, Personal Computer Networking, which examines the implications of using the microcomputer as a workstation on a Local Area Network (LAN). Whilst the Local Area Network may be the province of the larger organization, most users will be involved in connecting one or more serial devices such as a printer or modem to a microcomputer. This is covered in Chapter 29 on The RS232C Serial Interface, and has a trouble shooting section to overcome the problem of what to do when it's plugged in, switched on and won't work. Both the Apple II and IBM PC are used extensively in scientific and industrial applications. These areas do not normally concern the business user and the relevant chapters can be safely omitted. They follow the same format as the rest of the book, and the board survey here is extensive and is supported by technical appendices. The laboratory worker, engineer and scientist will find these sections of direct interest. Finally, the appendices contain useful information on microcomputer compatibility, file transfers and bus standards. Chapter 28, How to Build an IBM XT Lookalike, will appeal to the enthusiast who wants to be a PC owner but cannot yet afford it. ix

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