From: skip@tacky.cs.olemiss.edu (Skip Sauls)
Subject: Re: Low End AGA Machine
Organization: University of Mississippi, Dept. of Computer Science
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1992 21:41:17 GMT

In article <1992Oct5.064723.4541@desire.wright.edu> fheitkamp@desire.wright.edu writes:
>In article <1992Oct4.172725.898@sol.cs.wmich.edu>, 22black@sol.cs.wmich.edu (Martin E. Black) writes:
>> fheitkamp@desire.wright.edu writes:
>>>	Again if having an 020 means a *substantially* lower price, it's
>					^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>>>	not a big deal.  It *does* mean more people might be able to afford
>>>	an AGA equiped Amiga.
>> 
>> And you totally lost the point i was giving.  It would not repeat would not
>> be less expensive to put a 020 instead of a 030.  Would you like to save
>> about $30 to have a crippled processor that might not handle future 
>
>	I'm not disagreeing with you ( see the word I highlighted ).

Just be sure to include a CPU slot and all the problems are solved.

>> os's or alternative os's.  Even on a hypothetical $700 model the price would
>> be about how much you would pay on sales tax.  
>> 
>> But then again i guess you could add an mmu.  But then they would have to 
>> build a socket for it, oops that goes that price difference.
>
>	Again, agreed.

If this hypothetical model had a CPU slot, why bother with a socket for the
MMU?  

>> 
>> I do plan on buying a low end aga that would include a mmu.  So if the a1200
>> doesn't have one, perhaps i might buy a unix box instead, that is used unix
>> box.
>
>	Maybe Commodore should sell the AGA machine with the processor
>	card of your choice.  They could make an 040, 030 (full), EC030
>	020.  Hopefully the cost of engineering and supporting all these
>	different cards would not jack the price up to high.

I like this idea and would love to see C= give it a try.  Even better, sell
the AGA motherboards to dealers who then add the CPU card, RAM, hard-drive,
backplane, case, etc. of your choice.  There would be a number of different
configurations available which would certainly please more people.  C= 
could also "bless" the resellers who met their standards of quality and 
allow them to put the Amiga label on their machines.

How does a GVP $10,000 ImpactStation sound (33MHz 040 with 256k cache, up 
to 64M 40ns RAM on the CPU board, onboard AT&T DSP, DMA SCSI-II on the CPU
board, your choice of .5G to 1G SCSI drives, tower case with 300W power
supply, 5 Zorro III slots, 5 AT slots (2 inline), 1 inline Video Slot,
Floptical drive, DAT drive, and EGS)?  :-)

Or, you could get the $1000 ICD A1200p (16MHz 030, "pizza box" style case,
shortened daughterboard with 2 Zorro III slots and 1 inline Video slot,
HD floppy, and 50M IDE drive).

This would allow the Amiga to benefit from the clone-type mentality 
without C= losing control over what makes the Amiga an Amiga (the OS
and the custom chips).

>	At some point they could even offer a P5 card that runs Windows.
>	( Not sure whether to pu a smiley there or not )

Blech!  Windows sucks on a fast 486 with fast SVGA card, just think of
how bad it would suck trying to run on an Amiga!  If C= does come out
with such a thing, I will be jumping ship!  :-)

>> Marty
>> 
>Fred Heitkamp,  ** Not an organization.  My opinions only **


Skip Sauls
skip@tacky.cs.olemiss.edu