From: brunkhorst@mayo.edu (Geoff Brunkhorst)
Subject: Re: Is the NeXTStation Turbo vertically disadvantaged?
Reply-To: brunkhorst@mayo.edu
Organization: Mayo Foundation, Rochester MN. Campus
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 92 23:55:56 GMT

In article <12106@ns-mx.uiowa.edu> rmommer@shumun.weeg.uiowa.edu (Ric Mommer)  
writes:
> In article <9APR199221530916@mpx2.lampf.lanl.gov> silbar@mpx2.lampf.lanl.gov  
> (Dick Silbar) writes:
> > QUESTION: is there any good reason why we _shouldn't_ leave Rachel's
> > slab standing in its upright position? 
> 
> Well, keep in mind the design of the NeXTstation for cooling.  The bottom  
> mounted fan is designed to force air over the motherboard.  Make sure not to  
> restrict the airflow into the machine.  Another consideration is the hard  
> drive.  Although it runs fine in the vertical orientation, you should  
strongly  
> consider reformatting the drive and reinstalling the OS with it vertical.   
The  
> drive does operate differently sideways (albeit a minute difference) and in  
my  
> experience with other PCs (Mac and DOS) the hard drive is prone to failure.
> 
> I distinctly remember a host of technical reasons why, at its introduction,  
it  
> was not recommended to orient the station on its side.  If anyone has more  
> specifics, please post 'em.  An easier solution, and the one I would choose,  
> is to simple order the longer monitor cable that ships with the cube ($60 I  
> think) and put the station on a shelf somewhere with good ventilation.

While I feign ignorance to all previous discussions of this, here is a 
data point:  I have 2 slabs (mono 8/105 'classic' and a 16/400 turbo), both
installed vertically.  The Turbo has been in said position for 2 weeks, with
nary a problem.  The classic has been in same position for 9 months, and the
only problem has been with printing to an HPLJIII with postscript, which
is unlikely to be caused by slab orientation (horizontal/vertical as opposed
to other more provocative orientations ;-).  Oh, the 8/105 also has the
long cable... it is being used in the classic 'deskside' mode.

No disk errors have been noted, no spurious file errors, no disk related
user complaints (other than /tmp filling up on the 8/105).  I DID NOT0
reformat the drives.  I posit the gravitation effects on the heads
is not significant, because of these empirical results, and because and
good disk head design mechanically seeks and then electronically fine tunes
to the proper track.

As for ventilation, I am worried about the turbo, because a) it's also in
a cabinet (insipid requirements of our medical people about having computers in
doctor's offices) and b) the 33mhz 040 has a *_BIG_* (read: larger footprint  
than the chip) heat sink.  But in the 'floppy high' position (which would be
the optimal vertical alignment), the air intake is on the bottom (hence
cooler air), blown forcibly over the 040 chip, and then, assuming ambient 
current flow, over the disk drives the rest of the motherboard, memory,
and then the power supply, and then, due to positive air pressure, shoved
out the back. My guess it the board is cooled adequately, with the possible
exception of the memory SIMMs (their orientation may cause some problems).

In any event, a NeXT employee recommended the positioning in such a manner
(maybe to make the sale, but I doubt he would have voided a warranty for 
that.  I have seen no problems, and doubt that I will in the long term.

If I do, I will post to the network, and accept the rants and raves of my
peers (if anyone on the net dares to stoop so low ;-)

- Geoff
--
"The only thing obsoleted by Windows 3.1 is poking myself in the
eye with a pointed stick." - Gene Lee
---------------------------------------------------------------
Geoffrey Brunkhorst, RCF                    brunkhorst@Mayo.edu
Guggenheim 10                                    (507) 284-1805
Mayo Foundation, Rochester MN, 55905 USA     fax (507) 284-5231