HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: jimv@hienergy.Eng.Sun.COM (Jim Vienneau  - Sun Microsystems)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: Dallas Fax Financial Problems?
Date: 22 Jul 1992 14:55:34 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mt. View, Ca.
NNTP-Posting-Host: hienergy.east.sun.com

In article <1992Jul18.000713.104@ccsvax.sfasu.edu> z_kupkams@ccsvax.sfasu.edu writes:
>Is Dallas Fax having financial difficulties? I noticed that they do not have an
>add in the August Computer Shopper.  Hmmmmmmmmmmm??? I wonder If it is because
>they had to pay back a lot of refund money? or Did Shopper Ban Them for False
>Advertising? I called to ask for a refund, they gave me an RMA number, said
>send the modem in, and my money would be refunded. Well I asked how long would
>it take, they said it would take 4 - 6 weeks, But I need a modem, and can't
>wait 4-6 weeks for a refund! But I wonder If I was wise to hold the modem,
>until I can Drive to Dallas! Since The Usual 2-4 page adds are not present,
>somthing is rotten in dallas!
>
>Anyone have any info?
>
>Michael Kupka


I had to have American Express chase them for my refund. Amex gave me credit
for it, but I think they are still chasing Dallas Fax for it. I was glad
I saved the UPS receipt! From my dealings with Dallas Fax, my feeling is
they are a garage shop that contracted with some board stuffing house to
build them were not prepared for the volume of orders they received. Their 
modem had/has problems, their BBS stinks, and their tech support is minimal. I 
would not be surprised to see them chapter 11 in the near future, then what's 
that lifetime warranty worth?


--
Jim Vienneau, Sun Microsystems Inc - Billerica, MA
Email: jvienneau@east.sun.com   Amateur Radio: WB1B
Good old Ma Bell (well old anyway): (508)671-0372
From: jimv@hienergy.Eng.Sun.COM (Jim Vienneau  - Sun Microsystems)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: NEED ADVICE FOR FAXMODEMS, PLEASE...
Date: 31 Jul 1992 18:46:13 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mt. View, Ca.
NNTP-Posting-Host: hienergy.east.sun.com

>nazim@cwis.unomaha.edu (The Unknown) writes:
>
>> I may buy a Boca 14.4k or a Zoom V32bis, feel free to write me your
>> ezperience with those and similar modems.
>

I just bought the Boca 14.4 from J&R Music World for $229.00. After the
bad experience I had with the Dallas Fax I owned for a couple weeks, the
Boca was a pleasant surprise. It worked right out of the box, connected
to everything I tried, got good CPS on downloads (~1650), the manual
is pretty well written and complete, the included software (Quicklink II)
installed with no problems, the fax seems to work fine, and Qmodem
talks to it just fine with the init string supplied. For the money
I think it's tough to beat. J&R's number is 800-221-8180 (no connection,
just a satisfied customer). Your mileage may vary, but it works for me.


--
Jim Vienneau, Sun Microsystems Inc - Billerica, MA
Email: jvienneau@east.sun.com   Amateur Radio: WB1B
Good old Ma Bell (well old anyway): (508)671-0372
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Worldblazer stuck off hook
From: hoyt@isus.UUCP (Hoyt A. Stearns jr.)
Date: 25 Jul 92 04:16:16 GMT
Followup-To: isus!hoyt@tnet.com
Organization: International Society of Unified Science
Keywords: Worldblazer, modem, lockup
Summary: WB gets into deadlocked states

If you have had these problems, please reply:

My worldblazer (which replaced a T2500 and T3000, which had no problems)
gets into locked up states of various kinds. These appear to be 
firmware "race conditions" (illegal states) due to simultaneous events
such as loss of carrier at the same time as DTR drops, or other such
ambiguous conditions.

Some symptoms at various times are:

 Modem staying off hook with carrier detect lite off until
a character is sent from the DTE.  The Call time out register is set to
12 minutes, but doesn't disconnect the modem.

 Answering, but supplying no carrier.

 Modem anwering with a pulsing carrier similar to a busy signal, but of
a different spectrum (sounds like a firmware crash).  This is corrected only
by powering off.

  Only 3 of 7 dialing digits get sent.

  Lowering, then raising DTR doesn't always reload the saved parameters even though
the appropriate register is set to do so. (but the DTR lite does blink.)

 Lockups in other wierd states.

Although it could be a hardware problem, I don't think so because sometimes
it responds to the T/D switch, and clears.

There is no use having Telebit test it, as it works perfectly most of the
time.
-- 
Hoyt A. Stearns jr.|hoyt@          | International Society of Unified Science|
4131 E. Cannon Dr. |isus.tnet.com  | Advancing Dewey B. Larson's Reciprocal  |
Phoenix, AZ. 85028 |ncar!enuucp!   | System- a unified physical theory.      |
voice_602_996_1717 telesys!isus!hoyt The Universe in two postulates!_________|
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: jim@n5ial.chi.il.us (Jim Graham)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Help on upgrade to 16550A UART
Date: 21 Jul 92 18:21:04 GMT
Organization: Me? Organized? Hah! :-)

In article <2m=m4ld.wolfgang@netcom.com> wolfgang@netcom.com writes:

> I have both chips NS16450, NS8250 but assumed they are the same. 

from what I read in the data sheets, that can probably be said for the
8250A vs the 16450, but not for the plain old 8250.  of course, good
luck getting UART identifying software to know the difference....from
the programs I've seen, a visual of the chip is the only truly reliable
way to know what you've got.

see my previous post for more details, but there also seems to be a
very substantial difference between the clones and the real chips from
National Semiconductor (is this *REALLY* news to anyone?.....), so it
is quite possible that every person in this discussion could be
right, wrong, and somewhere in between, depending on which vendor's
chip each person is using.

type at y'all later.
   --jim

--
Standard disclaimer....Ever since my cat learned to type, there's no telling
whose thoughts these really are....         73 DE N5IAL (/9)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INTERNET:  jim@n5ial.chi.il.us  |  grahj@gagme.chi.il.us  |  j.graham@ieee.org
UUCP:  gagme!n5ial!jim@clout.chi.il.us
AMATEUR RADIO: n5ial@n9hsi (Chicago.IL.US.Earth)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: keith@ksmith.uucp (Keith Smith)
Subject: Re: Internal vs External modem peerformance
Organization: Keith's Computer, Hope Mills, NC
Distribution: comp.dcom.modems
Date: Fri, 24 Jul 92 02:09:36 GMT

In article <+9dm#ah.harlan@netcom.com> harlan@netcom.com (Harlan Lau) writes:
>Is there any performance advantage for internal modems over
>external versions of the same modem?

Not Really, unless you have slow UARTS on your serial board.

>Aren't external modems in some cases limited by the speed/type
>of the  uart on the serial line, which might not allow them utilize
>their full potential.

Yes.

>I used Microsoft`s MSD utility to establish that my Gateway PC has
>8250 uart's on it's serial ports. Rather than upgrading to the 16550
>uart's it seems easier to get the internal version of the modem.
>No lights but no external power supply and case either.
>
>Is there any reason to get an external modem other than being able
>to see the lights and being able to share the modem with other
>PCs?

Yep,  the BIGGIE that comes to mind is this.

Electrical Storms.  Generally Come in over the phones.  The EXTERNAL
modem is just another layer in front of your precious computer, and
data.

I've replaced MANY lightning damaged systems.  9 times out of 10 the
death came thru the phone line.  The Only box I ever saved had a cheapie
2400 external.  The rest had internal's.  One with an internal got fried
when it wasn't even turned on.

Configuration hassles.  It's a lot easier to move a cable than open up
your box take out a screw, unseat the card, reset the dip switches, put
it back ...

Even just pulling the card, or the ability to share more than one type
of modem on an AB box, or, or, ...

If it don't work ....  It's a lot easier to return ...

Then there's the lights, speaker, POWER SWITCH (You KNOW the modem is
reset, without powering down the computer!), etc.  I have had modem jams
that required a power cycle.  Easy on an external.  Requires power cycle
on the CPU with an internal.  You know, the "Did you turn it on an off
again?" syndrome.

If you are running dos at home, the internal is probably EASIER,
provided you aren't like me constantly changing things around, and you
pull the cord when your not using it.  If you like to fiddle or are
running any Multitasking stuff that MUST BE UP.  Get an external. 
Easier to replace with the system running.
-- 
Keith Smith          uunet!ksmith!keith            5719 Archer Rd.
Digital Designs      BBS 1-919-423-4216            Hope Mills, NC 28348-2201
Somewhere in the Styx of North Carolina ...
From: leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com (Leonard Erickson)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: Boom! You're Dead.
Date: 24 Jul 92 13:32:31 GMT
Article-I.D.: qiclab.1992Jul24.133231.17199
Reply-To: 70465.203@compuserve.com
Organization: SCN Research/Qic Laboratories of Tigard, Oregon.

les@chinet.chi.il.us (Leslie Mikesell) writes:

>Yes, maybe back in 1980 someone actually had a reason to put the
>modem in command mode in the middle of a connection.  Maybe they
>were using software that didn't offer the ability to drop DTR.

As I've said elsewhere, *I* need dropping DTR to drop the *connection*
as well as go into command mode. So it is unsuitable.

-- 
Leonard Erickson		      leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com
CIS: [70465,203]			 70465.203@compuserve.com
FIDO:   1:105/56	 Leonard.Erickson@f56.n105.z1.fidonet.org
(The CIS address is checked daily. The others infrequently)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: au141@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Amber M. Spillers)
Subject: Re: PRACT PERIPH 14400FXSA
Reply-To: au141@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Amber M. Spillers)
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA)
Date: Thu, 30 Jul 92 20:02:13 GMT


In a previous article, kevin.fong@uttsbbs.uucp (Kevin Fong) says:

>-> Again, PPI is now aware of the RTS/CTS test bug; Eugene duplicated it
>-> on his machine.
>
>I should hope so!  Their _own_ BBS suffered the same problem as everyone
>else!

  yesterday I recieved my PP14400FXSA modem, I had it setup and I
connected at 14400 within 10 minutes.  I like many people who read this
group am not a high speed virgin, I have used a lot of different models
so the basic stuff is already out of the way.

  what i want to know is how do I duplicate this "bug" in rom on my BBS
I have had it up and running for 12 hours   and all the while people
have been able to make V.42bis and MNP/5 connections.  I have the 1.12C
rom revision.  it is supposed to show its defeciency in this time right?

(BTW I have not powered down the modem or the computer in this time)

  what I did experience was a "lockup" while using qmodem calling a
V.32bis supra.  errorcorrection and data compression was active and line
quality was high.  but all of a sudden it woul not accept keyboard input
in anyway. (the keys were either not getting to the modem ot it was not
listening because the RX light was never illuminated).  hardware flow
control was active.  to solve the problem i could either powerdown the
modem and call back or I caoul reset the machine (and leave dtr high)
and reconnect after warm boot.   I never experienced this with the USR
DS, but i was using a 16550ANF when I was using the dS.  

any ideas?

BTW the 16550ANF for the new modem has been ordered.


>
-- 
"Stay Sane Inside Insanity" -- The Rocky Horror Picture Show
sysop of the Rocky Horror Picture Show BBS 1-618-529-5999 24Hrs
USR Dual Standard ** programming support ** NON-Etherealized
From: bender@oobleck (Duke of Canterbury)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: Serial and Parallel interface ??????
Date: 29 Jul 92 02:35:41 GMT
Reply-To: bender@oobleck.eng.sun.com
Organization: SPARK's R US
NNTP-Posting-Host: oobleck
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL3

keith@ksmith.uucp (Keith Smith) writes:
: In article <clemon.08ju@lemsys.UUCP> clemon@lemsys.UUCP (Craig Lemon VE3XCL) writes:
: >220kbps (about where the UART clock becomes the bottleneck).  FORTUNATELY
: >the Amiga isn't a single-tasking computer.  For the record, floppy access
: >on the Amiga is DMA and a custom chip handles all DMA transfers in the
: >background without using any processor time.  Maybe what we need is a DMA
: >serial port (novel idea....)
: 
: Are you attempting to imply that Your CPU can simultaneously do I/O to
: the serial port and the Floppy disk?  "For the record"  The IBM PC-XT
: Also does floppy disk DMA.  Big Deal, you still gotta snag the bus to do
: it.

Yes, because the floppy DMA controller section of one of the custom chips
grabs the bus during the portion of the 68000 cycle when the CPU is not on
the bus, so every CPU cycle is actually 1/2 on-bus (potentially) and 1/2
off-bus.

mike

--
The IQ requirement for being a phone operator may be pretty low, but the
required IQ for placing a call is just about vegetable level.  That's why
they kill sardines before canning them; if you let them swim around in the
can, it would heat up and explode.
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: gerg@netcom.com (Greg Andrews)
Subject: Re: Boom! Our lawyer are tougher thay your lawyers. You're Dead.
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 92 05:37:51 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 


andrew@cubetech.com (Andrew Loewenstern) writes:
>
>In article <BrMHC9.Ct6@wsrcc.com> wolfgang@wsrcc.com (Wolfgang S. Rupprecht) writes:
>>A well thought out modem (like the Telebits) will also allow an *out
>>of band* signal to return to command mode.  When testing I use a break
>>to return to command mode without resorting to a putrid hack like
>>*praying* that no set of system delays causes a wait just before and
>>after one transfers a "+++" string in a file.
>
>Good modem manufactureres like Telebit and USR pay Hayes, so you don't
>have to worry about it.
>

Situations like that can change.  With the overall price levels dropping,
those same companies may need to live with smaller profit margins per
modem.  Royalties for patents often are collected on a per-unit basis,
so simple economics could make a modem manufacturer decide to eliminate
the royalty payment in new products.  I.e., they would switch to the TIES
escape sequence.

The WorldBlazer uses TIES.


-- 
 .------------------------------------------------------------------.
 |  Greg Andrews   |       UUCP: {amdahl,claris}!netcom!gerg        |
 |                 |   Internet: gerg@netcom.COM                    |
 `------------------------------------------------------------------'
From: vulture@carrion.cc.ic.ac.uk (Thomas Sippel - Dau)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: Serial and Parallel interface ??????
Date: 21 Jul 92 19:40:21 GMT
Reply-To: cmaae47@cc.ic.ac.uk
Organization: Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine

In article <1992Jul20.002903.11008@raven.alaska.edu>, floyd@hayes.ims.alaska.edu (Floyd Davidson) writes:
 -- The original reason that computer modems were virtually all serial
 -- devices as opposed to parallel devices probably has to do with the
 -- fact that there were "standard" serial ports on most computers,
 -- and there still isn't a standard bi-directional parallel port on
 -- many systems.

The actual reason is that V.24 (aka EIA RS323C with only slight differences)
has actually been designed for "modems". The idea was that the telco would
give (or rather ransom) it to people, who then had a fully defined (and 
incidentally quite well designed) standard interface in which to plug all
kinds of equipment. The connection was to be a simple, pin-for-pin straight
through connected cable.

Missing from V.24 was dialling support, and a rigid set of minimum 
implementation requirements - the kind of common command and interpretation
set that made the SCSI standard so successful 20 years later.

As such V.24 has totally failed, and the telcos then went on to design their
own plug and play interface - the modular plugs, all sort of the same but
quite different.

It was only later that (micro-) computer manufacturers defined their own
"RS232 compatible" ports, which rapidly made building a serial cable a new
kind of black art. But serial ports are now electrically and mechanically
at the end of their useful life, sort of the equivalent of a start-up
crank for a car.

                                              Thomas

-- 
*** This is the operative statement, all previous statements are inoperative.
*   email: cmaae47 @ cc.ic.ac.uk (Thomas Sippel - Dau) (uk.ac.ic.cc on Janet)
*   voice: +44 715 895 111 x4937 or 4934 (day), or +44 718 239 497 (fax)
*   snail: Imperial College Center for Computing Services, Kensington SW7 2BX
From: wadswort@babss.UUCP (John H. Wadsworth)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: Best price on the Worldblazer?
Date: 22 Jul 92 19:07:16 GMT
Followup-To: comp.dcom.modems
Distribution: world
Organization: Bell Atlantic Business Systems Service Branford, Ct.
Keywords: best telebit prices
Summary: optimal computer

In article <1992Jul22.030344.29244@equalizer.fps.com> billd@fps.com (Bill Davidson) writes:
>A friend of mine is interested in purchasing 4 WorldBlazer's and would
>like to know who's got the best price.
>
Optimal Computer      optimal%babss.UUCP@cs.yale.edu
(203) 481-3289 voice    (203)481-0276 fax      {uunet,yale}!babss!optimal
From: strat@matt.ksu.ksu.edu (Steve Davis)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re: Problem with ZOOM v32bis
Date: 23 Jul 92 14:31:02 GMT
Organization: Kansas State University
NNTP-Posting-Host: matt.ksu.ksu.edu

yarvin@highlite.gotham.com writes:

>I just bought a ZOOM v32bis modem from Egghead Software, and I'm
>having some connection problems with it.  Sometimes it connects
>fine, but sometimes it

>(1connects, goes through the handshaking sequence, then refuses
>to issue a CONNECT message

There should be a page opposite the inside front cover to describe
how to solve this problem.  Basically, some high speed modems spend
so much time negotiating protocols that they miss each other going
in opposite directions and never get the correct connection.

You solve the problem with Supra, ZOOM, and similar modems by
putting in a dial prefix telling the modem not to try connecting at
the wrong speed.  For instance, if you *KNOW* the modem on the
other end is a v.32bis, you use this dial string:

AT &Q5 S37=11 N0 D

With that dial string, the modem will ONLY connect at 14,400bps,
but will still try to negotiate a v.42/v.42bis/MNP protocol with
the other side.

ZOOM and Infotel modem instruction manuals come with a sheet glued
in-between the front cover and the first page that describes these
alternate dial strings.  Most manufacturers also have a page or two
devoted to this within the book.

Stratocaster
-- 
  Steve Davis  |    Contact me at ...            | The Boarding House BBS!
               | Internet:  strat@cis.ksu.edu    | 9600 baud (v.32/v.42)
               | FidoNet:    Steve @ 1:295/3     | America: 913-827-0744
           ********** Have you hugged your Amiga today? **********
From: floyd@hayes.ims.alaska.edu (Floyd Davidson)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
Subject: Re:  Serial and Parallel interface ?????
Date: 26 Jul 92 10:14:11 GMT
Organization: no

In article <clemon.08l2@lemsys.UUCP> clemon@lemsys.UUCP (Craig Lemon VE3XCL) writes:
>In article <1992Jul18.135932.3904@qiclab.scn> leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com writes:
>
>>
>>In the old days, some leased line modems increased speed by using
>>*two* pairs of wires.
>
>        This is still done today, Telebit Netblazers can be configured this
>way.  It's referred to as 4-wire leased line.  The ZyXEL U-1496S also has
>some special 4-wire features.


I am not familiar with either the Netblazer or the U-1496S, but
4-wire leased line service is not a method to increase speed as
such.  The exact same speed can be obtained with a 2-wire leased
line (or a 2-wire dial-up for that matter, if we discount the
fact that a leased line can be conditioned and a dial up line
normally cannot).

The reason to use a 4-wire circuit to start with is to avoid the
potential degradation of line quality when the 2-wire line is
converted to a 4-wire line at the telco before it is routed
to any type of digital or analog carrier or multiplex systems.
All such systems operate as 4-wire devices, and the hybrid
to convert from a 2-wire device is not as clean as just
using a 4-wire circuit to begin with.

Floyd
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: brian@apt.bungi.com (Brian Litzinger)
Subject: Re: Boom! You're Dead.
Organization: NoOrg
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1992 22:18:41 GMT

>2. Part of the requirements for being granted a patent on an idea is
>the provision that it be non-obvious to someone working in that field.
>It's been shown that using a guard time to distinguish a control
>sequence from data -- what the Hayes patent covers, I believe -- was
>in use long before Hayes started using it.  Therefore, the patent
>never should have been granted in the first place.
>
>The debate is similar in many ways to the debate over software and
>user-interface patents.  Should Apple be able to patent the
>windows-and-menus IU?  Even though they stole it from Xerox?  And if
>they can, should Ford be able to patent the steering wheel and
>floor-mounted gearshift?  There is a very strong argument against
>IU patents here; should companies be able to patent such basic
>technology when the result would be making computers harder to use?
>-- 
>Marc Unangst                | Real men don't make backups.  Real men never

I believe the Constitution of the United States of America, which
grants the Federal Government the duty to manage patents, says
something like "to promote the progress of science".

If by granting a patent the Government is not promoting the progress
of science then the action is invalid, so I'd ignore it.

[my copy of the Constitution is in a box, cuz I'm moving at the moment]

brian@apt.bungi.com
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: andchan@newton.amath.umanitoba.ca (Andrew Chan)
Subject: Penril 1200 external modem DIP switch info. wanted
Organization: University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1992 18:42:31 GMT

As I mentioned in a previous posting, I inherited an "unknown" modem
and I now strongly suspect it is a Penril compatible type modem.
Judging from the ">" prompt it _sometimes_ gives.  I would like to know
how the DIP switches are arranged in order to properly configure it.

Any info. will be very much appreciated.

-- 
We are a rare as well as an endangered species.  Every one of us is,
in the cosmic perspective, precious.  If a human disagrees with you,
let him live.  In a hundred billion galaxies, you will not find another.
							- Carl Sagan
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems
From: dem@cs.Princeton.EDU (Doron Meyer)
Subject: PPI14400FXSA-- Mac fax software, ROM upgrades
Originator: dem@hart
Organization: Princeton University, Dept. of Computer Science
Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1992 21:22:32 GMT

Two questions about the Practical Peripherals PM14400 external w/ Fax:

1) I've heard mention of a beta version of the Mac fax software, but I've
lost the instructions on how to obtain a copy.  Could someone either
repost them or send me a copy in mail?

2) How does one get a ROM upgrade.. are they free and you just have to
bug PPI, or do they charge you? 

Thanks all..
Doron
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.modems