1 Nov
2005
1 Nov
'05
5:58 p.m.
Tony> I have a 2 port repeater somewhere (2 female
AUI connectors to
Tony> link to 2 transceivers), and it's remarkably complciated
Tony> inside. There's a state machine type of thing with the state
Tony> table in RAM, and a Z80 + ROM to boot that. Probably about 50
Tony> chips all told.
Sounds like a DEREP, which I think is the first Ethernet repeater.
DEC box, roughly the size of the 3U routers of the time.
No, it's not a DEC product. I forget who did make it (something is saying
'BICC networks') thought. From what I rememebr, it's a 2U case, could be
rackmounted. There's one PCB flat inside, and a little SMPSU box.
State machine with lots of discrete components sounds about right.
Z80 to boot it is puzzling, what is there to boot? DEREPs were not
OK, maybe 'boot' is the wrong word. I meant to load the state machine
RAM.
manageable, you just turn them on and they would work.
-tony