early networking (was Re: G4 cube (was Re: 68K Macs with MacOS 7.5 still in production use...))

[js at cimmeri.com]

On 9/14/2016 11:04 AM, william degnan 
wrote:
> On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 11:56 AM, js at cimmeri.com<js at cimmeri.com>  wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> I too started in 1988, doing the same kind of work (mid-Atlantic region,
>> USA), same number and types of places.  Just to compare:
>>
>> * Banyan VINES    (never saw)
>> * Corvus          (saw once)
>> * ARCnet          (saw many times)
>> * LittleBigLAN    (never heard of or saw)
>> * The $25 Network (never heard of or saw)
>> * NFS             (there were SUNs at the-then NBS (Bureau of Standards)
>>                    (but I rarely encountered UNIX anywhere)
>>
>> * 3Com 3+Share    (saw only one place -- at NASA Goddard)
>> * Sage MainLAN    (never heard of)
>> * Personl Netware (never saw)
>> * Netware Lite    (never saw)
>> * DEC Pathworks   (saw only two places -- NASA G and NBS)
>>
>> Most frequently worked with:
>> * Netware 3.x&   4.x
>> * Lantastic
>> * Windows / Microsoft
>>
>> - J.
>>
>>
>>
> Also a mid-Atlantic alumni...
> I started the networking portion of my career in 1987, working at IBM.
> Part of my job was to set up Token Ring Network for sales demos (college
> intern).   Also Hypercard related networking was big in the late 80's.  Dd
> a lot of TCP/IP networking starting in 1992 or so.
> Bill

Cool.  I was a big fan of running 
Netware over Token Ring.   But remember 
eventually
just getting crushed by cheap and easier 
to install ethernet.   One of my main 
clients at
the time was on 4mb Token, and we were 
asked for a proposal to speed it up.
16mb Token Ring had just come out, and 
the per-card cost was very high.   Another
vendor proposed with 10mbit ethernet and 
stole the client... despite them having to
ditch the expensive, genuine IBM 4mb 
Token setup (whose wiring could have still
been used for 16mb) and rewire the 
place.   Still bugs me to this day, which is
probably why I'm writing about it now.  :-)

- J.