SE/30 and BNC ethernet network, anyone?

[superpantoufle]

Hi all,

I recently found an Ethernet network card for my SE/30, which is pretty cool. Now, the card only has a BNC connector, which is much less cool. To tell the truth, I hadn't heard of BNC or thin coax Ethernet before acquiring this card.

For now, I connect all my Ethernet-less Macs to the network through LocalTalk and a PowerBook 1400 running Apple LocalTalk Bridge and IPNetRouter. That works well, and it is nice to be able to "surf" the web on compact Macs!

Porter, Browser6 some day?

So my goal is obviously to plug my SE/30 to my network directly. I do know all I need to know on the software side. But I am not sure about what I should do on the hardware side to make that BNC network card talk to my network.

What I do own that could be of any use is as follows:

- fully functional SE/30 with said BNC network card installed;

- vintage Ethernet hub with 4 RJ-45 and 1 BNC ports connected to my router and working OK.

- Apple branded Ethernet Thin Coax tranceiver (AAUI to BNC. Is there any way to make this thing work the other way around?!?)

- Focus branded Ethernet tranceiver (AAUI to BNC and RJ-45. Basically I think it's more or less the same than the Apple tranceiver)

- one or two AAUI to RJ-45 adapters if needed.

What I do NOT own as of yet:

- BNC cables

- BNC T connectors and terminators.

What are my options? BNC networks seem to have been marginal here in Switzerland, since I can't easily find cables. My understanding is that if I manage to find a cable, two T connectors and two terminators I would be good to go. Now, is there some alternative using what I listed? Is there for example a way to use a thin coax tranceiver backwards?

Any hel is welcome, thanks in advance!

 

[jruschme]

From what you describe, you're pretty much stuck with a small ThinNet segment to the existing hub. This means two T connectors, two terminators and a segment of cable.

I'm a bit surprised, though, that the card is BNC-only. I'd expect an Ethernet card of the era to have both BNC and a 15-pin AUI connector. (Are you sure there isn't one and you think it's a video port?) If you had the AUI connector, then you could just get a transceiver to go straight to RJ-45 and from there into the hub.

John

 

[superpantoufle]

I'm a bit surprised, though, that the card is BNC-only. I'd expect an Ethernet card of the era to have both BNC and a 15-pin AUI connector. (Are you sure there isn't one and you think it's a video port?)

Ahem. That may be more than interesting. Actually there IS another port on the card, it DOES look like a video port, and so I assumed that it WAS a video port. :I

I also own a Radius video card for the SE/30, and the ports look just the same. For now the graphic card is installed in the SE/30, and the network card laying in my boxes of cool-stuff-to-try-someday, so I haven't tried it in the Mac yet.

I just googled "ethernet AUI" and I learned a lot of things I didn't know. Like the difference between AUI and AAUI.

Wow. Well, I guess you solved the tough part of my problem and that I owe you a beer or something. Now, is there an easy way to connect one of my AAUI to RJ-45 adapter to that AUI port? It seems the wire is the same, shall I make a custom connector?

 

[Unknown_K]

http://cgi.ebay.com/AUI-Ethernet-10Base-T-RJ45-Transceiver_W0QQitemZ320483103530

get one of these

 

[Anonymous Freak]

It gets really confusing when you wander into one of the NuBus cards that actually is a video card plus network card, such as the E-Machines ColorLink series. I have one with RJ-45, BNC, and DA-15. It can easily be mistaken for a DA-15 AUI port, but it's actually standard Apple display out. Just as network-only cards with the same set of connectors could be easily confused for being a combo Ethernet/video card.

 

[H3NRY]

The difference between an AUI 15-pin transceiver and an AAUI Apple transceiver other than the connector used is Apple's AAUI port furnishes 5V power, and the AUI port furnishes 12V. If you have a hub with a thinnet port, that will be easy to connect to if you get a couple of Ts, a 50-Ohm terminator for each end, and a piece of 50-Ohm coax. Unless your card has a bunch of video RAM chips and a Brooktree DAC, don't plug a monitor into it! There were video + network combo cards, but this may not be one. If the 15-pin connector has a sliding latch, it's AUI for sure.

 

[trag]

It gets really confusing when you wander into one of the NuBus cards that actually is a video card plus network card, such as the E-Machines ColorLink series. I have one with RJ-45, BNC, and DA-15.

Does that card (Colorlink) work with Open Transport?

I ask because I have an E-Machines Futura IISX card with the Ethernet daughter board installed and it works great under Classic Networking, but if I try to load Open Transport while the daughter board is attached the machine freezes when one of the OT extensions loads.

It would be interesting if the ColorLink card does not have that problem. I wonder if the ColorLink driver would work with the Futura ethernet daughter card.

 

[superpantoufle]

http://cgi.ebay.com/AUI-Ethernet-10Base-T-RJ45-Transceiver_W0QQitemZ320483103530
get one of these

Ordered tonight.

I'll let you guys know when it arrives and if it works the way I expect it to!

Thanks all for sharing your valuable knowledge!

 

[superpantoufle]

Ok, I received the AUI to RJ-45 adapter yesterday. Tonight I put my Dayna ethernet card in my SE/30, spent some time through the web to find a working image of the Dayna drivers floppy, install it, and gues what...: it works!!!

Actually I'm posting this from my SE/30 running System 7.1 and Netscape 3. This is not the first time I surf the web on a Compact, but the first time on an ethernet connection. All I knew on Compacts was my beloved LocalTalk. So this is pretty cool!

Thanks all for your precious advices!

 

[Unknown_K]

Glad it worked out for you.