Neolithic Networking Updated?

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

During his short tenure here, BMOW posted the I love LocalTalk thread, but I never chimed in with its most elegant feature from my perspective:

The transceiver dongles operated on the, almost universally unused, second line pair in the existing POTS installation of every home and business. So if the TelCo block at point of entry was not connected to Ma Bell, the second tip and ring wires scattered about the house were ripe for installation of a splitter/telephone patch cord to a PhoneNet/Appletalk transceiver in almost every room of the house.

I just moved a piece of furniture and spotted the unused Cable TV jack in the living room. I've got an EtherNet Hub with the same ThinNet Co-Ax connector I used to uplink to the NYNEX DSL MoDem back in the day.

Question: since I've already got a pre-wired CoAx installation, will 10base2/ThinNet over Cable TV function as the EtherNet equivalent of the PhoneNet hack?

< jumps up to start digging for gold in the big cardboard box of networking goodness >

 

[markyb86]

I don't see why not? Thicknet used to be the standard!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/10BASE5

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethernet_over_coax

Some compatible cards even carry the connector onboard so no hack required. However would need a hub of some sort that was equipped with BNC connectors.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Apple-Macintosh-Asante-MacCon-i-NB-10T-10Base-T-Thicknet-NuBus-Working-/250998814144

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Ya! I've got the D-Link DE-809TC for one end, that leaves 7 ports for the main machines on the desk and five on the BigAPPLEshelfUnit.

In the Dining Area MacHackLab I'm figuting on using the Futura II SX VidCard/ThinNet DaughterCard in a NuBus/EtherNet/AppleTalk Mac for a bridge(?) to AppleTalk and the Wireless Router.

I've got an Asante LocalTalk Bridge and a pile of other crap to sort through as well, besides a couple of rackmount switches I haven't the foggiest how to set up.

OK, I'm overwhelmed already, so no networking for another week or so.

 

[markyb86]

Futura II SX

I had to look this up. That's actually a pretty nifty setup there.. A video card with pass though ethernet on top.. hmm

 

[Bunsen]

You know ... we don't have a POTS telephone in this house any more, but nearly every room has an old-skool phone outlet ... hmmm.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

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[onlyonemac]

...the BigAPPLEshelfUnit.

You mean the BigAPPLEshelf.

 

[trag]

When I tried to use the E-Machines ethernet daughter card for the Futura II SX the machine locks up during extensions loading if I try to use Open Transport. I had to switch to Classic Networking to get the machine to boot. I've only tested it in the IIci and it was with the 10baseT version of the daughter card.

Other items of interest...

Asante made a version of the MicroAsantePrint (ancestor to the AsanteFast, LocalTalk/Ethernet bridge) which came with a thinnet port as well as 10baseT (only one port active at a time).

There were also Asante thinnet AAUI transceivers. So for those Macs with AAUI, one could put them on thinnet media if one had those transceivers. I once bought a batch of transceivers expecting 10baseT and received thinnet. Asante was a peach and replaced them for me.