I was going through an old box of stuff, and I came across an anti-static bag that has a little card inside (3" wide by 5" long). There was also a cable in the bag that looks like a floppy drive connector, it is detached from the card, but can be puhsed back on. The only info I got off the card its self was "SE StNic Rev c" and under that the the letters "BD-032". I'm guessing that the SE either means "special edition" or "SE computer" But it does not fit on the slot om my SE/30 motherboard.
Printed on the main chip is "S9342AN" ©1995 and in big letters "ST-NIC"
here is a link to the pictures I took - http://www.john8520.pweb.info/files/Picutures/mystery%20card/
What do you guys think that is?
Thanks,
John
http://www.datasheetarchive.com/datasheet/pdf/9132.html
HY62256ALP-70 CMOS SRAM
General-Purpose Static
Gets a bit confusing though.
Info I get on ST-NIC referes to Networks cards.
DP83902AV gets
http://www.national.com/pf/DP/DP83902A.html
http://www.national.com/ds/DP/DP83902A.pdf
I think the first diagram has a board similar to yours with the cable connection, however it appears to have a BNC connection as well.
Will keep looking
I ran the numbers "DP83902AV" (printed on the large chip on the front of the card above the letters "ST-NIC") through Google and came up with this page:
http://www.chipdocs.com/datasheets/datasheet-pdf/National-Semiconductor/DP83902.html
Apparently it's a network card of some sort, don't know for which machine, although it looks like it's got the connector for an old Mac expansion slot (LC series, Quadras, Classics, maybe SE-30s but I'm not sure). Perhaps further Googling will yield more results. Keep us posted!
LC series and Quadras used either a COM slot ethernet card or a PDS card.
I do not think the connection would fit.
The weirdest thing about it is that there does not seem to be an ethernet port.
Could it be a tester board?
Well, I managed to find some where that it fits - My LC575 mobo. There is a nubus looking slot that it fits perfectly in. If the 575 wasn't dead and dismantled, I'd surely hook it up and see what ASP says. Now I'm just wondering where the connector on the end of that cable goes...
John
I'm going to venutre a guess that it is an ethernet card. For a Mac SE or an LC PDS. That ribbon cable probably was supposed to conect to a small card that mounted to the external slot of an SE that had an AUI, TP, or BNC connector, or two or all three. I did Google up a reference to a DaynaPort LC-StNIC, but no pics, and it was in a foreign language. I'm sure with some work you might be able to find the proper little card that the ribbon goes to. I'm feeling that it's more liekly for a Mac SE, just because of the detached connector ports and that an LC PDS card would have them as part of the card.
The Mac SE and the SE/30 use different PDS configs. So, if you have a Mac SE try that. Another Google finds that the main chip has Linux support, but I doubt Linux is gonna run on an SE yet. The guy doing the EMILE project has plans for 68000 Mac support in Linux some day...
Well, I have the mobos for two compact macs; I'm not sure which is which, but I know one is SE/30 and on is frm the SE FDHD. I did try it on one mobo though, but I dunno which one...should have looked, but it was a normal nubus slot. If any one here wants it, you can have it for the price of shipping. Probably around $5.
John
No compact Mac had a NuBus slot, only PDS which is visually similar. It'd be easy to tell the SE from the SE/30 by just the RAM slots. The SE/30 has 8 RAM SIMM slots in one row in the front middle of the board. The SE has 4 RAM SIMM slots in two sets of two with one set in each of the front corners.
ISTR that the 68000 PDS has different notches than the 68030 PDS so that they won't get plugged into the wrong system and edn up getting fried.
I might be interested in the card if we can determine that it really is for an SE, esp. if someone has the other board with the port on it, or knows the pinout.
Well, I guess I was mistaken. Both of those boards are SE/30 boards apparently - which means I'll have to do some real hunting for the SE FDHD mobo, it its necessary. Another odd thing is that I think its a nubus card. I only say that because when I was going through my mac parts to see if I have the other part of this board (i'm stil looking, BTW) and I found my IIcx mobo, the dead one. I said "What the heck, I'll see if it fits." It does fit. Which means it is nubus. IIcx's use nubus, right?
Well, It wouldn't serve much good purpose in a desktop mac(a IIcx anyways), because since its a right angle board, it either A) Covers up all of the other nubus slots or
It requires that the ROM be removed.
I'm almost 100% sure that this came out of an all in one.
John
I just realized that I do have one last nubus mac alive and kicking - the 8100/100 w/ OS 7.6! It has ASP! Well, soon as I get the time I'll put it out and see if I can fit that card in there. I'll post the results too.
John
I wouldn't stick it on a NuBUS machine until you are truely positive it's a NuBUS card. There stands a good chance of frying the card, the computer, or both!
This Google cache of http://dblache.homeip.net:9998/ says it's a 120pin EuroDIN. NuBus has 96-pin in three rows, so check a bit more to be sure. Here is a drawing and info of an SE PDS card.
Ok, I wont pop it in the 8100 just yet, but a quick count (yes I counted the pins :P) shows that is is a nubus card, or at least a card with three rows of 32 pins. I doubt its an SE PDS card, because it is right angled, and most likely wouldn't fit into an SE. I could be wrong though.
*goes back to searching the bin for the other part of the card*
John
In doing the bit of research about the slots, I find that the LC PDS is the same 96 pin EuroDIN as NuBus, however the notches are different. NuBus has two notches on one long side of the connector, while LC PDS has one. So, in NuBus there would be two notched corners on the right of the connector, while on LC PDS there is one near the back of the machine on the right, and the front side on the right is a squared corner.
It's a 96-pin EuroDIN LC-slot card. Do not put it into a nubus slot, you will destroy something for sure.
dan k
Ok I won't put it in a nubus slot, but it does have 2 notches cut in the connector, just like nubus stiff. So it is for LCs? I wonder where I got it. How odd.
John
Generally, ignore the notches as both nubus and the original LC-slot share the same notch arrangement. The later LC-III style connector with the extra back part doesn't have a key in that space between the front and back parts, though the shape allows keyed older LC cards to work in LC-III connectors.
Your mystery card is intended for an LC slot. It's missing the external connector board but as y'all have surmised it's most definitely an ethernet NIC.
dan k
So, its for one of those pizza box macs? And for just them? I've never owned, dismantled, or messed around with one. Who knows how I got this thing. Oh, BTW, I didn't find that other card in my mac parts bin.
John
include the original LC serie, plus the Q630 and its decendants, plus the all-in-ones CC/520/550/575/580 models, as well as the later 5200/5300 models. Hmm, did the 5400/5500/6400/6500 Macs have a LC-III slot too? I'm too lazy to trot down the basement to check.
I'm sure I forget some.
dan k
Well, I did have a 575, But I dont remember It having any sort of card, it was just stock config iirc. I also did have an LC280 and a PM5260, but since those were in the last two years, I doubt this is from them, justging by where I found i.t
John
The 5360 and up had PCI with a CSII slot as well. The earlier ones that still had the PDS also has a CS (original) slot. I'm fairly sure the LC-III PDS died out with the last of the 580/630/6300 machines.
I would vote for it being an SE Ethernet Card. The SE has a 16-bit PDS slot which is shorter than the 32-bit PDS slot found on the SE/30 and IIsi (these two are electrically identical).
On a side note, The 32-bit PDS slot is identical in form with the IIci
cache slot BUT ARE NOT ELECTRICALLY IDENTICAL. Plugging a 32-bit PDS card into a IIci slot will destroy the motherboard and vice-versa.
Anyway, back to the SE PDS slot. Early SE 16-bit PDS cards had the connector at right angles to the board just like LC PDS Cards, since the metal frame of early SEs didn't have a slot to fit a vertical card.
The connector goes to the external connector board which has either a 10-base-2, AUI, or 10-Base-T connector, depending on variant. The connector board mounts in the covered expansion slot port at the back of the SE and is attached by the ribbon cable. You appear to be missing this part. It may still be attached to the case of the SE it was pulled from.