I have Rocketware 1.5.1 installed (you can see it loading in one of the photos in my previous post). But if there is a specific SCSI Booster set of software, I would like to learn more where it can be downloaded.
Hum, also, given the booster is on the Rocket's PDS, I'm not sure how you'd be able to boot the IIci from it? Have you tried it in RocketShare? Does it work there?
I've never used RocketShare. I've only used RocketWare because RocketWare makes the Rocket act as an accelerator. RocketShare makes it act as a second Mac, or so I've read.
When the Mac finishes the RAM checking, it loads RocketWare and then reboots. That is normal. So in light of that, I would think it should be able to boot from an attached SCSI drive. I've read that it can in brochures. I simply don't have the manual for the Booster because I purchased the clone from max1zzz.
When the Mac finishes the RAM checking, it loads RocketWare and then reboots. That is normal. So in light of that, I would think it should be able to boot from an attached SCSI drive. I've read that it can in brochures. I simply don't have the manual for the Booster because I purchased the clone from max1zzz.
Yes, RocketWare makes it behave as an accelerator, RocketShare is more like a modern Virtual Machine.
If adverts say it can boot from a disk on the booster in RocketWare mode then it must be able to, but... I'm surprised.
The Mac, by default, wouldn't know about or be able to see the drive. You say it starts booting and then resets, but... that requires it to know about a drive attached to a bus hanging off a chip on a Nubus card natively with none of the patches that are installed by the special restart. It has to know about the disk before the radius software loads...
Which would be a surprise.
I'd want to be sure that "booting" doesn't just mean in RocketShare.
That's why I hope some people who have the vintage Rocket and vintage SCSI Booster can chime in. My Rocket is vintage (ASIC model), but my Booster is Max's clone. I send OlePigeon a PM on the MLA because I know he has both. He said he would check.
As far as I have been able to find the rocket can't boot from a drive connected to the booster while using it in accelerator mode, At lease I never managed to get it working during testing
You shouldn't need any additional software installed, however have a look in the extension folder on your boot drive and see if there is a SCSI booster extension, it's possible the rocketware installer didn't install it for some reason
Another oddity I found is that the SCSI ID of a drive connected to the booster can't be the same as one connected to the mac's internal bus when the rocket is running in accelerator mode, as far as Mac OS is concerned they are the same bus. If you have two devices with the same ID on both the booster and mac's logicboard bus the one of the logicboard bus will show up and the one of the booster will not
Try booting the mac from the drive on the logicboard bus with another drive connected to the booster and see if they both show up, or try with RocketShare and see if it shows up there
I would also check your DB25 coupler and make sure it is a straight through adapter, I would expect those ones to eb but there is a chance it isn't
Another thing you can try is if you look at the booster there is a 3 pin jumper next to the footprint for the internal SCSI connector, you can try moving this to the other position. This adds a RC network to the clock line which skews the clock a little, I leave this in the disabled position by default as on my system / rockets it just makes the system hard freeze when the rocket loads however this was in the enabled position the the booster I was lent for cloning which was being used on a ASIC rocket
(I am posting this while at work so have only quickly skimmed through the original post so I may have missed of any of this has already been tried)
You shouldn't need any additional software installed, however have a look in the extension folder on your boot drive and see if there is a SCSI booster extension, it's possible the rocketware installer didn't install it for some reason
Another oddity I found is that the SCSI ID of a drive connected to the booster can't be the same as one connected to the mac's internal bus when the rocket is running in accelerator mode, as far as Mac OS is concerned they are the same bus. If you have two devices with the same ID on both the booster and mac's logicboard bus the one of the logicboard bus will show up and the one of the booster will not
Try booting the mac from the drive on the logicboard bus with another drive connected to the booster and see if they both show up, or try with RocketShare and see if it shows up there
I would also check your DB25 coupler and make sure it is a straight through adapter, I would expect those ones to eb but there is a chance it isn't
Another thing you can try is if you look at the booster there is a 3 pin jumper next to the footprint for the internal SCSI connector, you can try moving this to the other position. This adds a RC network to the clock line which skews the clock a little, I leave this in the disabled position by default as on my system / rockets it just makes the system hard freeze when the rocket loads however this was in the enabled position the the booster I was lent for cloning which was being used on a ASIC rocket
(I am posting this while at work so have only quickly skimmed through the original post so I may have missed of any of this has already been tried)
A speed test of one of those SCSI-2 Boosters would be nice.
Probably use a RAM disk on the Rocket itself, but across NuBus would be nice too.
My Rocket 33 came with a DSP Booster, but it didn't work, and would cause the Rocket to crash in RocketShare. It's since gone missing. TBH I don't think there's much value to the DSP card: AFAIK, only Photoshop can use it for certain filters.
Probably use a RAM disk on the Rocket itself, but across NuBus would be nice too.
My Rocket 33 came with a DSP Booster, but it didn't work, and would cause the Rocket to crash in RocketShare. It's since gone missing. TBH I don't think there's much value to the DSP card: AFAIK, only Photoshop can use it for certain filters.
Replies came as I was going to bed last night, and I'm at work now. Will consider use of RocketShare software later, although it will be for testing purposes only because I have no practical use case for a Mac-inside-a-Mac. I only want to use the Rocket as an accelerator. And I say that with knowledge about what RocketShare does (based on my study of it, rather than practical use).
My hope was that the SCSI Booster would boost SCSI throughput, but based on the most recent replies, it would appear those hopes may have been dashed. Quite unfortunate.
Well, at least I can say I am beta-testing the SCSI Booster. I've not seen comments from any other ASIC Rocket owner who also owns the Booster clone, so I guess I am the only one out there. (Or only one who has tested his Booster and/or cares to share knowledge.) But that's OK. I've beta-tested hardware and software for years. If the feedback I provide can make products better or otherwise inform would-be buyers, then that's mission accomplished in my eyes.
And lest anyone come along and dare to think me somehow ungrateful (which would be totally nuts for anyone to think that of me), I will add yet another word of praise for Max. I have high respect for creators of new stuff for our old Macintoshes. This isn't the first thing Max has created either. You always take a risk when making something new or even cloning something, so hats off to Max for having taken those risks and come up with some really neat stuff. Even if the Booster isn't for everyone, the fact that he cloned the Rocket is amazing in my eyes. Anyone with a compatible Mac can take advantage of the Rocket.
Max, you're awesome!
Again, more later...
My hope was that the SCSI Booster would boost SCSI throughput, but based on the most recent replies, it would appear those hopes may have been dashed. Quite unfortunate.
Well, at least I can say I am beta-testing the SCSI Booster. I've not seen comments from any other ASIC Rocket owner who also owns the Booster clone, so I guess I am the only one out there. (Or only one who has tested his Booster and/or cares to share knowledge.) But that's OK. I've beta-tested hardware and software for years. If the feedback I provide can make products better or otherwise inform would-be buyers, then that's mission accomplished in my eyes.
And lest anyone come along and dare to think me somehow ungrateful (which would be totally nuts for anyone to think that of me), I will add yet another word of praise for Max. I have high respect for creators of new stuff for our old Macintoshes. This isn't the first thing Max has created either. You always take a risk when making something new or even cloning something, so hats off to Max for having taken those risks and come up with some really neat stuff. Even if the Booster isn't for everyone, the fact that he cloned the Rocket is amazing in my eyes. Anyone with a compatible Mac can take advantage of the Rocket.
Max, you're awesome!
Again, more later...
Good news. I was able to contact Petar Puskarich several months ago and confirmed he had the manual and software. Things fell by the wayside, and I only recently revisited that conversation with him. He very kindly took action and uploaded the SCSI Booster Driver to Macintosh Garden as DL#9 here:
Radius Rocket Software - Macintosh Garden
The software for a Radius Rocket. RocketWare is for running the Rocket as an accelerator. Version 1.3.2 (for System 6) and 1.5 (for System 7) included. RocketShare is for running the Rocket in a windowed environment, while the host Mac runs at its normal speed and is not accelerated. A Stage II...
Content of DL#9 looks like this...
I've not tested it yet because I have my monitors at the office and my IIci here at home.
The Read Me you see above contains the following info (which says nothing about it NOT being able to boot while in RocketWare (accelerator) mode (implying that it just might be bootable)...
SCSI-2 Booster Software
Version 1.0 Supplementary Information
November, 1992
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TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THIS README FILE
• RocketWare vs. RocketShare
• SCSI-2 Booster Software
• Setting the Jumper
• Boardset Installation
• Cable Considerations
• Performance Considerations
• SCSI-2 Booster Recommended Device Guide
• 3M Rainbow DeskTop Color Proofing System: Compatible
• Customer Support Information
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ROCKETWARE vs. ROCKETSHARE
The SCSI-2 Booster daughter card can function in two environments, RocketWare and RocketShare. When running in the RocketWare environment, a Rocket/SCSI-2 Booster enhanced Macintosh can access and control up to seven devices. It is important to note that the available SCSI ID numbers are shared between the Macintosh SCSI port and the SCSI-2 Booster. This means that no two devices connected to EITHER the Macintosh SCSI port or the SCSI-2 Booster may have the same SCSI-ID number.
When the SCSI-2 Booster is used with RocketShare, your computer can access and control an enormous number of SCSI devices. The number of devices is limited by the number of Rocket/SCSI-2 Booster boardsets that are installed in your Macintosh. Each boardset represents a separate SCSI bus capable of addressing up to 7 devices.
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SETTING THE JUMPER
As specified in the QuickStart card and elsewhere, if you are using Rocket part number 632-0048, you must reset the JP1 jumper on the SCSI-2 Booster board (see diagram in the QuickStart card for details). If you do not reset this jumper, and you are using the 632-0048 Rocket, the SCSI-2 Booster will not function with RocketWare or RocketShare.
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BOARDSET INSTALLATION
During the testing phase it was discovered that it is possible to accidentally unseat the Rocket/SCSI-2 Booster boardset inside the Macintosh when connecting the SCSI-2 cable. This is due, in part, to the rigidity of the shielded cable that is required for use with the Booster.
To avoid this potential problem try connecting the Booster cable with the lid of your Macintosh removed*. Use one hand to connect the cable, while using the other to keep the Rocket/SCSI-2 Booster boardset firmly seated on the NuBus. This ensures proper cable connection and reduces the likelihood that you will accidentally unseat your SCSI-2 Rocket/Booster boardset.
* Be sure to power off the Macintosh before starting the process and to avoid electrostatic component damage, be sure to ground yourself before touching anything inside your Macintosh.
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CABLE CONSIDERATIONS
Use of shielded cable(s) with the SCSI-2 Booster is highly recommended. The high data transfer rate of the SCSI-2 Booster makes an unshielded cable much more susceptible to electrical noise. If a device does not work with the SCSI-2 Booster, try using a shielded cable.
Storage devices that make use of low density 25-pin connectors require an adapter for use with the SCSI-2 Booster. Many LaCie drives, for example, require a 25-pin plug. The standard 50-pin (SCSI-2) to 50-pin (SCSI-1) cable provided with the Booster will not connect directly to such a port. LaCie, however, can provide you with an appropriate adapter. LaCie Technical support can be reached at (800) 288-9919.
Be advised that most devices using the 25-pin connection scheme cannot keep pace with the data transfer rate of the SCSI-2 Booster (for improved performance a fast hard disk is required). However, such drives can be used as dedicated hard disks in the RocketShare environment.
If the device you wish to connect to the Booster is not made by LaCie, but requires a 25-pin plug, contact the device manufacturer. If the device manufacturer cannot provide a solution contact Radius Customer Support.
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PERFORMANCE CONSIDERATION(S)
As mentioned above, in order to see a performance benefit you must have a fast SCSI-2 drive paired with the SCSI-2 Booster.
Something else to keep in mind, certain SCSI devices, removable media in particular, use drivers which regularly poll to see if there is media inserted. This polling tends to tie up the Macintosh processor. In order to minimize the effect this polling has on the performance of the motherboard, Radius recommends connecting your removable media (cartridge drives etc.) to the Rocket/SCSI-2 Booster port and not to the native Macintosh SCSI port.
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SCSI-2 BOOSTER RECOMMENDED DEVICE GUIDE
Extensive testing done by Radius and third party developers has yielded a list of devices best suited for use with the SCSI-2 Booster. A copy of this Recommended Device Guide has been included for your use. As new devices are qualified they will be added to the list.
Updated copies of the SCSI-2 Booster Recommended Device Guide can be obtained from the Radius Fax Information System. For the latest information regarding recommended devices call (800) 966-7360 or (408) 954-6670.
If a particular SCSI peripheral does not work with the SCSI-2 Booster, try updating the driver for said device with the latest utility from the manufacturer (or one of the alternate utilities listed in the Recommended Device Guide). If problems persist, contact Radius Customer Support with the manufacturer, model number and driver version. Reported incompatibilities will, whenever possible, be addressed through the release of software updates.
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3M RAINBOW DESKTOP COLOR PROOFING SYSTEM: COMPATIBLE
Radius managed to add support for this device just before the release of the final software candidate. While the 3M Rainbow does not appear in the SCSI-2 Booster Recommended Device Guide, it should be considered compatible for use with the Booster.
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CUSTOMER SUPPORT
If you have a problem you cannot resolve through your Radius Authorized Reseller, contact Radius Customer Support by phone at (408) 434-1012, Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time, or fax at (408) 954-1015. Radius Customer Support can also be contacted via the following on-line information services:
AppleLink: RADIUS.TECH
CompuServe: 76004,2155
America Online: RadiusTS
Internet: [email protected]
Radius BBS: (408) 954-1689
You may also contact the Radius Software Update Hotline at (800) 654-2822 or (408) 944-6444 for a pre-recorded message describing the latest software revisions available for all Radius products. To obtain Radius product updates on a regular basis, please return your registration card as soon as possible.
Photos of product box and manuals provided to me by Petar. He said he will try to make good scans of the manual (rather than the quick photos below), but I don't know when that will happen, so I've provided these for now.
