Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Pastimes : Dream Machine ( Build your own PC ) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Street Walker who wrote (1039)	6/3/1998 10:09:00 PM
From: Howard R. Hansen	Respond to of 14778

>>The -L has one less ISA, so is the Intel NIC an ISA ethernet card occupying the slot? If so, wouldn't it be better to buy a PCI NIC and the basic P2B?<< Asus home page doesn't say it is a NIC. Instead the P2B-L page says "Intel 82558 100/10Mbps LAN Onboard". The designation 82558 means Asus has installed an Intel 82558 Integrated Circuit on the Motherboard and is using the 82558 to provide ethernet capability. They also say the motherboard has a RJ45 connector. They don't say so but I assume this is for the ethernet interface. Conclusion the fact that the card has one less ISA slot has nothing to do with the motherboard capability. My guess they eliminated one of the ISA slots because ISA slots are going out of style just like saddle shoes.

To: Street Walker who wrote (1039)	6/4/1998 9:04:00 AM
From: Dave Hanson	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 14778

Asus P2B-L: The Intel 10/100 chip is the equivalent of a PCI connection. The advantage of the P2B-NIC combo is that you can choose your NIC and/or move it with you when you want to change boards. But in that case, you'd forgo the precious extra PCI slot (only 3 left after NIC), along with the extra RAM expandability. And the Intel card should be an excellent performer, plus you'd possibly simplify support by getting it from one less source. One question worth considering is, how long so you anticipate keeping the board? If a while (>18 months, say), then this is less of a reason not to get the versions with built-in peripherals. A person who wanted a fast SCSI connection might look hard at the P2B-LS, since this still manages to include 4 PCI slots even after the ethernet and super-fast adaptec SCSI chips. This would be overkill for my needs, and it would add another $100 + to the price of the board, which is why I'm more inclined towards the P2B-L. If you want to buy very soon (next few weeks), the P2B has the advantage of having been out a good 6 weeks now--bugs may be less likely than in the newer models. If PCI slot scrimp won't be a problem and you don't see ever needing much more than 256 megs RAM, then this board should be a good bet. Hope this helps, Dave