[WinMac] Good NT Book; Re: Choice of AppleShare IP 6.0 vs. NT

Dan Schwartz(expresso[at]snip.net)
Mon, 12 Oct 1998 14:08:04 -0400

        Dear Mr. Chávez:

        Four salient points:

        1) You can buy very nice 533 mHz Alpha clones from DCG for well under $2,000.
 <http://www.dcginc.com>. Also, Enorex, DeskStation, Microway, Carrera, and
Aspen make nice Alpha clones...

        Please click on <http://www.alphant.com> for more info on the purchasing,
care, and feeding of Alpha's running NT. You'll be glad you did!

-> Now, where did you go, Power Computing, when we need you?!

        2) If you are getting BSOD's (Blue Screen of Death) in NT, they can
*usually* be quickly solved by using the "Last Known Good Configuration."
In addition, I borrowed a trick from Conflict Catcher: I create a "Minimal
Services" Hardware Profile (startup configuration), including not starting
the Networking Services;

        3) Along these same lines, get a copy of Kirk Erichsen's "Optimizing
Windows NT" [ISBN 0-7645-3110-7] The recovery & repair techniques on pages
743-757 is worth the (AMAZON.COM mail order) price of $39.95 alone!

        4) I somewhat agree with the assessment about NT's Mac print spooler to be
somewhat troublesome. BUT:
        A) If you are printing to a raster printer, then you DO need to be a bit
more careful in the spooler setup, since you are using a LaserWriter 8
driver to send a PostScript® file to the NT spooler to be RIP'ed;
        B) This is one area where the MacOS excels: If you have PostScript
printers, just print to these machines directly. You don't need to spool
through NT (in most cases), since Print Monitor DOES do a very nice job. I
always give credit when credit is due, and MacOS printing has ALWAYS been
its strong suit.

        [More comments inline]

At 11:12 AM 10/12/98 -0400, Omar Chávez wrote:
>
>> NT's Express Setup is actually easier than navigating through
>> MacOS
>> 8.1's arcane installation process.
>>
>> I disagree with that. For most people APIP is a lot easier to setup
>> than NT. Any Macintosh user with Intermediate knowledge of the OS is
>> able to install APIP, whereas to install NT you need at the very least
>> a PowerUser, more likely a Network Engineer (MCSE).

        Surprisingly, no. I found the learning curve/changeover from AppleShare
4.0.2 & 4.2.2, and Apple Internet Router 3.0.1 to NT/S 3.51 (as well as
NT/S 4.0) to be surprisingly easy. Yes, M$ "knocked off" most of the MacOS
GUI... But the underlying kernel is much more robust than the MacOS 8.x. If
you have a single NIC *AND* everything inside is on the HCL, then you can
just about hit "Enter" for all the defaults... Except you need to pause
during the Networking installation to add Services for Macintosh. Reboot,
then apply SP3 & SFM hotfix, and all will be fine.

>>
>> What part of 600 mHz don't you understand?
>> And you tell me that an Alpha 600 is in the same price range as an
>> AWS9600? I really doubt it. I think that the original poster was
>> referring to Workgroup Servers, not Enterprise Servers. In workgroup
>> servers with a price point of less than $6,000.00 the AWS gives you
>> more bung for the buck IMHO.
        ^^^^
        You mean "bang"... I hope! :)

        Yes; but at $2000 a 533 mHz NT Server is still a better buy.
>>
>> Lastly, you can run NT/Server as a workstation OS with the Server
>> services
>> in the background. If an app crashes, it simply gets flushed and
>> doesn't
>> bring down the whole machine. Try running Photoshop simultaneously
>> with ANY
>> version of AppleShare and watch what happens
>> I would say that any network comprised of more than 10 nodes DEMANDS a
>> dedicated server.

        It depends on what the server is doing. If it is being used as a simple
file server, then about 10 connected users is about right. BUT, it all
depends on what apps the clients are using; and what software the server
local user is running.

>>
>> Also, what ever happened to the lifetime toll-free tech support from
>> Apple's Business Systems Division
>> Apple still offers a much better deal in Tech support than Microsoft.
>>
>> My current network is NT, but I am seriously considering moving to
>> ASIP6. NT is stable and fast most of the time, but when you start to
>> get a "blue screen of death" you better start verifying your bank's
>> account, since its going to cost you dearly in terms of time and
>> money.

        True to a point. But if you follow the HCL's, and the KISS principle with
NT, then BSOD's just don't occur. Shutting down extraneous services helps
enhance stability quite a bit. Also, having enough RAM and tweaking the
Registry a bit also helps stability as well as speed.

        Let's try to work together to solve the problems you *are* having: More
likely than not it's just a 3rd party driver problem.

>>
>> Omar Chávez
>> Technical Services Director
>> *********************************************************
>> Flite Line Equipment Corp.
>> Corporate Headquarters
>> 1100 NW 163rd Drive
>> Miami, FL 33169 * USA
>> Tel (305) 626-0004 * Fax (305) 626-0566 * OmarChavez@fliteline.usa.com
>> --Los Angeles--Chicago--San Francisco--Washington DC--Honolulu--Miami-
>> *********************************************************

        Yours truly,
        Daniel L. Schwartz,
        Electrical Engineer.

        Dan's Macintosh Consulting
        Suite 1306
        1840 Frontage Road
        Cherry Hill, NJ 08034-2205

        609-795-8965

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