Re: [WinMac] Recommendations for internet gateway

Sherman R. Homan(shoman[at]mindspring.com)
Thu, 18 Feb 1999 20:22:00 -0500

I am a Mac consultant in the Boston area, I have five clients that run predominantly Mac
systems with some NT/Win 9.x for CAD and accounting. I use Vicom on Macs to route internet
access over 24/7 connections, ISDN and a hideous WebRamp with two analog modems. Works
great! They are all running ASIP 6.1 and DNS so TCP/IP is happening for printing, file
sharing, remote access, remote printing etc.

Victor Forberger wrote:

> I'm looking for recommendations and advice on which platform I should install
> and run the internet gateway software from Vicom (http://www.vicomsoft.com).
>
> The gateway is for six Gateway Pentium II computers (333 mhz and 350 mhz)
> running Windows98 and one Mac (which will also be an intranet server). I want
> the computers on the network to be able to share a modem and hence an internet
> connection.
>
> The office used to be all Mac, but the new president did not like Macs and so
> despite my protests and suggestions jettisoned all the Macs. I convinced her
> to hang on to one (to be used for the intranet -- Netpresenz 4.1 -- and
> general office work), and I would like to use a second of the old Macs (Quadra
> 605s with 20 megs of memory but tiny hard drives) for the internet gateway.
>
> 1, Is this setup doable? Will the windows PCs be able to get TCP/IP through
> the Mac? I know in theory it should work, but has anyone done it?
>
> 2. If the performance hit is not bad, shouldn't I use one of the Wintel
> computers as the internet gateway (two of which already have internal modems)?
> Is the performance of the internet gateway much better or worse on the Mac or
> Wintel platform?
>
> 3. On which platform, Mac or Wintel, is the software easier to set up? One
> caveat: WindowsNT is out (too complex and new for me) and all the Unix
> flavors are out as well (it's been too long since I've done anything but type
> an ls command in Unix). For other reasons, the variations of AppleShare are
> out as well (will need a new Mac, which the president of the company will not purchase).
>
> 4. What other internet gateway options are there? The product from Vicom
> strikes me as competent, well priced, and thorough. Plus, I like the
> cross-platform nature of it even if I end up using the Wintel version. But,
> I'm new to this kind of software, and I don't want to make a career out of
> being a computer consultant. I do this stuff to make ends meet while I try to
> finish my degree, and, frankly, while I like all the money I'm making from
> setting up the Gateways I prefer the days when the Macs just chugged along
> with my occasional assistance.
>
> 5. Finally, what advice and precautions do you experts out there have for an
> interloper like me?
>
> Some final notes. The office does mostly general business work (work
> processing or spreadsheets). There is no server, and the printers (HP4ML,
> HP5MP, and a new HP6xli) will be run as shared devices off of three of the
> Wintels (I'm still trying to figure out how the Mac will print to one of the
> postscript HPs via localtalk and be the intranet server as well. I think I
> have a problem here unless I get an ethernet bridge or move the intranet to a
> second mac that does not print.). Some file sharing will occur as well. The
> network will run at 10 mbs(?) and not 100 (the hubs are still too expensive
> and Mac LC/PDS cards at that price are way too expensive), but an upgrade may
> happen down the line.
>
> And one more final note. The office is extremely new to computers and the
> president comes from a previous office that relied on a terminal/mainframe
> approach. Solutions that seem to obvious to you or me are not so obvious to
> her. Initially, despite my efforts to convince her about needing a network,
> she did not want to spend the money. Then, when she had to take a disk to the
> computer that was hooked up to a printer, she wanted to get a printer for each
> computer. After pointing out she could have two networks for the price of one
> $400 laserjet and then everyone could print did she understand she needed a network
>
> Thanks for your help,
> Victor
> P/T computer consultant
>
> --
> Victor Forberger
> Law, Policy, and Society Program Northeastern University
>
> Dept. of Anthropology and Sociology
> 500 Holmes Hall
> Northeastern University
> Boston, MA 02115 617-373-4994 (office) 617-373-2688 (fax)
>
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