Re: Alltech Focus Hard Card/8 MB Sirius RAM

["Barry Rees" <Barry.Rees@prodigy.net>]

pubpc1@library.ucla.edu wrote in article
<5jlcde$okk@uni.library.ucla.edu>...

> 
> Barry, it works flawlessly.  There is absolutely no problem accessing
> all 8MB of memory.  All GS/OS and many ProDOS 8 software see all the
> memory (and those P8 programs that don't can't access GS memory at all).
> The Focus does not use DMA, which explains why the two cards work well
> together.  The only difference you'll see is if you do a "noise
reduction"
> with your graphics software on a large (eg. 1050x750) TIF, the computer
> no longer runs out of memory.  :)
> 
> I almost didn't want to give back the Focus I borrowed because it worked
> so smoothly with 8 megs (unlike SCSI cards, which need DMA turned off).
> I did not do tests, but it seems that 8 megs with a Focus is faster than
> 8 megs with an Apple High Speed SCSI with DMA turned off.
> 
> -Scott G.
> 
> 

Thanks for the input, Scott. I have also had a couple of emails about the
Focus/Sirius which were very helpful as well. One thing that came up was a
mention that in one particular situation AppleWorks wouldn't work with a
8MB Sirius and the only way this person could get it to work was to create
a 4 MB RAM disk and run it that way. I am heavily invested in AW v5.1 files
and having to set up a RAM disk is something that I wouldn't want to have
to do. Did you (or anyone else) have a problem with AW v5.1 and the Sirius
8MB card?

Thanks,

Barry
Barry.Rees@prodigy.net