On Tue, 27 Jan 1998, Robert Hazbun wrote:

> This question is for all the hardware gurus on the list.
> 
> I have a mac IIsi. Is there anyway to hook up my new drive inside of the
> computer so that I don't have to put the drive in an external case.
> 
> I was thinking of a cable runnin from the inside of the case to the
> outside, and then splicing the power cables for the harddrives.

Why run a cable outside the case? That sounds like a VERY bad idea to me.
It might work, but you can easily loose. A better thing to do would be to
just get an internal SCSI cable (a 50-pin ribbon cable) with three plugs
on it, and use it. Also, splicing power cables are $2.00 at Fry's, so you
don't need to roll your own.

> There is enough physical space inside the cas for me to do this so I am
> no worried about that. but I need to find a way to hook this drive up
> while keeping the other drive still active. 

Though you might have enough space, you might not have enough power to run
the internal. The IIsi had JUST enough power to run the internal, the
floppy, the NuBus interface card (w/ FPU), and one NuBus card using one
slot's worth of power. Cards which had cheated and used more than a slot's
worht of power didn't work well. :-(

> P.S. To all those who answered my question about the slot next to the
> ram slot, It's not a vram slot. those macs didn't have vram. They used
> the system ram as vram. I was thinking that it maybe cahce. In which
> case, It would be very useful to me.

I'd have guessed it's a ROM slot in the LC. I'm not sure about the LCII.
In the IIsi, the odd-ball SIMM slot is a ROM SIMM slot. A PDS slot is what
the space where the NuBus interface card goes.

Take care,

Bill