CompuServe Thread

tplus

25 messages in this thread
#81335From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 4, 1994 3:23 PM
everyone: i need help! big time!! i just got my micron p60 pci system. it has a nexstor pci scsi2 controller and a viper pci. the only other card i have in my system is a tplus 32 card. after installing the tplus setup, i can run the tdemo program with no problems. everything shows clear. when i run 3ds3 with rdpadi set to tplus mode, as soon as i try to view or render a tga pic, nothing gets dumped to the buffer and 3ds freezes or shuts down to c:. i dont have this problem if i use vesa as render driver. also i have a simmilar problem with tips. it is strange that the tdemo works fine but programs go crazy with targa. i am also using qemm with correct exclude mem. i thought that pci systems should not couse and hardware conflicts through their auto detect setup. and i only have two pci cards and the tplus?? strange. can anyone there, who has had any experiance with pentum pci computers give me an idea of whats going on. i have called any one i could for this problem. no one has an answer. help, help, heeeelp :< take care ara
#81749From: Mathew D. BergmanFeb 6, 1994 10:13 PM
Ara – I didn't have a problem with my system crashing when outputting to my Targa 32 board, but I did have a problem with the output coming out garbage – strobing, chopped up, etc. It drove me crazy for a week. The problem fixed itself when, in desperation, I uninstalled QEMM. Somehow, QEMM caused a conflict with the Targa board, even though it didn't detect any conflicts. I haven't pursued this any further; instead, I made a quick workaround by using two different setups, one with QEMM, one without (for 3D Studio). Try it without QEMM, and see if it fixes your problem.
#81760From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 7, 1994 12:19 AM
mathew: thanks for the reply. yes i agree there is a big problem with qemm on this pentum(micron pci) the problem goes away when qemm is unloaded, but this creats an other problem; with all the device drivers that load at the boot i am left with only 390k of mem! i am not able to run most of my other programs with this much memory and there is no way i can reduce the number of tsr drivers, i need them all. i tried using dos 6.2 memmaker and that put me back to square 1 again(same problem as qemm with less availible memory). the funny thing is that on my 486 66dx2 i was using an identical setup with the same number of drivers and devices and same targa+32 and same targa settings and the same qemm(ver. 7).i had absolutly no problems of any kind??!! the only basic differance between the two systems was that the 486 was local vesa and the pentium is a pci. i have tried everything possible that i am aware of with targa, qemm, memmaker. nothing works. you want a real funny story check this out. when i got the system going for 3ds3 by dumping qemm, i would get differant render times for the 50point man 3ds file at targa res. every time i rendered the file. the render times would very from 7secs(yes!) to 77sec(wow!). this happened if i ran windows first and then quit windows and started 3ds3. if i went directly to 3ds3 with qemm dumped, everything worked fine, except my base mem of 390k.(daaa) >:( the only two conclusions i have so far are the following: -the pci system and the memory management programs of today are incompatible since pci has a different memory structure. -the micron pentum system has not been debuged and is problematic. i have decided to ship it back. i am not sure what i will buy. if you know of any pentum sys that works fine with targa and any memory manager which is also hooked up to several scsi devices(cd rom, sqy, ext hd, etc) , let me know i need to buy a new system that works. take care ara
#81766From: Gus GrubbaFeb 7, 1994 12:40 AM
This is the type of things people forget to tell in reviews. That's another reason I keep saying cheaper doesn't mean less expensive. The DEC came with DOS 6.2 and EMM386 installed. The first thing I did was to get rid of EMM386 and installed QEMM. After all my drivers loaded (DPMI Server, SCSI, ASPI, CDROM, Sound board, Network, Mouse, Smartdrive, Share, VESA, and DPS PAR, I still have 630k free. I have both DOS and NT installed in a dual boot configuration and everything works without a glitch from day one. I have six devices in the SCSI chain. Two hard disks, a CDROM, a DAT tape, a RICOH optical disk and a Bernoully box. They all work and I didn't have to configure anything. The PCI NCR SCSI included in the motherboard automatically configured all devices. I just wish I had one more free slot (don't we all)…
#81767From: John TissavaryFeb 7, 1994 12:42 AM
Holy mackerel. Sounds like exactly the kind of system I need <g>. John Tissavary (La Luna cie)
#81955From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 7, 1994 6:50 PM
you got that right. ara
#81954From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 7, 1994 6:49 PM
gus: that sounds like music to my ears. boy do i envy you. which dec unit do you have and what options did you get with it? how much did it cost you? do you have a targa+32 in your system? please let me know! thanks a lot ara
#82014From: Craig M. MeadowsFeb 7, 1994 9:32 PM
Hello, excuse me for jumping in but I could'nt help but notice in your reply about the Targa32 and PCI bus systems that you are running a DPS PAR. How is it? Do you consider the component outputs betacam sp quality? Would you recommend using it in place of going frame-by-frame to a betacam sp deck? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. CMM.
#82122From: Gus GrubbaFeb 8, 1994 1:47 AM
I'm far to biased for that. I have the PAR because I wrote the low level drivers for it. I don't do "broadcast" animations because the FCC would probably arrest me if I ever attempted broadcasting any of this stuff. If not the FCC, for sure some radical religious group or the Oregon Citizen Alliance. You should post this question to either Greg Pyros, Martin Foster, or Don Landis… Better yet, if you happen to be around Newport Beach, Kalifornia next Wednesday, you will be able to see it in person at the Pyros Partnership's open house.
#81769From: John TissavaryFeb 7, 1994 12:45 AM
The DEC seems to be one of the BEST pentium boxes out there. I know, for sure, it's the one I'm going to buy when I have the budget for it.
#81803From: Richard J. SmithFeb 7, 1994 5:24 AM
John: I don't want to go on the defensive,but I just might, first I don't know what the problem is with his Micron, It could be hardware, it could be software, it could be orperator error, or any combination of the three. I don't care what anybody else thinks the most expensive machine is not always the best. I think if you can get the same thing done for less money you are better off in the end. It really gets me steamed when I see people blaming the computers for things when the computer is just doing what you told it to do. If I wanted self configuring preinstalled pluggin and play software I would get a MAC. I know lots of MAC users who are great at programs, untill something goes wrong then they dont a floppy disk from a hard disk. I Don't have computer problems I have opportunities to learn more about how or why things don't work. I'm sorry if I flew off the handle but I don't want a prejudgement of a computer that I Know is a great platform for 3D Studio and a good value.
#81961From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 7, 1994 7:05 PM
richard: well i will be more that happy to hear what your suggestions for fixing my problems are? i dont pretend that i know everything about setting up computers, but yet i have been envolved with computers for a long time starting with 8086 to 286 to 386 to 486 and quadras and now a micron pentum. i have never had any problems setting up the other comuters with very similar and sometimes identical setup. going from my 486 to the pentum the only thing that has changed is the computer it self. nothing new has been added to the system that was not there on the 486. i was under the immpression that a pci system should be easer to configure becouse the pci slots configure automatically. that gives me 2 less devices to worry about conflicting. 2 less than the 486 vesa. but yet i did not have any problems with my 486! you tell me where i should look for the source of the problem. if you are a micron p60 pci user and you have qemm and targa+32 installed in your system i would love to take a look at your config.sys and autoexec.bat files, to see how yours is set up? if you can put these two files in email and send them to me a lot of questions will be answered for me. i am planning to send my computer back by wed. so if i can see your files by tue. it will be very nice let me know ara
#82137From: Richard J. SmithFeb 8, 1994 2:21 AM
ARA: Sorry to hear that, I have been busy installing Lantastic so could not get back to you about the config. I will upload it to you via mail tues day after noon when I get home from school. also tech support called from Micron and informed me that Nexstor will have new smaller drivers soon (about 6 weeks) I admit the base mem thing is a problem and I'm sorry if I seemed out of line the other day(up late no sleep). I agree if you are unhappy with a product it should be returned.
#82268From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 8, 1994 2:01 PM
richard: no worries. every thing be cool. looking forward to getting your config thanks ara
#82102From: John TissavaryFeb 8, 1994 1:39 AM
Geez, Richard. I made no personal attack against you, I just said DEC makes one of the best pentium boxes on the planet, and I stand by that. Their reliability, options, and price (they are by far NOT!!! the most expensive pentiums out there, like HP, Compaq, et al) speak for themselves, and they are upgradeable to AXP, which puts them in a class by themselves at this point in time. Before you get all your feathers in a ruffle – if you're happy with your machine then more power to you, that's what counts. I don't own a pentium right now, but I will buy the DEC for several reasons. And if someone asks me about which pentium to buy I'll tell them what I think of the DEC. I don't see anything unreasonable, offensive, or aggressive about that! John Tissavary (La Luna cie)
#82138From: Richard J. SmithFeb 8, 1994 2:22 AM
John: I'm sorry about that I was up late and had just finished work on the Micron. It did'nt seem out of line at that time, but now looking back I guess I took it the wrong way.
#82152From: John TissavaryFeb 8, 1994 2:55 AM
No problem, Richard. I get a little feisty after long working hours, too. John Tissavary (La Luna cie)
#82617From: krazy imagesFeb 9, 1994 2:32 PM
>>I will buy the DEC for several reasons. perhaps because I repeteadly recommend it to you? <g> ana /krazy images
#83214From: John TissavaryFeb 11, 1994 9:39 PM
That's one of the reasons! John Tissavary (La Luna cie)
#81802From: Richard J. SmithFeb 7, 1994 5:24 AM
ARA: I Have my New Micron up and rendering away with aTarga+, Animation Commander and Qemm 6.0 using stealth M mode. I Still Have 481k left over I love this thing although the aspi drivers for the NexStor card are waay Toooo Biggg. I feel you might be having problems with the page frame, as it cause me a few problems at first. Short of a hardware problem every thing should work fine. I let mine run flics for a few hours before I ran through all the hardware and software settings(you never how good the boys who set things up were). The biggest problem for me way getting the Viper card to run in vesa mode for 3d Studio after that it ran like a clock(a very fast one). I have Monday off from school so I can help you get things running later today if you like upload your Config and Autoblahblah file via mail and I'll take a look.My motto has always been "I don't take no Cra_ from a machine"<g>.
#81967From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 7, 1994 7:14 PM
richard: i just put in a reply for you befor reading this message. i think we are both exp. the same problems(page frame). also 486k of ram is no where close to enough for some of my apps. i also dont understand why i should have a page frame problem with a pentum when i did not have this problem with a 486 dx2 66. things where running perfect on that pc and after a full setup with qemm and t32+ and all my scsi stuff i had more than 590k availible?! if i am upgrading i dont want something less. i want more and i dont believe this unit is offering me that. it would really be nice if you could send me your config.sys and autoexec.bat files through email. than i can see what the dif.s are take care ara
#82083From: Jim PopeFeb 7, 1994 11:41 PM
Just a thought on your Micron problem, I have not had a lot of experience with pentiums, but I have seen some situations on some EISA motherboards where the CMOS permitted the cacheing of addon boards and in some cases, it was defaulted to ON and required major hairpulling to turn off. The result of cacheing a board like the Targa is very amusing if it isn't your problem. Just thought it might be something else to look at before you return the system. Regards, Jim Pope PROSeries – Denver
#82136From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 8, 1994 2:07 AM
jim: thanks for the info, but that is something that i have already tried. i changed the cmos setup to no cacheing and there was no change,the targa was still doing its act. i am tottaly confused!! thanks again take care ara
#82347From: Jim PopeFeb 8, 1994 6:42 PM
I have sorta lost track of this thread, does the system run (although with no memory left) when QEMM is loaded by itself inplace of HIMEM. w/ no parameters? If you then add RAM? Then slowly manually place the little stuff one at a time? Still trying to help, I am, Jim Pope
#82412From: ARA GREGORIANFeb 8, 1994 10:38 PM
jim: thanks a bunch for your help. i have already fixed the problem partialy. at least 3ds runs now. there where 4 reasons for these problems, 2 of which are corrected and the rest i have to wait untill certain upgrades are ready. if you dont mind check the message i just left for Brian at 71722,170 that will explain everything. again tahnks for all the help from you guys. take care ara