Sean Caron wrote:
> From: "Neil Cherry" <ncherry_at_home.net>
> > According to message I found during a web search, I may have purchased a
> > lemon. It states that the machine won't boot without a keyboard and mouse.
> > Well I don't have any. I'll have to hunt them down and then load *BSD.
> You may have read about the insidious mouse port dependency on these
> machines :)
>
> These systems must have either a mouse or a "mouse port terminator"
> installed on
> them to boot NetBSD (and others, perhaps) from the graphics console. I think
> more
> information on them can be found on the NetBSD/pmax Web site, or you could
> also
> probably look it up by typing something like "DECstation 3100 mouse
> terminator"
> into your favorite search engine.
>
> I'm not sure if its a problem if you boot the system off a serial console
> (which, incidentially,
> you can do; just hook up a terminal to the port with the printer icon next
> to it and flip the
> little DIP switch S3 on the back of the system - then you don't even need a
> mouse,
> keyboard, or monitor). Unfortunately, unless you have a MMJ terminal
> (VT3/400 series)
> you'll need to either buy or build a converter to break out MMJ to something
> more
> useful. The only problem is that (out here, at least), MMJ plugs are just
> about impossible
> to find and the converters (MMJ->DB25) cost $25 from DEC. Ouch!
2 ways around that problem, minor surgery (exacto blade) or major surgery
(remove MMJ and solder in appropriate 6 pin RJ outlet). I think I'll
start with the exacto first. Actually there is a 3rd method I'll try first
and that is the exacto the RJ11 plug so it no longer has the tab on it.
--
Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry ncherry_at_home.net
http://members.home.net/ncherry (Text only)
http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/lightsey/52 (Graphics)
http://linuxha.sourceforge.net/ (SourceForge)
Received on Wed Oct 18 2000 - 14:38:24 BST