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Text File | 1991-04-22 | 26KB | 586 lines

▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒█▀▀▀▒▒█ ▒▒█▀▀▀▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▀▀ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒▄ ▒▒▄ ▒▒█ ▀▀ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▄ ▒▒█ ▒▒█▀▒▒█ ▒▒█▒▒█▒▒█ ▒▒█▀▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█▀▒▒█ ▒▒█▒▒█▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█▒▒█▒▒█ ▒▒▒▒▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█▒▒█▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒▄ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▀▀▒▒█ ▒▒█▀▀▀▀ ▒▒█▄▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒▄ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▀▀▒▒█ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒█ ▒▒▒▒▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒▒▒▒▒█ ▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒█ ▒▒▒▒▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▒▒█ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀▀▀▀▀ ▀▀ ▀▀ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █ ▄▄▄▄▄ █ █ █ █▄▄█ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █ █▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █ ▄▄▄ █ █ ▄▄▄▄█ █ ▄▄▄▄█ █▄ ▄▄▄ █ █▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ █ █ █▄█ █ █ █▄▄ █ █▄▄ █ █ █ █ ▄▄▄▄ █ █ █ ▄▄▄▄█ █ ▄▄█ █ ▄▄█ █ █ █ █ █ █▄▄▄█ █ █ █ █ █▄▄▄▄ █ █▄▄▄▄ ▄█ █▄█ █ █▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄█ █▄█ █▄▄▄▄▄█ █▄▄▄▄▄█ █▄▄▄▄▄▄█ ╔═══════╕ ╔═════╕ ╔══════╕ ╔═════╕ ╔═══════╕ ║ ┌╖ ┌╖ │ ║ ┌─╖ │ ╙╖ ┌─╖ │ ║ ┌───┘ ║ ┌╖ ┌╖ │ ║ │║ │║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ ╘═╕ ║ │║ │║ │ ║ │╙─┘║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ ┌─┘ ║ │╙─┘║ │ ║ │ ║ │ ║ ╘═╝ │ ╔╝ ╘═╝ │ ║ ╘═══╕ ║ │ ║ │ ╙─┘ ╙─┘ ╙─────┘ ╙──────┘ ╙─────┘ ╙─┘ ╙─┘ COMPUCOM SPEEDMODEM...THE AFFORDABLE HIGH SPEED MODEM SPEEDMODEM CHAMP (tm) * 300 to 9600 bps true raw speed * CompuCom Speed Protocol, CSP-3, throughput up to 38,400bps * MNP 5 at data speeds of 300-4800 bps * $169...unprecented performance to price ratio (introductory price) * Dynamic Impedance Stabilization, (DIS), for noisy telephone lines * IBM internal card supports 8 COM port addresses and 5 interrupts * Made in America * Five year warranty * 30 Day money back trial. Additional features offered by the SPEEDMODEM COMBO (tm) * Full featured 9600-bps send/receive Fax with background operation * Voice mail low cost upgrade available July 1991. Upgrade is with- out cost on orders placed before April 30. * Only $279 300-9600-38,400 bps MODEM at 2400 bps PRICE $169...INCREDIBLE BUT TRUE! CompuCom Corporation announces the SpeedModem(tm) Champ(tm) 9600 bps modem at the incredibly low price of $169. The Champ's raw speed is 300-9600 bps and it features data compression throughput up to 38,400 bps! The Champ is comparable in performance to v.32/v.42bis modems. These modems typically cost $500+ on the low end and range well above $1000. The Champ also has a big brother with send/receive fax capability and voice mail upgrade. The SpeedModem Combo (tm) provides total communications capability on one very economical card. It costs only $279; there is nothing like it at any price. Although 9600 bps modems have been available for a number of years, only a few percent of the modems in use today operate at this speed. Their cost is prohibitive to the average PC user. CompuCom has changed that. They are making high speed modems affordable to ALL, not just the few percent who can afford them. The SpeedModem is a technology-price breakthrough. It is like buying a 2400 bps modem and getting 9600 bps FREE! Or, as one customer said, "buying a Ford and getting Ferrari performance". Bob Mahoney of EXEC PC sums it up: "The CompuCom SpeedModem provides all the utility of a high quality 2400bps MNP5 modem, but it gives 9600bps in the package. With that it is priced below most modems that offer only the 2400bps (MNP) speed. Instead of buying a modem like that for $169, why don't they buy a real 9600bps that also does a good job at 2400bps MNP5? The SpeedModem is such a modem." BBS System Operators (sysops) strive to achieve the broadest possible constituency for their service. Thus many multiline BBSs support more than one high speed modem type. Even so, 90% of their users still call in at 2400 bps. They are stuck at 2400 because they can't afford high speed modems. Sysops are beginning to realize that the SpeedModem is the only opportunity for most of their users to join the ranks of the high speed Top Guns. Thus they are adding it to their service. Although the SpeedModem has been in production only a short time, over 200 BBSs are online including EXEC PC, the largest direct connect BBS in the US. They have over 180 incoming phone lines. Foreign sysops are also enthusiastically supporting the modem. Micro Mall Corporation has chosen the SpeedModem as their primary modem for a nationwide communications network. Another major communications network has decided to do the same. They both intend to provide long distance communica- tions for the SpeedModem at rates of only a fraction of conventional long distance rates. They feel the SpeedModem will help them to achieve a large customer base. The SpeedModem is unique; it is an unprecedented communications value. It will become the de facto AFFORDABLE STANDARD for high speed modem communications. Below is product information about the SpeedModem followed by two high speed modem articles. The first article discusses the need for an "Affordable Standard" for high speed modems. The second article,"High Speed Modem Issues and Information" should be read by anyone considering the purchase of a high speed modem. SPEEDMODEM PRODUCT INFORMATION World-Class 9,600 bps DISmodem and Fax All at a Breakthrough Price $169-$279 From CompuCom Corporation comes a telecomputing breakthrough: the 9,600 bps SpeedModem Combo. This versatile internal PC modem doesn't just deliver MNP 5 and world-class data speeds. It's the first high-speed modem to offer a full- featured, 9,600 bps Fax with send-and-receive capabilities. Factor in the Speed- Modem Combo's highly competitive price and you'll see it adds up to an impres- sive value. The SpeedModem's throughput is just as impressive ─ up to 38,400 bps with its 4:1 data compression software protocol. And it can maintain error-free transmis- sion at these high data rates, thanks to the powerful, hardware error-correction and CompuCom Speed Protocol (CSP)(tm). Better yet, the SpeedModem's built-in Dynamic Impedance Stabilization(tm), DIS(tm), feature enhances throughput even more. That's because CompuCom's unique DIS allows the SpeedModem Combo to main- tain the highest level of signal quality on your phone lines. The result: the best possible performance at all times and all speeds ─ and DIS operates in either data or Fax mode. Of course, the SpeedModem supports the Hayes AT command set and maintains full backward compatibility with other modems at 2,400, 1,200 and 300 bps. It also includes the Microcom Networking Protocol for hardware-based MNP 5 compression and error correction at data speeds of 4,800 bps or less.. Dynamic Impedance Stabilization (DIS) The SpeedModem Combo doesn't simply establish data and Fax connections ─ it's designed to actually improve them. The reason is DIS, CompuCom's unique telephone interface. DIS automatically compensates for real-world impedance variations on your phone line. How? The villains of high-speed file transfers ─ line noise and interference ─ are significantly reduced by DIS's ability to deliver a clear signal down the telephone line. It all means faster, more efficient data transfers and optimal use of your communications resources. DIS technology protects your pocketbook by maximizing throughput under adverse conditions ─ where other modems will waste time and your long-distance dollars. DIS should not be confused with adaptive equalization or filtering techniques, very important functions in any modem, including ours. Neither adaptive equalization nor filtering effect any signal-to-noise improvement on a telephone line. That's why we inven- ted DIS. 9,600 bps Group III Facsimile Now you can have total high-speed communications capability on one card. Fax has become the de facto standard for electronic business communications. It's not surprising that PC users are realizing its necessity. You can reach out instantly to businesses around the world. And do it without waiting until the witching hour for the best long-distance rates. With SpeedModem Combo, you get the ultimate convenience: high-speed Fax communications right from your desk. Imagine, you can request and receive data sheets for products in minutes. Faxing is usually more cost-efficient than overnight mail services. We think of Fax as instant mail. When you use the high-performance SpeedModem Combo, you also get powerful soft- ware which operates totally in the background, for sending and receiving Faxes. With the Combo's delayed transmission support, you can Fax inexpensively and automatically to hundreds of recipients in the middle of the night ─ while you're home asleep. FUNCTIONAL SPECIFICATIONS Raw Transmission Speeds 300 to 9,600 bps are achieved without compression. Data Compression Yields an effective throughput up to 38,400 bps over dial-up telephone lines using CSP-3 External Software Protocol. Industry Standards Backward compatibility with CCITT v.21, v.22/v.22bis, and Bell 103/212A modula- tions. Full Hayes AT compatibility. MNP 1-5. Group III, CCITT Fax. IBM internal card. Dynamic Impedance Stabilization (DIS) Provides improved data integrity. Built-in CSP and MNP 2-5 Both provide transparent, hardware-based error correction. MNP 5 is provided at data rates up to 4,800 bps; CSP provides error correction for the raw modem speed of 9,600 bps. CSP-3 is considerably more efficient than MNP 5 and provides data throughput up to 38,400 bps. Configuration Flexibility Eight independent COM port addresses and support for interrupts 3, 4, 5, 7 and 2 or 9 provide unequaled installation flexibility. Configuration without con- flict with other hardware is always possible with the SPEEDMODEM. This flex- ibility allows up to eight speedmodems to be configured on a single motherboard. Dialing Functions Pulse and tone, auto and manual, as well as auto-redial-on-busy, matches user needs. Result codes displayed on the terminal provide immediate feedback regarding transmission status. Audible Feedback Speaker volume is adjustable, both under program control and via a manual, externally accessible volume control. Other Functions 40-character command buffer ─ Auto answer and auto dial ─ Programmable number of rings before answer and/or time before hang-up. Diagnostic Test Facilities Supports self-test as well as digital, analog, local and remote loopback tests to ensure reliable performance. 9,600 bps Facsimile Full-featured send-and-receive 9,600 bps, Group III Fax functionality resident on the same card. Fax incorporates an on board CPU which offloads host CPU demands required by competitive products. The SPEEDMODEM is easy to configure and use. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS 300, 1,200, 2,400 and 9,600 bps Hardware Speeds Data Compression Ratio: MNP 5, 2:1 and CSP, 4:1 CCITT v.22, v.22bis, v.21 and Bell 103, 212A Hayes AT Command Set Dynamic Impedance Stabilization 600 to 2500 ohms Full- and Half-Duplex COM 1-8, INT 3, 4, 5, 7 and 2 or 9 Extensive Diagnostics 40-Character Command Buffer Flow Control: RTS/CTS Transmit Signal Level -9.5dBm Transmit Frequency Tolerance 0.01% Received Signal Level -8dBm to -48dBm Carrier Detect Level - 43dBm Carrier Reject Level - 48dBm Dynamic Range >40dB Fax: CCITT v.27ter and v.29, Group III ─ 2,400 bps, 4,800 bps, 7,200 bps, and 9,600 bps * Sophisticated Performance * Unprecedented Flexibility * Unprecedented Performance to Price Ratio * Five-Year Warranty * 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee * Made in the U.S.A. NOTE...The SPEEDMODEM CHAMP HAS ALL THE MODEM FEATURES OF THE SPEEDMODEM COMBO, IT DOES NOT HAVE FAX CAPABILITY, OR VOICE MAIL UPGRADE CAPABILITY. UPGRADE FEATURES IN DEVELOPMENT Additional functionality to be added to the SpeedModem Combo is under development. When released, these features will be made available as low cost software or firmware upgrades. BBS Fax integration: The SpeedModem Combo makes it possible for a BBS to not only receive the mail - but also to deliver it! We are presently designing a software interface standard which will facilitate this function. One scenario is that of the front end mail program. The Fax mail is automatically separated out and sent to local (toll free) fax machines. This software interface will be made available for authors to incorporate into their software programs. Fax/ Data Automatic Switchover: The Speedmodem Combo can be programmed to automatically determine whether the incoming call is Fax or Data. It will then make the connection and deliver the appropriate fax or data result message. At this time there isn't viable software support to take advantage of this functionality. Communications programs and fax programs generally run solo and are not designed to interact with each other. The solution, again, is a front end program. Voice Mail: Firmware to support voice mail functions on the Speedmodem Combo is due in July. The objective is to allow one phone line to be used for automatic switchover between voice, voice mail, fax and data. Obviously this is a complex issue with many of the factors beyond our control. For example, it will depend to some extent on the user's choice of software. Although there are some practical limitations to this functionality, our solution should be more useful and certainly lower in cost than present methods. (External boxes which attempt, at best, to achieve this result cost $100-$250.) Anyone who purchases the Speedmodem Combo before April 30, 1991 is entitled to the voice mail firmware as a no cost upgrade, when available. HIGH COST STANDARDS OR AN AFFORDABLE STANDARD WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO THE BBS USER? Many BBSs support 9600 bps modems. Yet, 90% of their constituency still call in at 2400 bps...they can't afford $500+ for a modem! V.32 technology is receiving enormous amounts of press because it is the CCITT standard for a 9600 bps modem. Numerous authors are climbing on the bandwagon and claiming it is the only way to go. Authors and promoters of these costly modems are overlooking some very important points: One; the average BBS user buys his equipment from his own pocketbook, not the corporate budget. Two; many people use their PC for both business and personal reasons. They demand more than just a modem. They need total communications capability, including fax, at an affordable price. Fax has become the mass media for electronic communications. The integration of fax and modem technology is a natural next step for the BBS community. Many sysops are considering augmenting their electronic mail with fax capability. Not only will they be receiving the mail...soon they will be delivering it. Although all modems are compatible up through 2400 bps and MNP-5; there is no modem which can communicate with all other high speed modems at 9600 bps. The majority of multi-line BBSs will, by necessity, be supporting three separate modem technologies which are incompatible at high speed: the US Robotics HST, because of it's popularity among sysops; v.32, because it is CCITT approved; and the CompuCom SPEEDMODEM, because people can afford it. As of 2-8-91 over 200 BBS are online; more are going online every day. The largest direct connect BBS, EXEC PC, supports the SpeedModem. Other large BBSs have purchased SpeedModems and will be on line soon. Two nationwide communica- tions networks intend to provide long distance communications for the SpeedModem, at a fraction of conventional long distance rates. The SpeedModem is rapidly becoming the AFFORDABLE STANDARD for high speed modems. What is important to the BBS user?...COST! For 90% of the them...the NUMBERS speak louder than words! HIGH SPEED MODEM ISSUES AND INFORMATION Compatibility versus cost: CompuCom engineers were determined to design a low cost high performance modem. However, when they carefully examined the current modem technologies, they found that none was adequate to achieve this goal. Then they took a bold step-- to go in a direction contrary to the industry trend, v.32 technology. The v.32 standard originates from The International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee, CCITT. Unfortunately, the committee overlooked something important ...YOU...the PC user. It was biased toward main frame, not PC communications, thus cost wasn't an issue. v.32 technology is intrinsically too costly to achieve the required performance/cost goal. CompuCom engineers developed what modem users have long demanded, low cost 9600 bps technology. All high speed modems can communicate at 2400 bps, and many support MNP. However, there is no modem which can communicate at 9600 bps with all other 9600 bps modems. Of four high speed modem types selling today: US Robotics, HST, CompuCom, SpeedModem; Telebit, TrailBlazer; and Hayes et al.,v.32: NOT ONE of these modem types will communicate at 9600 bps with any other one! They must be the same kind. Likewise, the SpeedModem will comunicate at 9600 bps only with an other SpeedModem. A common misunderstanding is that the US Robotics HST will communicate with v.32 modems at high speed. One reason for this misunderstanding is that US Robotics manufactures a modem which is compatible with both HST and v.32 modem types. This modem is named the "Dual Standard". It incorporates two modem types in one box, v.32 and US Robotics HST. Its list price is $1295. Discount price is probably around $900. For comparison, US Robotics manufactures both HST and v.32 modems. Each is priced at $995. Discount is probably around $650. When purchasing a high speed modem one must consider both compatibility (with whom will one be communicating) and cost. The SpeedModems' low cost makes it an extremely attractive alternative to more established high speed modem types, for the majority of users. The SpeedModem is gathering a wide base of support. v.32...What about v.32bis?...and what about v.42bis? V.32 is the CCITT standard for 9600 bps modems. Although v.32 modems generally perform satisfactorily, they are not the panacea they are made out to be. V.32 technology has neither lived up to it's expected inter-manufacturer compatibil- ity level nor its real world phone connection performance level. v.32bis is the next CCITT high speed modem waiting in the wings. It is an extension of current v.32 technology. It is a very costly technology which is downward compatible with v.32 at 9600 bps. Its theoretical speed is 14,400 bps. V.32bis places even more stringent requirements on the telephone connection than v.32; thus we predict v.32bis will meet its performance expectations only on pristine telephone connections. There is much confusion about v.42/42bis. Many people think it is the next new modem technology after v.32. v.42 is not a modem technology; it is a CCITT approved error correction and data compression protocol package. In a practical sense it is similar to MNP levels 1-9. As with MNP, it may be used with any modem technology. Some modem vendors are placing v.42bis on 2400 bps modems and referring to the modem as 9600 bps. Even if two modems both support v.42, there is no assurance that they can communicate with each other. For compatibility they must also support the same modem technology. For example a v.32/v.42 should communicate with any other v.32/v42 modem. However, it will not communicate with a US Robotics HST/v.42 above 2400 bps raw speed, since 2400 is their highest level of mutual modem technology. The SPEEDMODEM supports a 4:1 external data compression protocol called CSP-3. It is slightly more efficient than v.42bis and provides speeds up to 38,400 bps depending on data type. A word of caution: Data compression techniques, whether CSP-3, MNP 5-9, or v.42bis are convenient for transferring data files in their natural state, uncompressed. However, they provide little, if any, value in transferring already compressed or archived files, the kind most often downloaded from a BBS. The RAW SPEED of the modem is what really counts, not its data compression speed. A 2400 bps modem with v.42bis is of little value to the BBS user since its raw speed is still only 2400 bps. NOTE...Some mail order vendors who advertise 9600 bps modems are selling 2400 bps modems along with a data compression software package. Again, the raw speed of these modems is only 2400 bps. The SPEEDMODEM's raw speed is 9600 bps. Remember... If you aren't totally satisfied, you may return the SPEEDMODEM in 30 days for a full product price refund! See for yourself...CALL NOW 800 ACT ON IT (800) 228-6648, (408) 732-4500, Fax (408) 732-4570 Latest information...CompuCom Support BBS (408) 738-4990 Ordering Information You can order the SpeedModem Combo by using the order form below or by calling 1-800-ACT-ON-IT. (800-228-6648) If you place your order via telephone, please tell us the name of this BBS, location and telephone number where you saw this offer. Payment terms are MasterCard or Visa, money order or certified check. Personal checks will be accepted, but will require an additional three weeks to clear. The cost of the SpeedModem Combo is $279. The cost of the SpeedModem Champ is $169. Add $7.00 shipping and handling (California residents, add appropriate sales tax). C.O.D. add $3.75. Normal shipping is UPS ground. Please provide your street address. We will ship to a post office box only if necessary. If you require a faster method of shipment, it is available at an additional cost to you. Two day air is $10.00 while overnight is $19.00. International air mail shipments cost $15.00 to $35.00, depending on location. To order using the order form below, set your capture buffer on and hit [ENTER] to continue. Print it on your printer, fill it out and mail to the address listed below. You can also FAX your order form directly to CompuCom at (408) 732-4570. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- SpeedModem Order Form ALL INFORMATION IS HELD IN STRICTIST CONFIDENCE SPEEDMODEM COMBO ____QUANTITY x $279 ______________TOTAL SPEEDMODEM CHAMP ____QUANTITY X $169 ______________TOTAL SHIPPING AND HANDLING COSTS ______________ UPS ground and two day air add $3.00 per additional unit beyond the first unit. CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS ADD SALES TAX ______________ ______________TOTAL NAME___________________________________________________________ ADDRESS________________________________________________________ CITY__________________________STATE_____ZIP____________________ DAYTIME PHONE NUMBER_(___)___-_________________________________ Please check the method of payment: CHECK OR M.O.____ CREDIT CARD_____ MasterCard____ Visa____ Cardholder Name________________________________________________ Card Number____________________________________________________ Expiration Date_______ Signed_________________________________________________________ Name of the BBS where you got this order form: _______________________________________________________________ City________________________State________ BBS Telephone Number__(___)___-______ Thank you for your order! 800 ACT ON IT (800) 228-6648, (408) 732-4500, Fax (408) 732-4570 Latest information...CompuCom Support BBS (408) 738-4990 CompuCom Corporation 1180-J Miraloma Wy. Sunnyvale, CA 94086 IBM is registered trademark of International Business Machines. Hayes is a registered trademark of Hayes Microcomputer Products. MNP is a registered trademark of Microcom Inc. SPEEDMODEM, COMBO, CHAMP, DISmodem, DIS, Dynamic Impedance Stabilization, CSP, CompuCom Speed Protocol, Total Communications Capability, and SpeedCom are trademarks of CompuCom Corporation.