4 ms·

Most computers from 1990 didn’t have built-in ethernet or native support for TCP/IP, though, so you would have to buy and install both of them.

kalleboo 2y ago
1990 might be a bit early but from 1991 Apple started putting Ethernet in their Macs as standard edit: I phrased this poorly, all Macs didn't have it as standard but what I meant to say is they started releasing Macs that had it as standard, starting from the mid-range (Centris) and up, the point is just Ethernet had stopped being a niche technology
- Philadelphia 2y ago
  Maybe one or two of them, but I had Macs in 1991, and much later, and they didn’t have built-in Ethernet. You would use a dongle off the ADB port for networking.
  - clan 2y ago
    You are missing the point. You are correct that thin ethernet might have been the craze. On the PC you would add an ISA or PCI card. So should we only count from when it was added to the motherboards? The point is that the first 10 base T still works if used with modern equipment. That standard is from 1990 and grew extremely fast. Around 1993-1995 coax was considered totally outdated. Fixing termination problems where never fun. A nail in the coffin was 100 Base T which was standardized in 1995. Tokenring and ATM was contenders around that time but lost to ethernet. That kind of backwards compatibility is really amazing.
  - xobs 2y ago
    The dongle was an AAUI connector off of a dedicated port. AUI was a standard, but unfortunately it was the same connector as the video connector. So Apple redesigned it. https://lowendmac.com/2007/apples-aaui-ethernet-connector/ https://lowendmac.com/2007/apples-aaui-ethernet-connector/
  - kgwgk 2y ago
    It seems that the RJ-45 port was first integrated in 1995 (Power Macintosh 7200).
- scarface_74 2y ago
  That definitely isn’t true. Which Macs came standard with Ethernet? I know neither of mine did - a Mac LCII (1992) nor my PowerMac 6100/60 (1994). From what I can tell, iMacs have consistently come with Ethernet after around 1998 and Powebooks starting in 1999.
  - kalleboo 2y ago
    Yeah I phrased it poorly, all Macs didn't have it as standard but what I meant to say is they started releasing Macs that had it as standard. The low-cost Macs like the LC didn't have it, but The PowerMac 6100 very much did have Ethernet built-in, in the form of an AAUI port (you needed a transceiver to convert to either BNC or 10Base-T since at the time it wasn't obvious which people wanted)
    - JustExAWS 2y ago
      Saying that the AAUI port meant that Ethernet was included when you needed an adapter that cost $60-$100+ is a stretch isn’t it? I remember even back then you could get an Ethernet card for a PC cheaper than that.
      - Symbiote 2y ago
        That looks like an "Apple tax". The principle of the AUI port was that the three Ethernet connections (10Base5, 10Base2, 10BaseT) could all be used with a 'cheap' change of "MAU" adapter. For 10Base5, it would have been impractical to have the thick cable brought right up to the computer. The 10Base5 MAU was relatively expensive, I see a card sold with it costing £50 more than the same card with a 10Base2 interface in a price list from 1993 [1]. I don't see a price for a 10BaseT interface alone, but it should be much cheaper — it's just a couple of low-pass filters and some isolation. Even back then I think these main components were sold as a single package ("chip"), so the 10BaseT MAU is two plugs, one "chip" and a couple of capacitors. Anyway, Acorn¹ computers were sold from around 1991 with an optional Ethernet card. Basic TCP/IP was included in ROM on the card, and it works fine between my Linux and Acorn computers. [1] https://chrisacorns.computinghistory.org.uk/docs/IntInt/II_PriceListFeb93.pdf https://chrisacorns.computinghistory.org.uk/docs/IntInt/II_P... ¹ Acorn as in "Acorn RISC Machine" → "Advanced RISC Machine" → the ARM chip in your phone.
- eesmith 2y ago
  NeXT hardware had 10BASE-T and 10BASE-2 Ethernet in 1990. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTstation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTstation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTcube https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTcube Though that counts as a "PC" only if you were rather rich.

kalleboo 2y ago

1990 might be a bit early but from 1991 Apple started putting Ethernet in their Macs as standard edit: I phrased this poorly, all Macs didn't have it as standard but what I meant to say is they started releasing Macs that had it as standard, starting from the mid-range (Centris) and up, the point is just Ethernet had stopped being a niche technology

Philadelphia 2y ago
Maybe one or two of them, but I had Macs in 1991, and much later, and they didn’t have built-in Ethernet. You would use a dongle off the ADB port for networking.
- clan 2y ago
  You are missing the point. You are correct that thin ethernet might have been the craze. On the PC you would add an ISA or PCI card. So should we only count from when it was added to the motherboards? The point is that the first 10 base T still works if used with modern equipment. That standard is from 1990 and grew extremely fast. Around 1993-1995 coax was considered totally outdated. Fixing termination problems where never fun. A nail in the coffin was 100 Base T which was standardized in 1995. Tokenring and ATM was contenders around that time but lost to ethernet. That kind of backwards compatibility is really amazing.
- xobs 2y ago
  The dongle was an AAUI connector off of a dedicated port. AUI was a standard, but unfortunately it was the same connector as the video connector. So Apple redesigned it. https://lowendmac.com/2007/apples-aaui-ethernet-connector/ https://lowendmac.com/2007/apples-aaui-ethernet-connector/
- kgwgk 2y ago
  It seems that the RJ-45 port was first integrated in 1995 (Power Macintosh 7200).
scarface_74 2y ago
That definitely isn’t true. Which Macs came standard with Ethernet? I know neither of mine did - a Mac LCII (1992) nor my PowerMac 6100/60 (1994). From what I can tell, iMacs have consistently come with Ethernet after around 1998 and Powebooks starting in 1999.
- kalleboo 2y ago
  Yeah I phrased it poorly, all Macs didn't have it as standard but what I meant to say is they started releasing Macs that had it as standard. The low-cost Macs like the LC didn't have it, but The PowerMac 6100 very much did have Ethernet built-in, in the form of an AAUI port (you needed a transceiver to convert to either BNC or 10Base-T since at the time it wasn't obvious which people wanted)
  - JustExAWS 2y ago
    Saying that the AAUI port meant that Ethernet was included when you needed an adapter that cost $60-$100+ is a stretch isn’t it? I remember even back then you could get an Ethernet card for a PC cheaper than that.
    - Symbiote 2y ago
      That looks like an "Apple tax". The principle of the AUI port was that the three Ethernet connections (10Base5, 10Base2, 10BaseT) could all be used with a 'cheap' change of "MAU" adapter. For 10Base5, it would have been impractical to have the thick cable brought right up to the computer. The 10Base5 MAU was relatively expensive, I see a card sold with it costing £50 more than the same card with a 10Base2 interface in a price list from 1993 [1]. I don't see a price for a 10BaseT interface alone, but it should be much cheaper — it's just a couple of low-pass filters and some isolation. Even back then I think these main components were sold as a single package ("chip"), so the 10BaseT MAU is two plugs, one "chip" and a couple of capacitors. Anyway, Acorn¹ computers were sold from around 1991 with an optional Ethernet card. Basic TCP/IP was included in ROM on the card, and it works fine between my Linux and Acorn computers. [1] https://chrisacorns.computinghistory.org.uk/docs/IntInt/II_PriceListFeb93.pdf https://chrisacorns.computinghistory.org.uk/docs/IntInt/II_P... ¹ Acorn as in "Acorn RISC Machine" → "Advanced RISC Machine" → the ARM chip in your phone.
eesmith 2y ago
NeXT hardware had 10BASE-T and 10BASE-2 Ethernet in 1990. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTstation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTstation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTcube https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTcube Though that counts as a "PC" only if you were rather rich.