Subject:   -46- How long can my monitor/keyboard/mouse/Indycam cables
                be?
Date: 27 Nov 1995 00:00:01 EST

  Dave Olson <olson@sgi.com> writes,
  SGI has (or had at one time) a 75 foot monitor cable on the price
  list.  With a decent cable, this is about as far as you can get
  without getting pretty fuzzy; I've heard that with an extremely high
  quality cable, you can get to about 100 feet.  Your limits may vary.
  EIA 423 should have no problems with up to 100 feet either, since the
  mouse is at 4800 baud, and the keyboard at 600.

  Will McCown <will@rhythm.com> adds,
  We routinely extend the SGI video cables up to about 150' using high-
  quality (Canare LV-61s) coaxial cables.  For newer SGIs which use the
  13W3 "D" connector instead of BNCs, adapters are available from
  several sources including NuData (908) 842-5757 part number 6647.

  The "PS/2 compatible" keyboards and mice used on the Indigo II, Indy,
  etc. do not accept simple extension cords as well as the older
  keyboard/mice.  We have successfully extended these keyboards & mice
  up to about 100', but beyond 150' they never work.  The problem lies
  in the high-impedance TTL-level signaling used.  Beyond this distance
  you can use an extender box made by Cybex (205) 430-4000, which is
  designed to extend the IBM PS/2 keyboard and mouse.

  Our method for making keyboard/mouse extensions is to buy 6' IBM PS/2
  keyboard extension cables (male 6-pin mini-din one end, female 6-pin
  mini-din on the other), and cut the connectors off of these cables
  leaving about a 6-12" pigtail on each connector.  We then attach
  RJ-12 connectors (IDC type modular phone connectors) to the free end
  of each pigtail.  We then extend the cable using flat 6-conductor
  phone cable, RJ-12 connectors, and "barrel" adapters.  This may sound
  like a lot of work but it is very quick to assemble, and requires no
  soldering.

  For really long runs, Rick McLeod <mcleod@esprit.esd.sgi.com> says,
  Two companies provide long distance (up to a couple of thousand feet)
  fiber optics extensions for keyboard, mouse and monitor:

      Lightwave Communications		(203) 878-9838
      Meret Optical Communications	(310) 828-7496

  The Indycam cable can be no more than 15' long.