Tucson, Arizona-based Artisoft Inc has announced an enhanced version of its Central Station communications processor, which has two parallel ports and three serial ports for connecting printers, connections for two modems, and laptop-Ethernet communications capabilities for LANtastic v5.0, and NetWare versions 2.X, 3.11, and 4.0. Called Central Station II, the processor is based on ALICE, the company’s internally developed ASIC technology, and includes connections for thin coaxial and 10Base-T cabling. It has 128Kb of onboard RAM which can be upgraded to 256Kb or 640Kb, while a new software capability is claimed to enable printer, modem and personal computer connection functions to operate independently without a dedicated personal computer. The company adds that remote configuration is also possible from authorised network personal computers. It is due to ship next month, and will include pre-loaded versions of the Printer Server and Dial-Up Connection StationWare 3.0 dedicated applications. It is to cost $600. Users of LANtastic version 4.1 or lower will qualify for a half-price upgrade to version 5 with the purchase of Central Station II. Similarly, existing Central Station users will only have to pay half the upgrade price, $50, to receive StationWare v3.0 software. Artisoft is also lowering the price of the first Central Station incarnation to $500.
