Computer Specification for the Taxi! System

We recommend the following specification for new computer equipment. PLEASE NOTE- these are general recommendations only, we are always happy to discuss specific requirements with your hardware supplier.

General:

The computers will be left on continuously so particular care should be paid to cooling. It is well worth while using an over-sized processor heatsink and additional case fans. The computers should be mounted in a position where they will get good ventilation. Over time the computers will suck in remarkable quantities of dust, so it is a good idea to mount them off the floor/carpet.

The majority of the work is carried out by the dispatcher computer; if any computer is to be more powerful then that should be the dispatcher. The computers should use high-quality reliable components, not necessarily the fastest components designed for games machines.

Some customers have fitted the computers into a sealed cupboard, fitted with n air filter (foam rubber or car air filter) and bathroom extractor fan. This does seem to do an excellent job of preventing dust build-up on heatsinks and internal fans.

Processor:

The Taxi software will run well on an AMD Duron 1000 processor. If you plan to make regular use of the Infomap quotations module, or are a particularly busy site, then an AMD Athlon XP1800 processor will give greater speed, and does not cost significantly more. Data systems using the RS Delta data-head are supplied with a moving map display and this does increase the processor load, so for data sites we recommend Athlon XP2200 processors. NOTE: Intel processors are perfectly suitable, but they are generally more expensive for the same performance.

Power Supply:

Use AMD recommended. Experience has shown that a high-quality power supply gives much better reliability in continuous use. If possible use a dual-fan power supply such as Antec TruePower range.

RAM:

256Mb

Hard disk:

Telephonists are fine with 20Gb – a 5Gb hard disk would be adequate, but 20Gb is the smallest available! The dispatcher computer will be OK with 20Gb, but see the recomendations on RAID below.

Network Card:

We recommend 3COM 100Mb cards. Cheaper cards have proved unreliable.

Graphics card:

There is no need for 3D graphics, indeed it is a good idea to avoid high-power graphics cards as they generate un-necessay heat. S3 VIRGE MX are OK and cost under £10.

Monitor:

Recommend 17" LCD on the dispatcher, 15" LCD on the telephonists.

Keyboard:

Recommend Cherry or other high quality keyboard. If possible select keyboards which do not have power/sleep keys or other multimedia functions. Memorex MX5050 have proved cheap and reliable.

Mouse:

Mechanical mice are extremely prone to ‘gumming up’ so we recommend optical mice. The mice are not used much, and cheap optical mice seem to be just as reliable as expensive ones!

CD drive:

Although not essential it is a good idea to have a cheap CD drive on each machine.

Modem:

The least-used telephonist computer must have a modem fitted.

If you want to use the Taxi! Voice Ring-Back facility then the dispatcher computer must also have a Multitech voice modem fitted (Lucent chipset model only)

Sound Card and speakers:

The dispatcher computer should have a cheap sound card and mains-powered speakers. The sound quality is completely unimportant so get small speakers that will not take up too much desk space.

Serial ports:

The dispatcher computer must have 2 RS232 serial ports (one to interface to the radio, one to interface to the telephone system). Check this, many current motherboards only include 1 serial port.

If you want to use the text-message facility then an extra (3rd) serial port is required on the dispatcher computer.

RAID:

For larger sites we recommend that the dispatch computer is fitted with two hard disks, connected to a RAID controller (eg adaptec 1200 IDE) set for mirroring. One of the drives should be in a high-quality removable drawer. Another of the computers (the ‘Backup dispatcher’) should be an identical machine, but without RAID card, and its single hard drive should be mounted in a drawer. If the dispatch computer fails for any reason then the drawers can be swapped and the ‘Backup Dispatcher’ can then be used. If this set-up is desired then the cables from the radio system, phone system, and SMS phone (where fitted) should be routed through switch boxes.

Windows 98 osr2

Although the Taxi! software will run under windows 98, 2000, XP I recommend windows 98 osr2. I do not recommend Windows me or NT. Although 98 is more prone to random crashes than XP, when it does crash it is particularly easy to recover!

Network Hub:

If you only use 2 computers then they can be networked without a hub (using a ‘crossover’ cable), but to allow for future expansion and to simplify on-site software upgrades I recommend that a hub is fitted from the outset. I recommend 3COM 100Mb hubs.

Network cables will be required, lengths to suit the installation.