Acquiring a bunch of Lisp Machines

Ian Finder ian.finder at gmail.com
Fri Sep 25 19:03:37 CDT 2015


I'm sorry, I usually try and keep it together on this list.
Dwight- your post is a shitpost.

(http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Shit+Posting)

I'm not gonna delve into details, but the Symbolics machines have a
substantial number of unique challenges going for them. It's not as if none
of us have invested substantial time into understanding what's going on.

It's an extremely complicated, largely undocumented system.

Impossible? No. That said, your experience with bootstrapping an IMSAI
could not possibly be a more irrelevant anecdote.

But I do appreciate that you bootstrapped an S-100 machine once.

"A lisp machine would clearly be difficult but not impossible for a
determined
hacker.
If it was designed to run it can be made to run again."

> If it was designed to run it can be made to run again.

It wasn't. That's part of the problem.

On Fri, Sep 25, 2015 at 4:43 PM, dwight <dkelvey at hotmail.com> wrote:

>
> Boot strapping a machine isn't impossible. It may be difficult but not
> impossible.
> I boot strapped a IMSAI with a "DigitalSystems" disk drive and controller.
> I'll admit I did know 8080 code but I had to start from scratch on the
> disk controller.
> No nice little WD controller chip to start with, just a 12X12 board to TTL.
> I didn't even know it was a DMA device when I started.
> I've trouble shot a 20 bit mini with no schematics.
> A lisp machine would clearly be difficult but not impossible for a
> determined
> hacker.
> If it was designed to run it can be made to run again.
> Dwight
>
>




-- 
   Ian Finder
   (206) 395-MIPS
   ian.finder at gmail.com


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