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Re: Wang bar napkin story [WAS:RE: Re: "Revival" of a dedicated Micropolis webpage on internet]

by Ali

>I seriously considered getting some custom >napkins printed up (bars >sometimes have personalized napkins; 5.25" is >available, although these >days, bars usually use smaller, just to keep from >making rings on the >tables), with just the outline of a 5.25" disk jacket >printed on them >(perimeter, write enable notch, index hole, and >oval access slot), and a >version of the story, IFF it could be confirmed on >the backFred,You should just do it and add a teeny tiny disclaimer at the bottom regarding the veracity of the story. It. Would make for a great gag gift! Or if you want to get real fancy have a qr code that can be scanned on each napkin for a site with more detailed discussion of the events.-Ali

3 years, 5 months

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Does anyone have MP/M II disks/images for the Altos ACS-8000?

by Chris Osborn

I just got my Altos ACS-8000 hard disk controller repaired yesterday and was able to connect the Gesswein MFM emulator and format it, run through the read/write tests, and copy some files onto it. Now I'd like to install MP/M II, but it seems there's no archive sites anywhere that have copies of MP/M II for the Altos with the 8500 board. I found a single zip file which has a smattering of some of the files that were on the two Altos MP/M II distribution disks, but doesn't have the OS tracks, and of course all the XIOS files are missing. I'm going to see if I can find another way to get MP/M II, such as working from the generic version and making my own XIOS (using the Altos listing in the MP/M II manual as reference), or seeing if the MP/M II for the Altos 5 series might be usable with minor modification. But it would be nice to get a copy of the original distribution disks. -- Follow me on twitter: @FozzTexx Check out my blog: http://insentricity.com RetroBattlestations.com

3 years, 5 months

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Re: Wang bar napkin story [WAS:RE: Re: "Revival" of a dedicated Micropolis webpage on internet]

by Tom Gardner

The only person who ever promulgated the "Dr. Wang bar napkin" story was Jim Porter who was not in any way involved with the decision as to the size of the 5½ drive or media size and only began telling his tale many years after the decision. Both Massaro and Adkisson deny there was ever such a meeting in a bar with Dr. Wang. Some doubt Dr. Wang was ever in a bar with a vendor :-) My research suggests customers of Adkisson, e.g. Lanier, and not Wang Labs, asked for a smaller and less expensive drive, with media about the size of a cocktail napkin. Adkisson took this request to SA management. Wang was then their big customer for 8-inch drives. Massaro and Adkisson then did discuss this with Dr. Wang who did express a need for such a drive as a replacement; faster, more reliable and less expensive than the 8-track tape drive used by Wang Labs. It was also presented to Mohawk Data who was also interested. Shugart engineering then sized the drive based upon a survey of the size of 8 track tape drives and then sized the media as what is the largest that could reasonably fit within the drive envelope. The fact that the media size is about the size of some cocktail napkins is a coincidence. BTW as far as I can tell there is no standard size for cocktail napkins circa 1976 and the one sample I found from that era is smaller than the 5¼-inch medium envelope. The corruption of history is indeed tragic both here and at the Smithsonian - BTW, I did send their webmaster a request for correction Tom -----Original Message----- From: Fred Cisin [mailto:cisin@xenosoft.com] Sent: Saturday, August 20, 2022 3:37 PM To: dwight via cctalk Subject: [cctalk] Re: "Revival" of a dedicated Micropolis webpage on internet Adkisson and Masaro now deny the whole "bar napkin disk" story; In agreement that 8" was larger than desired, they asked Dr. Au Wang "What size should it be?" Wang picked up the bar napkin (the meeting was not in a conference room), and said, "This size". They took the napkin back to the lab and measured it. and the Smithsonian says that SA400 was 3.25". Yes, the loss of our history is just tragic. On Sat, 20 Aug 2022, dwight via cctalk wrote: > Maybe it is on a size reduction. > Dwight > > ________________________________ > From: geneb via cctalk < <mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org> cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> > Sent: Saturday, August 20, 2022 7:47 AM > To: Liam Proven via cctalk < <mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org> cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> > Cc: geneb < <mailto:geneb@deltasoft.com> geneb(a)deltasoft.com> > Subject: [cctalk] Re: "Revival" of a dedicated Micropolis webpage on > internet > > On Wed, 17 Aug 2022, Liam Proven via cctalk wrote: > >> On Tue, 16 Aug 2022 at 23:51, Fred Cisin via cctalk >> < <mailto:cctalk@classiccmp.org> cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> wrote: >>> >>> 1) because they need to keep reinforcing until the very last SA400 >>> is buried. >>> > > Fred, Don't forget the SA390 in every Disk II. ;) > >> I had to look up SA400. I'm too young. >> >> The Smithsonian has one. They say it's a 3¼ inch drive. >> >> <https://www.si.edu/object/microcomputer-peripheral-shugart-sa400-disk> https://www.si.edu/object/microcomputer-peripheral-shugart-sa400-disk >> -drive:nmah_334325 >> > > Now THAT is just tragic. > > g. > > -- > Proud owner of F-15C 80-0007 > <http://www.f15sim.com> http://www.f15sim.com - The only one of its kind. > <http://www.diy-cockpits.org/coll> http://www.diy-cockpits.org/coll - Go Collimated or Go Home. > Some people collect things for a hobby. Geeks collect hobbies. > > ScarletDME - The red hot Data Management Environment A Multi-Value > database for the masses, not the classes. > <http://scarlet.deltasoft.com> http://scarlet.deltasoft.com - Get it _today_!

3 years, 5 months

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PiDP-8/I Spacewar on Pi HDMI Display

by Mike Katz

Updated information: I have the Pi Console up and running a getty shell on the VT-220 (as 9600 baud). I start the Oscars OpenVG client with *./sw2 localhost 2222 *I have this same issue whether I am using an ssh shell or the VT-220 shell. ** The spacewars game comes up on the HDMI display and keys 1, 2, 3 & 4 work. None of the other keys work. Original Message: /I am trying to run spacewar (IF-4) on my PiDP-8/I with the video running on the PI HDMI monitor and the keyboard being my VT-220 attached via USB to RS-232 adapter.// // //I am able run OS/8 on the VT-220.// // //I am able to run spacewar running with the remote VC8E program on my Windows box (port 2222)// // //I installed openvg from github// // //I followed Oscar's directions in the read me file from here: https://groups.google.com/g/pidp-8/c/J6rXWg8btYY// // //I did not recompile the spacewars program to use the front panel. I want to use the keys on the VT-220 instead.// // //How do I get SW2 to run and use the keys from the VT-220?// // //I get OS/8 to boot with the console command in simh.// // //Thank you,// // // Mike// // // /

3 years, 5 months

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PiDP-8/I Spacewar on Pi HDMI Display

by Mike Katz

I am trying to run spacewar (IF-4) on my PiDP-8/I with the video running on the PI HDMI monitor and the keyboard being my VT-220 attached via USB to RS-232 adapter. I am able run OS/8 on the VT-220. I am able to run spacewar running with the remote VC8E program on my Windows box (port 2222) I installed openvg from github I followed Oscar's directions in the read me file from here: https://groups.google.com/g/pidp-8/c/J6rXWg8btYY I did not recompile the spacewars program to use the front panel. I want to use the keys on the VT-220 instead. How do I get SW2 to run and use the keys from the VT-220? I get OS/8 to boot with the console command in simh. Thank you, Mike

3 years, 5 months

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Wordperfect 5.1 workbook

by Van Snyder

I have a Wordperfect 5.1 workbook. It's yours in exchange for a PDF of a shipping label from 91214 (or free for l;ocal pickup). 9" x 9" x 1", 2lb 8oz. Van Snyder

3 years, 5 months

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(fwd) [cpunks] Google Program to Free Chips Boosts University Semiconductor Design

by Tomasz Rola

Howdy, I guess this might be of interest to some people here... ----- Forwarded message from jim bell <jdb10987(a)yahoo.com> ----- Date: Sat, 13 Aug 2022 06:12:59 +0000 (UTC) From: jim bell <jdb10987(a)yahoo.com> To: CypherPunks <cypherpunks(a)lists.cpunks.org> Subject: Google Program to Free Chips Boosts University Semiconductor Design https://www.hpcwire.com/2022/08/11/google-program-to-free-chips-boosts-univ… August 11, 2022 A Google-led program to design and manufacture chips for free is becoming popular among researchers and computer enthusiasts. The search giant’s open silicon program is providing the tools for anyone to design chips, which then get manufactured. Google foots the entire bill, from a chip’s conception to delivery of the final product in a user’s hand. Google’s Open MPW program includes an open-source design toolkit from a company called EFabless, which also manages the program. Enthusiasts and researchers have to submit their chip design, which then gets manufactured in the factories of SkyWater on the 130nm process. The submission deadline for the latest Open MPW program is September 12. Open MPW’s popularity can be measured by the number of projects using Efabless’ EDA tools. Chips from about 240 open-source silicon projects via Efabless’ tools will be manufactured in Skywater’s factories, Mike Wishart, CEO of Efabless. “The total projects posted on our site are like 570. That has gone extremely well. It’s diverse, from 25 countries,” Wishart said. Efabless had about 160 tapeouts in 2021, and had no tapeouts in 2020. Efabless provides a simple design EDA tool to make chips, which is mostly about dragging and dropping the core elements inside a chip. An open-source PDK (process design kit) prepares the chip for fabrication in factories. The Open MPW program added recent partners, including the U.S. Department of Defense, which last month poured $15 million into the project to get open-source chips made on SkyWater’s 90nm process. GlobalFoundries also joined the alliance and will also manufacture chips on the 180nm node. The manufacturing technology provided through the project is very old, but it is cost-effective. Intel, Apple and others make expensive chips on the more advanced processes such as 5nm, which uses cutting-edge technology and provides the fastest computing in devices. Open MPW is popular in academia and research, and for those experimenting or testing chips and need small batches, Wishart said. “Our incentive is to make it simple for more and more people and grow a community around those executing designs… [on] nodes that are more accessible to them and therefore lower costs,” Wishart said. Typically, chips can be expensive to manufacture, and factories are open to corporations. But Open MPW makes factories available to researchers and students. “There was an unmet need in academia, that was overwhelming and not appreciated because they didn’t know what they could get,” Wishart said. The open-source toolkits cover the full concept of chip development, from conceptualization to delivery of parts. Some universities may have deals with chip factories, but students at the undergraduate, master’s and PhD programs still have poor awareness of chip fabrication. ----- End forwarded message -----

3 years, 5 months

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PDP Straight-8 front panel

by Ryan de Laplante

I have a DEC PDP Straight-8 in very poor condition. The paint behind the panel glass has mostly flecked off, the glass is broken and it is missing some switch covers/toggles. The plexiglass covers were also destroyed during shipment. The seller very carefully built a wooden crate and pallet to protect the machine during transport, but United Cargo laid the whole wooden crate on its side!! >( Does anyone know of any front panel collector who has a Straight-8 front panel that they might be willing to sell? I’d love to restore this machine. I’ve been looking for local plexiglass manufacturers but none of them answer my email when I show pictures of the project. I guess they don’t need the business.

3 years, 5 months

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Re: DECnet to be dropped from Linux

by Dave Mitton

Okay, The issue I don’t understand, I guess a matter of not understanding Linux internals, is why does “the kernel” require explicit DECnet support? I built DECnet-DOS without any cooperation from Microsoft. Or PathWorks for Windows 95 was built on top of published APIs. Why does a modern OS need stuff built in? Dave. Sent from Mail for Windows

3 years, 5 months

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Unused Punched Cards

by Mike Norris

Hello Everyone, I have just come across around 900 blank punch cards, they are plastic about 5 thou in thickness. Would they be of interest to anyone on the list, they in the UK in Lancashire, but might be expensive to post as they are heavy (430 grams per 100)? Cost a few GBP for a beer and postage costs, if interested please contact off list mike_t_norris(a)hotmail.com. Regards Mike Norris

3 years, 5 months

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