I don’t know what’s changed but I’m receiving the cctech digests as a collection of mime attachments now. I’m using an iPad and used to just get a lengthy plain email. The mime attachments are a real PITA to try to read!
Can anything be done?
Thanks, Bob
Hello Classic fans,
Recently eBay seller smhelectronics261 posted a very interesting
prototype board: https://www.ebay.com/itm/295087630609
The description is "Dec Digital PRO 350/380 Professional Microvax II
Proto 54-16707 Collectors", and the board art mentions "MICROVAX SOFTCARD."
Does anyone know anything about this card? Especially curious is the
daughtercard connector: is it just for RAM expansion or is the
daughtercard necessary for card operation?
The photographs are fuzzy, but the more recent chip date I can see is
8536 (on one of the QFPs). This puts the board in the time period of
the MicroVAX II development.
The internal "MicroVAX Business Plan"
(http://bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/vax/610/memos/Microvax_Business_Plan_Dec83.pdf)
mentions a "Meteor" project (p. 11). It describes Meteor as:
Meteor is Digital's first single-user MicroVAX product. Developed
within Low End Engineering, the product is positioned as a strong
competitor in the low end, technical/scientific and the high end
office/business graphics workstation market. Meteor should be an
effective follow-on product to the Professional Series and high end
VAX/Seahorse workstations. Although not a replacement product per
se, Meteor represents a clear migration path for PRO users upward in
functionality, and for VAX Workstation applications downward to a
lower cost, single user design.
Does anyone know if this board is Meteor?
I'll be bidding on the board, but given how pricey CTI boards have
gotten recently (a DECNA card from the same seller recently sold for
$422.99), I probably won't win. If the winner of the auction reads
this, could they please contact me? I'd like to collect an image of the
boot ROM from the board, if possible.
Thanks.
--Bjoren
Heath h-100 h-200 computer added to SMECC with discs books etc anyone else running one like this? Ours is version with built in keyboard builtin dual floppies 8085 plus 8888 and monitor is separate unit sitting on top...Ed# P.S. We never got the H89 that was headed our way.... some guy absconded with it I guess... alas.... so once we get that think we have THE SET except for the analog computers that Heath Produced ( still looking??? Help???)
Folks,
I've belatedly realized that it's going to be a bit of a headache to
implement the old cctalk/cctech crossposting duality under the new
version of mailman.
I seem to recall a discussion about retiring the cctech list and just
continuing with cctalk, and that the consensus was in favor of that.
I'll call this message a consent agenda indicating that I plan to do
that, unless there's loud outcry.
De
Google turns up very little specific information on either of these devices, e.g. nil return from bit savers.
The best leads I have are:
- The UTR 700 was badge engineered by Ferranti into FM1600B systems, one of which fetched up at the Centre for Computer History, Cambridge, England; perhaps with documentation. Also, as it was used in government systems some maintenance documentation may have fetched up in the PRO, at Kew.
- Some Facit 4060 documentation, for the 4060, its 4061 & 4063 chums and the 5106 interface, look to be lodged in Box 52 of the ICL Collection at the Science Museum Library.
The UTR 700 reader looks to be parallel interfaced, 10 single ended outputs from an interface card. The jokes start with manufacturer codes, rather than OEM part numbers on the 14 pin DIL ICs. However, a little scope work should identify tape out, data 0..7 and strobe lines. More interesting questions are lubrication and capacitor replacement - where a schematic would be a great assistance in deciding how to proceed. etc etc
The Facit 4060 punch contains no more than the electro-mechanical mechanism : AC drive motor, solenoids and rotary position sensors. The 4070 documentation (on BitSavers) may read across, in terms of sensor characteristics, solenoid operating voltages and snubbing needs, or it may not. That reconstructing the schematic would be straightforward simply identifies how much is missing, and the difficulty of specifying it in the abscence of documentation. A classic tape punch interface from data latch and ready, through position sensing, solenoid drivers and done logic is required, together with auxiliary indications, e.g. tape out. etc etc
Any information, wisdom, documentation or pointers to sources would be very much appreciated.
To state the obvious, I was passed these devices by Philip Belben
Martin
Closing this Friday the 15th (sorry for noticing this late). At the
University of Texas in downtown Austin.
I have no association with the University, etc.
https://swicoauctions.com/online/26/item/110345https://swicoauctions.com/online/26/item/110400https://swicoauctions.com/online/26/item/110404
There are a few other items that may be of interest.
Note that these are all fine examples of the type of things I need
*less* of :-)
(including, of course, a Tek 564 that I have been lugging around for
a few decades. Does anyone want to give it a good home? Fair warning:
it's *heavy*.)
mcl