At 12:25 PM 11/10/98 -0800, Sam wrote:
>Sheesh! No wonder nobody paid for the stuff. These are bloated prices,
>especially in 1976 dollars.
The funny thing is, in 1978 I attended a trade show/conference called
PerComp '78 in Long Beach California looking for an 8K BASIC for my Digital
Group Z80 system. I talked to Bill, who was there selling BASIC at these
ridiculous (to me) prices. He told me that Micro-soft didn't have a version
of BASIC for my system. He went further however, and suggested that if I
wanted to come work for him he would pay me with the royalties generated by
the sale of my version.
Needless to say I figured anyone who was trying to sell BASIC (which I
figured I could write on my own in about 3 months) for more than a third
what I paid for my complete computer was not going to be around long enough
for me to collect any royalties...
--Chuck
This is the world's first clone of the 5150. It is also the world's
first Compaq. You have judged all of the specs correctly. It should be
selling for $100,000 on eBay, because it is at least as important as the
Altair. After all, this launched the IBM PC-Compatible revolution. I
would say this is definitely a must in any computer museum. However,
these aren't generally considered valuable. Go figure.
>I have recently obtained a machine that when carried resembles a sewing
>machine in a carry case, marked Compaq Portable. It has a built in CRT
>and is evidentally an 8088 or 8086 machine judging by the 8 bit slots.
>
>Anyone have any info on it, and is there any collectability to these?
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Seeing that there is little on the net about the Exidy Sorcerer, I've
started to put together my own. So far I've only begun to HTMLize
some of my Sorcerer docs. Currently I have almost completed the
intro manual which shipped with the system. Just have the last
chapter and the appendix to do. Plan on placing other doc and info
here as well. I'll also be placing a chronicle of my attempt at
building a new expansion box for this system. If anyone has
anything they would like to contribute, let me know and we can
work out something to get a copy up.
You can find it at:
http://www.trailingedge.com/exidy
-----
David Williams - Computer Packrat
dlw(a)trailingedge.com
http://www.trailingedge.com
At 00:46 10/11/98 -0500, Ethan Dicks <erd(a)infinet.com> wrote:
>> > The problem with replicating the SuperElf is the keyboard. I have no
>> > idea where to get that chip from (74941?), nor an inexpensive source
>> > for that many pushbuttons (including some latching ones).
[Snip]
>If you'd seen the Elf-II schematic, I don't think you would have responded
>that way. I was never suggesting cannibalizing AT keyboards. They are
>entirely unsuitable. The original Elf-II has a keypad built up from
>individual pushbutton key switches, including several ones that latch
>up and down for LOAD, RUN and MEM PROT. The hex digits are latched
>through a (then) standard keyboard encoder chip.
[Snip]
>I was suggesting finding modern parts from a distributor of new or
>recycled (surplused) parts. I further suggested that modern replacements
>could run as much as $2 or $3 per switch (20 switches - 0 to F, R, L, P
>and I).
As far as the keyboard encoder chip goes, you wouldn't be thinking of the
74922 would you? It's a 16 key keyboard encoder chip designed, as I
remember, to encode a 4 x 4 key matrix. Or perhaps the 74923, a 20 key
keyboard encoder (which uses a 5 x 4 key matrix). If some of the non-hex
keys latch the 74922 would be more suitable, because I'm pretty sure both
these chips can only recognise one key being pressed at a time.
Anyway, according to the Australian edition of the Farnell catalogue, both
these chips are still available. Farnell wants $A20.48 each for the 74C922
and $A20.52 each for the 74C923 (plus 22% sales tax) in quantities less
than 25, and $A14.11 each for the 74C922 and $A14.37 each for the 74C923
(plus tax) in quantities between 25 and 100. However, Farnell is usually
the most expensive place to buy components, so I'm sure you'll be able to
find them somewhere cheaper (for example, an Australian company called
Altronics stocks the 74C922 for $A12.95 each in quantities less than ten,
and $A12.50 each for ten or more *including tax*).
As far as the keys go, the momentary action (i.e. to 0-F) keys shouldn't be
a problem. PCB mount NO push buttons (I think they're called D6 type)
switches are available for $A1 each in small quantities. Alternatively you
could use a hex keypad. Farnell lists one for $A14.72 (plus tax) in small
quantities, so once again I'm sure you could find one even cheaper. That
would only leave four of the relatively expensive latching switches to buy.
Depending on the price, I'd probably be interested in one of these little
machines too.
Regards,
| Scott McLauchlan |E-Mail: scott(a)cts.canberra.edu.au |
| Network Services Team |Phone : +61 2 6201 5544 (Ext.5544)|
| Client Services Division |Post : University of Canberra, |
| University of Canberra, AUSTRALIA | ACT, 2601, AUSTRALIA. |
Oh, now I understand why you were disagreeing with me! Another debate
over pedantics...if I go by this, my original statement is hereby
revised to 'The iMac is not historic'
>Err, no, I was saying that "historic" does not mean "revolutionary".
>History reports impactful events more than innovative events.
I don't think that the iMac is associated with saving Apple at all. If
anyone in the future is familiar enough with the iMac to think it saved
Apple, I would expect that the fact it is just a symptom of Steve Jobs'
marketing abilities and nothing interesting in itself or even more
desirable in any way than any other G3 will also be known.
>The iMac will be seen as historic if it saves Apple (and that is yet to
be
>seen). And it will have a nice chunk of Jobs mythology behind it as
well,
>which sure doesn't hurt.
>
>-- Doug
>
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>>
>>Thanks to Kai's generosity I finally fulfilled my lifelong quest to
obtain
>>a SoftStrip reader at the VCF. I am complete.
>>
> Naw... you are only complete when you find a copy of the software to
> generate the Causin bar codes (yes, they did actually sell it!) and start
> archiving your software on reams of paper!
>
> ...and when you find it, I want a copy too!
>
> -jim
Eh? What's going on here? Is the barcode format not documented?
If it is, should be trivial to write software to generate barcodes
If it ain't, why is this system so desirable?
Philip.
< > I happen to have a few tubes of both 2101 and 5101(cmos).
<
< Lucky you. I have a couple of 1822 (CMOS RCA part) and a few 2101's.
< have not yet found a source of 50 to 100 256x4 2101-compatible SRAMs.
< I do have a pile of 2114's, but I'd rather use something else.
Those 2102s and 5101s are also 20 years old! I got them a while back.
What's wrong with 2114s? I've used them in a lot of projects and products
and they fine if a x4 orginization is handy. I have 24 of them in use
for a intersil 6100 (12 bit pdp-8) based system.
< I, too, have the VIP docs. We should compare offline to see if one has
< something the other does not.
Sure. I also have UT4 monitor rom.
< Back in those days, I built the TVT-6 but never powered it up because I
< never got my hands on a video monitor. I was just a kid, and a $75 to
< $150 device might as well have been $75,000 or $150,000 for as little
< as I had.
By then I'd gotten in to the semiconductor industry and things like
monitors and the like were less a problem. All that means is I'm older
than you. ;)
< The 1854 is still in production by Harris. I do not think that the 186
< is available, but it is the "correct" chip to use with the 1802. Anythi
the 1861 was useless by my standard unless you wanted to play low res
graphic games. At the time I was building up a system to run Basic or
better.
< else, like a 6845, would be _way_ too much work to be worth the effort.
Not really.
< There is a 1871 keyboard encoder that is still in production. I even
< have a small tube. Perhaps that could be a drop-in replacement on an
< Elf-II replica. I'll visit the Harris web page and peruse the data shee
I don't think so.
< I was clearly never in your league, but then, I was just a snot nosed
< kid with bigger dreams than my pocket book allowed for. At 16, I had
< an Elf and a PET and was always pushing them to do more.
At 16 the PDP-8 was just announced and running some $20k a copy.
< That would work. I always wanted a CMOS replacement for the TIL311 disp
< so that I could power it off of a lantern battery for virtually forever
< It was the one TTL part on the Quest design.
The led was the power hog, the latch/decoder was only a fraction of that.
Allison
> One thing you do do is prevent
> good software from being written. Who can afford to do professional
> work for nothing? What hobbyist can put 3-man years into
>programming, finding all bugs, documenting his product and distribute
>for free?
It is interesting that nowadays, many computer hobbyists release the
source, and don't expect to make a whole lot of money from their
products, not only in relation to GNU, but many independent writers of
freeware. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with what Bill Gates is
saying, just strikes me as a little curious. How much did a copy of
BASIC cost, anyway?
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