On Tue, 10 Mar 1998 Nick Amato <naamato(a)wooj.merit.edu> wrote:
>I have the opportunity to snarf a DEC 5500 for free. This is a
>refrigerator-sized Q-bus machine that runs an old version of
>Ultrix (which is 4.2 BSD based).
>
>There are several cages of disks in the package. Supposedly,
>around 2 GB total storage. And, a few DECprinters (9-pin dot matrix).
>
>And, I'm told that it boots.
>
>Has anyone had any sort of experience with one of these?
>
Yeh, I've got one, and even better, the book for it.
It uses the KN220 CPU module set running at 30MHz, 32 bit data path
It has Ehternet support (both AUI and thinwire) using the DESQA controller.
It supports DEC's DSSI drives (i.e. RF71 380M, RF72 1G) and will mount
three of these in the BA213 cabinet
Mine supports SCSI drives (i.e. RZ55 300M, RZ56 600M) and has an iterface
for external drives
It will support DEC's SDI drives (i.e. RA series) using a KDA50 module set.
It has a serial console port using DEC's MMJ connector
Mine has a TK70 tape drive using a TQK70 controller
It will support the TK50Z tape drive on the SCSI bus
or the TK50 drive using a TQK50 contoller
It will support the TLZ04 tape drive on the SCSI bus
It will support the TU81 tape drive using a KLESI controller
(I think I have a spare controller somewhere.)
Mine has two MS220-AA 32 Mbyte memory boards, I think it supports 4 total
It supports the Ultrix operating system, version 4.0 or later.
This is the same as for the DS2100/3100, 5000, and 5400.
By all means snarf it up.
Mike
Well, since the failed codes I got says the HDA is toast, I got to back
this sucker up, real quick. I only have TU58's on the 44.
I have a lot of them though.
How can I tell RSTS 8.0-07 to back up to them?
-------
I thought it could only work in standard mode, but I will rotate them
and see. Could it be an weird parallel port? Also, what is the
assembly languge command for the line that is used for data on X1541?
(SELECT IN line)
>
>Hmm. Mine worked the first time, after I tried each of the parallel
port
>modes on my motherboard. Did you try varying those?
>
>- John
>Jefferson Computer Museum <http://www.threedee.com/jcm>
>
>
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
I'm interested. Please email me: marty(a)itgonline.com
______________________________ Reply Separator
_________________________________
Subject: digital group Z80 computer
Author: classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu at internet
Date: 3/12/98 3:38 PM
I have a Z80 computer that I built from a kit in 1978 and I hate to just
set it on the curb and scrap it. It was designed and sold by 'the digital
group' of Denver, CO. It has a Z80 8 bit microprocessor, 2.5 mh, 64K
memory, 80 X 24 output to a monitor, dual 8" floppy drives added later from
Bell Controls of CA and a CPM operating system.
Components:
1 Cabinet containing processor board, memory boards, disk I/O boards, TV
output board and power supply.
2 Keyboard
3 Dual 8" floppy disk drive
4 19" monitor for output
5 Modem
6 Documentation
I would like to donate it. Interested?
Ron Slonneger
Peoria, IL
------ Message Header Follows ------
Received: from lists3.u.washington.edu by smtp.itgonline.com
(PostalUnion/SMTP(tm) v2.1.9i(b5) for Windows NT(tm))
id AA-1998Mar12.153824.1767.31402; Thu, 12 Mar 1998 15:38:26 -0500
Received: from host (lists.u.washington.edu [140.142.56.13])
by lists3.u.washington.edu (8.8.4+UW97.07/8.8.4+UW97.05) with SMTP
id MAA24850; Thu, 12 Mar 1998 12:30:10 -0800
Received: from mxu1.u.washington.edu (mxu1.u.washington.edu [140.142.32.8])
by lists.u.washington.edu (8.8.4+UW97.07/8.8.4+UW97.05) with ESMTP
id MAA04756 for <classiccmp(a)lists.u.washington.edu>; Thu, 12 Mar 1998
12:29:39 -0800
Received: from mtigwc04.worldnet.att.net (mtigwc04.worldnet.att.net
[204.127.131.33])
by mxu1.u.washington.edu (8.8.4+UW97.07/8.8.4+UW97.09) with ESMTP
id MAA27054 for <classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu>; Thu, 12 Mar 1998 12:29:38
-0800
Received: from [12.66.3.50] by mtigwc04.worldnet.att.net
(post.office MTA v2.0 0613 ) with ESMTP id AAA28480;
Thu, 12 Mar 1998 20:18:13 +0000
Message-Id: <l03130301b12df1681685(a)[12.66.3.28]>
Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 14:18:02 -0600
Reply-To: classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu
Sender: CLASSICCMP-owner(a)u.washington.edu
Precedence: bulk
From: Ron and Jean Slonneger <rnjslonneger(a)worldnet.att.net>
To: "Discussion re-collecting of classic computers"
<classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu>
Subject: digital group Z80 computer
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
X-To: classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu, Anthony Clifton <wiredone(a)raccoon.com>,
tcarlson(a)ncsc.dni.us
X-Sender: rnjslonneger(a)postoffice.worldnet.att.net
X-Listprocessor-Version: 8.1 beta -- ListProcessor(tm) by CREN
<>> And not so recently starting with the AT and all after the keyboard
<>> interface chip is a slave cpu (8041a or 8042).
<>
<>Well, my 8089 data sheet is copyright 1980,
8041 series predates the 8089. Also the 8089 still needs the page
register as it's limited to 20 bit addressing when it's used with
286 and later parts.
I may add the 8089 was no fun to use.
Allison
This is the second time I've made one, and it STILL doesn't work.
Neither do I want to buy one. Hints? I am using StarCommander and
it doesn't detect the drive at all.
______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
lfb107(a)psu.edu (Les Berry) wrote:
>I know I saw a post on this a while back but I don't recall
>any of the suggestions for preserving old floppies.
I've archived a number of my Terak 8-inch floppies by sending a disk
image out the serial port, and capturing on a PC. I also wrote utilities
to extract the files and get directories from these disk images
containing UCSD P-System and RT-11 file systems. See my web page for
more info.
It would be great if there were a highly portable program that could
be adapted easily to any system that would somehow (serial, Ethernet,
file system, etc.) make a copy of all the blocks on a device. Of course,
some operating systems already have such utilities that can be called
into service for this task, but I think we need something that goes
a bit deeper.
For example, old media tends to have errors. This block-transfer program
(and perhaps its resulting disk image) need to be smart enough to mark
some blocks as "known bad" to let external programs work around the
problem. Various built-in block-copy programs might react to this
error in different ways, none of them pleasant to the data restoration
task, of course.
Most emulators can use a pristine disk image. Some emulators for archaic
computers have developed their own formats for storing floppy, hard disk
and tape images.
Tim Shoppa <shoppa(a)alph02.triumf.ca> wrote:
>I don't understand the difficulties here. You make a sector-by-sector
>image of the 8-inch floppy and store it on whatever medium you regard
>as being more archival. This is done quite easily on every system
>I know with an 8-inch floppy drive; if you're having difficulties, let
>us know your hardware and OS and a solution will be found.
It would be great if there were more utilities that could operate on
these floppy/hard/paper/cassette/N-track images: reading and writing
files to them, getting directories of them, etc.
jpero(a)cgo.wave.ca wrote:
>For any paper based media, clone data to acid-free paper, mylar
>or tyvek. Tyvek is nearly very HARD to tear and very strong.
Paper-based media? You mean manuals, or Cauzin soft-strips? :-)
Laser-printer and even some copier toners drive me bananas; a
little heat or pressure or out-gassing plastic nearby and they
fuse pages together or flake toner particles.
>Also stray magnetic field hurts the magnetic based stuff.
I may be completely off-base about this, but I've always regarded this
as an urban legend, too. Go ahead, try to damage the bits on a floppy
with a refrigerator magnet. It's not the same as a bulk eraser.
- John
Jefferson Computer Museum <http://www.threedee.com/jcm>
"Max Eskin" <maxeskin(a)hotmail.com> wrote:
>This is the second time I've made one, and it STILL doesn't work.
Hmm. Mine worked the first time, after I tried each of the parallel port
modes on my motherboard. Did you try varying those?
- John
Jefferson Computer Museum <http://www.threedee.com/jcm>
-----Original Message-----
From: Charles E. Fox <foxvideo(a)wincom.net>
> Check out the NY Times article at
>http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/03/circuits/articles/12die.html
>
I note that the registration page for their site says that registration is
free to US residents, so will I get a bill ;-)
Although the following page says that there is no need to register at this
time, if I enter the URL given I keep getting thrown back to the
registration page.
What is the article about?
Regards
Pete
