Hi, I have a DEC VAX II System. 2 separate large (2' X 4') racks 1 with a
CPU and Power supply and the other only power supply cables etc. $40 anyone
interested? In L.A. Area, <Torrance, CA> Owner is going to scrap if no one
interested.
-----Original Message-----
From: KENNETH S HALEY <haleyk(a)okstate.edu>
>
>As a finale, self-replicating CA structures were invented by a guy in a
>LANL working group (see 'artifical life') with an Apple.
>
Wrong! Christopher Langton (who organised the first Artificial Life
Conference, September, 1987, Los Alamos National Laboratory) invented a
simple example of a self-replicating structure for a cellular automata
system based not too loosely upon the work of E. F. Codd. The reference
is a book entitled Celluar Automata. The work of von Neumann is collected
in a volume by Arthur Burks entitled Essays on Cellular Automata.
Codd's CA has eight states and the neighborhood function of von Neumann.
It has the curious characteristic of providing a model of brain cell
function, i.e. neurons.
William R. Buckley
A friend of mine has rescued the following equipment. (I don't know HP
stuff, so I'll give a general description and some numbers.)
Two big, _heavy_ boxes about the size of 2-drawer filing cabinets:
Box 1 contains modules marked-
HP 9000/300
HP 9000/300
HP 98720A
Box 2 contains modules marked-
HP 7958B
HP 9000/300
HP 98720A
There is also a large RGB monitor, HP #98751A, at least two (HPIB, so
I'm told by an HP-head) keyboards and mice, video cables, etc.
He offered it to me but I have no use for it. It's big, bulky, and
heavy, so if you're interested in it, you'll have to arrange for
transportation from Lincoln, Nebraska. A few bucks thrown in his
direction for dragging the stuff home from the brink of destruction
wouldn't be out of line either - maybe $50 or $100 if the stuff is worth
anything to you. If you want any/all of this stuff, let me know by
Wednesday, because I'm sure he'll be tired of dragging it around in his
van by then. He'll probably have used up the $50-100 in extra gas!
-Bill Richman (bill_r(a)inetnebr.com)
http://incolor.inetnebr.com/bill_r - Home of the COSMAC Elf Microcomputer
Simulator, Fun with Molten Metal, Orphaned Robots, and Technological Oddities.
On Sat, 24 Jul 1999 19:20:56 +0100 (BST) Tony Duell
<ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> Other keywords to look for would be 'chording keyboard' or 'Microwriter'.
[ ... ]
> I got a Microwriter Agenda (a later model) at a radio rally, and have
> played with a it a bit.
An AgendA isn't really a later version of a Microwriter. The Microwriter
is just an input device, to be attached to any normal computer/WP. It's
about the size of a paperback book. An AgendA is a personal organiser
(akin to a Psion) which happens to have a Microwriter-style set of buttons
as well as conventional keys. Well, if you call an "A B C D ..." layout
"conventional". It's actually smaller than a Microwriter keypad, about 2/3
the size, and is landscape-layout rather than portrait.
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Dept. of Computer Science
University of York
Ok... I've been ping-ponged between NCR tech support and their IPP
(publications) dept. so many times today, I'm beginning to feel round,
small, and white!
Does ANYone have, or know where I can get, the original Reference and
Flash diskettes for the NCR 3450 series system? I don't have a lot of faith
that NCR can provide, and their web site downloads are USELESS without the
original to work from!
Anyone? Thanks in advance.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Bruce Lane, Owner and head honcho, Blue Feather Technologies
http://www.bluefeathertech.com
Amateur Radio:(WD6EOS) E-mail: kyrrin(a)bluefeathertech.com
SysOp: The Dragon's Cave (Fido 1:343/272, 253-639-9905)
"Our science can only describe an object, event, or living thing in our own
human terms. It cannot, in any way, define any of them..."
In a message dated 7/26/99 12:02:35 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
ware(a)xtal.pharm.nwu.edu writes:
> The moving companies that I have contacted to obtain estimates have said
> that the computer equipment is no problem - "just box it up". It sounds
> easy enough, but I don't know what the reaction will be to 150-pound boxes
Heavy boxes and or crates are no problem to movers, just let them know of the
weights so they can bring the right equipment to move them. Racks will
usually require a forklift or a loading dock on both ends of the move. Use
heavy doubleweight cardboard for 150 pound boxes.
> (or crates) that contain a single item. I'm planning to remove the front
> panels from the lights-and-switches equipped minis for transport and may
> remove boards and/or PSUs to lighten individual machines if necessary.
> Does anyone have other suggestions for dealing with unwieldy items such as
> rack-mountable equipment and workstation monitors in a long-distance move?
Consider a company that specializes in moving computer equipment. They use
"air ride" trailers that are more shock absorbent and their drivers are
trained in computer friendly driving. I have been able to ship equipment in
racks with just a blanket thrown over it with these specialty movers.
Request an "air ride trailer" anyway. Use padding and cardboard to protect
front panels. Park all hard drives, check their mounting bolts and check
their slide mounting bolts to the frame. It is especially important to check
the rack mounting bolts and screws. We lost 30% of an Amdahl drive array when
the drives shook loose of the frames due to a rough stretch of Interstate
I-5. It tripped their shockwatches. This is where an "air ride " trailer
would have been valuable.
Two complete layers of large bubble wrap is sufficient for heavy plastic
printers and terminals (i.e., TI 810s, Wyse 50s, etc.) when contained in a
box. If you have a lot to ship consider buying a large roll of bubble wrap at
a commercial packing supplier. I get a 48 inch wide roll of large bubble
(about 5 feet in diameter) for $80 from a supplier of discount cardboard box
supplier. I like the stuff that is perforated every 12 inches if they have it
in stock. Put a stick through the core and hang it from the ceiling so it
unrolls easy.
If you just rent space in a trailer sit down with a pad of graph paper to
sketch out your layout in advance. Measure all the racks, boxes and pieces so
you can fit them on the floor of the trailer. Some people like to cut out the
pieces to make the easier to rearrange. Make note of top-heavy racks. These
will be need to be lashed to the side walls of the trailer. After rolling in
any equipment on wheels, lower the adjustable levelers so they won't roll.
Protect with cardboard and tie each to the walls. If you use commercial
movers they will do all of this. You do need to tell them about top-heavy
racks.
Consider packing the workstation monitors upside down in a box with large
bubble. Cut a collar of bubble wrap to fill the space between the base and
the monitor in any case. If you have several consider packing them in a
cardboard Gaylord. This is a heavy cardboard box the size of a pallet,
approximately 40" X 42" X 4' to 6' height. These are usually available from
the same place I get bubble wrap. Put the box on a pallet before you pack it.
Strap it to the pallet after you fill it.
Remember Force = Mass X Acceleration. Also that Mass wants to travel in a
straight line. Both of these are germane to packing a trailer.
Good luck
Paxton
Now, cellular automata is my field. John von Neumann invented cellular
automata at the suggestion of Stanislav Ulam, when the two worked at the
Los Alamos National Laboratories in the 1940's. See von Neumann's work,
The Theory of Self-Reproducing Automata, and the book by Arthur Burks,
Cellular Automata.
John Horton Conway invented life as an alternative example of von Neumann's
work. There is also the cellular automata invented by E. F. Codd. The
game of life was first described in the October 1970 issue of Scientific
American.
William R. Buckley
-----Original Message-----
From: Hans B Pufal <hansp(a)digiweb.com>
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
<classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu>
Date: Sunday, July 25, 1999 6:55 PM
Subject: Re: Conway's "Game of Life" ... when invented?
>ss(a)allegro.com wrote:
>
>> I was wondering if anyone knows when John Conway invented "life". The
>> best I've found on the web is "1960s".
>>
>> But...I just saw a movie, "Ocean's Eleven" (starring Frank Sinatra and
the
>> rest of the Rat Pack) ... and I'd swear that the start of the credits
looks a lot
>> like a run of life (i.e., several generations of display in the cellular
automata
>> game) at the beginning, which then segues into pseudo-Vegas neon signs.
>>
>> The movie is credited as being in 1960.
>
>>From <http://home.earthlink.net/~hilery/life/intro.htm#The Game of Life>
>:
>
>"In the early seventies, the only references to Conway's work were those
>originally given in Martin Gardner's "Mathematical Games" column in the
>October 1970 and February 1971 issues of Scientific American."
>
>I think that Conway developed the game just prior to its publication in
>Scientific American so seeing it in a film dated 1960 is unlikely. What
>you saw may have been a different cellular automatom, these were
>investigated if not discovered by von Neumann in the '50's.
>
>Regards,
>
>_---_--__-_-_----__-_----_-__-__-_-___--_-__--___-__----__--_--__-___-
>Hans B Pufal Comprehensive Computer Catalogue
><mailto:hansp@digiweb.com> <http://digiweb.com/~hansp/ccc>
Thanks to all who responded to the memory parity problems I was having on
the 2100. I have gotten further...I'll share the info in case anyone else
runs across this... basically all memory needs to be cleared. Note - this
applies to the 2100's, not the 21MX's.
Take off the front panel cover by removing the 4 allen head screws. Turn on
the power, and select the M register. Press clear display, then hit memory
display and clear display again (ie. set location 0 to 0) <grin>. On the
lower left of the front panel board is a switch, move it right. Then move
the switch on the upper right of the front panel board right too. Finally
hit the INC M switch. This clears all 17 bits of all memory present in the
system (16 data + 1 parity bit). Move the two switches back left and button
her up. I believe the two switches are instruction lock and step lock IIRC.
Suddenly the memory test is working well now. I'm swapping 8k boards one at
a time to locate any bad ones.
Back on the 4070 punch..... The standard HP punch (I forget the model, 2785
or something comes to mind) used an 8 bit duplex register board. If the guy
I got this facit 4070 from really did use it on the HP at least, I wonder if
it was hooked up to the 8bit duplex board like the normal HP 2748B paper
tape reader was. Just a thought....
Thanks for all the help folks!
Jay West
Car boot sale (flea market) yesterday.
Someone wanted 80 pounds (about $125 US) for an Amstrad NC200 laptop. Manual is
copyright 1992, CE mark on case dated 1993, so not quite a classic, but...
Rather a nice machine - screen looked like about 80*8 (I didn't count) or 80*10
characters, all pixels addressable. Processor probably Z80 (*) - the manual
wasn't very informative, and the owner wouldn't let me dismantle it :-(
Has a strange custom spreadsheet, a word processor, a VT52 emulator and a port
of BBC BASIC in ROM, and 128K bytes of RAM.
Since the owner wouldn't take offers, I didn't buy it - L80 is far too high; I
would have offered L50 absolute max - can anybody tell me what I've missed, and
what sort of market price it has (I'd guess thrift store $10, Ebay $100 but I
don't know)
(Owner's daughter pointed out that another potential purchaser or two had looked
at it and said it was v. cheap. Since they lost interest as soon as I told them
it wasn't PC compatible, I didn't read too much into that. Heck, you can get a
386 laptop for L80 without difficulty...)
Philip.
(*) I finally found that the port of BBC BASIC includes a Z80 assembler instead
of the usual 6502. Thus my guess as to CPU. BASIC ran "FOR A=1 TO 10000:NEXT"
in 6.75 seconds as measured on the internal clock, so I'd guess at 4 MHz, but
that's just guesswork...
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Aye, I had the NeXT Cube and some other workstations on the list, as well a
whole list of proto-PDAs like the Newton MessagePad, Casio Zoomer, NCR 3125
PenPad, AT&T Eo, GridPad, but nuked 'em all since they're too new.
I love the NeXT Cube as much as the next techno freak, but once we start
down that road, suddenly we've got BeBoxes, 20th Anniversary Macintoshes,
Cassiopeia WinCE handhelds, Monorail PCs, the iMac, and pretty soon we're
buying "collectible" stuff new off the shelf at CompUSA.
About the newest thing on the list is the PS/2 80, and I had to think about
that for a while. I left it on, because it represents IBM's fall as the
dominant force in microcomputing.
Kai
-----Original Message-----
From: Zane H. Healy [mailto:healyzh@aracnet.com]
Sent: Friday, June 18, 1999 7:01 PM
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
Subject: Re: Top 150 Collectible Microcomputers
>Hey, this is a great idea. Thanks, Kai!
>
>I'd add the NeXT cube to the list. For sheer sex appeal, little can beat
>a black magnesium cube.
YES, I'd not noticed that NeXT Hardware was totally missing from this list.
Although as a Workstation that might be intended. However, I personally
thing that both because of asthetics, and NeXTstep that at a very minimum
the NeXT Cube should be listed! Personally I think the whole line should
have at least a one line mention!
Zane
| Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Adminstrator |
| healyzh(a)aracnet.com (primary) | Linux Enthusiast |
| healyzh(a)holonet.net (alternate) | Classic Computer Collector |
+----------------------------------+----------------------------+
| Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, |
| and Zane's Computer Museum. |
| http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |
