test-drb November 2000

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

197 participants
507 discussions

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

From: Jerome Fine <jhfine(a)idirect.com> >I was told that while working on an 11/34A, one fellow from DEC >Field Circus blew all the boards in the backplane when he removed >the memory - seems that he forgot to turn off the power!! My favorite is a Field Circus CE arrives at site and while walking through the room he picks a likely cab to lay his stuff on. Then proceeds to ask where is this HSC thingie. Rumor has it the manager of the site was seen escorting the CE out the door with great vigor. Allison

23 years, 12 months

Memorex/Termiflex One-handed terminal?

by bill_r＠inetnebr.com

Our mainframe guys recently got rid of some big hard drive chassis, and in the process of cleaning up they were going to thow away (!) a couple of little Memorex/Termiflex one-handed terminals that I've lusted after ever since I saw the service engineer using them. I think they're a 1 or 2-line LED dot-matrix display, and they have some form of "chording" keyboard on the front. They terminate in a 9 pin female DIN-like connector with some kind of twist-lock. I believe they're RS-232, but was wondering if anyone could supply a pinout. They also came with a cable with the same connector (also female) on one end and a male DB-25 on the other, which is marked "RS-232 Modem Interface". I'm guessing that you could plug in either one of these terminals or a modem to the same connector on the disk controller. I can always figure out the pin-out from that cable and give it a try, but I'd like to make sure I'm not missing something vital (like a TTL-to-RS232 adapter) that they might require, before I hook one up wrong and fry it. (I know, I could open one of them up and see what the cable connects to, but I'm being lazy. Besides, this way I get to brag about them... ;-) Bill Richman bill_r(a)inetnebr.com http://incolor.inetnebr.com Home of Fun with Molten Metal, technological oddities, and the original COSMAC Elf computer simulator!

23 years, 12 months

Convergent Technologies Workslate

by r.stek＠snet.net

I recently acquired a Workslate and matching printer in excellent condition - still a pretty cool looking unit. The guy I got them from thought it ran CP/M, but it uses a 6803 with its own proprietary 'OS.' The manuals make no mention of the specs for the (missing) wall warts. Does anyone have a Workslate with the power supplies? Since both units use 4 AA, alkaline or nicads, I guess it's not too critical. Also, knowing the polarity would be helpful. Thanks. Bob Stek Saver of Lost Sols

23 years, 12 months

HP 35401A Autoloader Tape Drive??

by fmc＠reanimators.org

ip500 <ip500(a)home.com> wrote: > Anyone have any data on this beast? Catalog sheet or tech sheet would > be ideal. It talks to the outside world via HPIB cable. It's approximately an HP9144 cartridge-tape drive with an autochanger. -Frank McConnell

23 years, 12 months

Electra sim computer (was: Re: "Basics of Analog Computers" book)

by dcoward＠pressstart.com

"Mark Gregory" <gregorym(a)cadvision.com> said: > If the captions on the pictures (very nice, by the way) are correct, this Yes, they are terrific. Gene, tell us where this simulator is located. > simulator isn't an analog computer at all by the definition I'm familiar > with. It uses tubes and relays, which are discrete digital components Well others here have covered your misconception about tubes. But relays are also an important part of an analog computer. Relays can be used to connect and disconnect special circuits like weather, hazards, malfunctions. Relays are also used on every integrator to set that integrator back to it's initial conditions when the computer is reset. What tells me that it's analog is: * The fact that it has to stablize for 7 days * The main output is plotting boards * All of the panel meters I see * The operator's panel is just switches and knobs * "relay/tube" modules are just too big to be logic circuits. * Aircraft simulators need the true parallel processing of an analog computer. (Up until the early 70's) * I really don't see anything that suggests digital components anywhere in these pictures. Thanks for the pictures Gene. Where I work in Sunnyvale is right on the approach for NAS Moffett field. P3s fly over all the time. --Doug =================================================== Doug Coward dcoward(a)pressstart.com (work) Sr Software Engineer mranalog(a)home.com (home) Press Start Inc. http://www.pressstart.com Sunnyvale,CA Visit the new Analog Computer Museum and History Center at http://www.best.com/~dcoward/analog ===================================================

23 years, 12 months

"Basics of Analog Computers" book

by mranalog＠home.com

Bob said: > ...."Basics of Analog Computers" by T. D. Truit and A.E. Rogers, ...... > to the best 37-words-or-less reason for why you want ...... pre-historic > tome on analog computers, beautifully illustrated (seriously) with > pen-and-ink drawings on about every other page. Submit your entries to the > list by midnight November 10, 2000......... I have this book highlighted on my reading list of analog computer books as "the best book I have seen for someone new to analog computers". http://www.best.com/~dcoward/analog/readlist.htm Most books on analog computing use tons of mathematical equations to illustrate a concept because they are aimed only at engineers. This book explains these concepts simply with wonderful drawings and a minimum of mathematics. I love reading it so much that I have one copy at work and one copy at home. But hey, that's just me. :) --Doug ========================================= Doug Coward Press Start Inc. Sunnyvale,CA =========================================

23 years, 12 months

An article on the ZX-81 kits still being sold in the US

by Glenatacme＠aol.com

> On Nov 7, 16:09, Hans Franke wrote: > > > Not completely. There _are_ 2 KB kits around - as you may remember, > > the ZX81 board was to be used with either two 2114 (1KB)or one > > 6116(2KB). Man, I'd like to get my hands on a 2 KB ZX-81 kit! ;>) To my knowledge, no ZX-81, kit or otherwise, shipped with 2 KB RAM, even though the boards could support it. The Timex TS1000 came standard with 2 KB. Glen 0/0

23 years, 12 months

Analog vs Digital devices, was Magnetics

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

--- ajp166 <ajp166(a)bellatlantic.net> wrote: > An older elector mechanical device did this for a different problem. > > Given variables: speed over surface, > altitude, > gravity, > an objects drag > > Problem: At what time do you release an object to hit a > predetermined spot. > > Hint: it was top secret in the early 1940s. I would expect this is the Norden Bomb Sight (as made famous to my generation on "Hogan's Heroes" :-) -ethan ===== Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com The original webpage address is still going away. The permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one Place. http://shopping.yahoo.com/

23 years, 12 months

Anyone have an RK8E to sell?

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

Now that I'm dusting off the RK05j for my Qbus systems, I'm interested once again in attempting to finally hook a RK drive off of a PDP-8. I have an RL8A and RK8E and a bunch of standard stuff, but I've never had the chance to round out the collection. So... are there any RK8Es that aren't nailed down? Thanks, -ethan ===== Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com The original webpage address is still going away. The permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one Place. http://shopping.yahoo.com/

23 years, 12 months

"Basics of Analog Computers" book

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

From: Mark Gregory <gregorym(a)cadvision.com> >Well this has certainly been an informative (and eye-opening) thread for me. >I had no idea that analogue computers were as common and as long-lived as >they were. That last word should be not WERE but, ARE. They still are used. > In the only "History of Computation" course that was included in >my Comp Sci program, analogue computers were treated only incidentally, with >the implication that development ceased with the advent of digital computers >(whether electro-mechanical or electronic) in the mid 1940s. In that course >and in other computing histories I've read, analogue computers seem to be an >unfairly neglected topic. They were not always thought of as computers, hence the neglect. Think servo systems and they come back as those very non digital systems. They may have been part of a larger mixed system like a attitude control system in a missle or autopilot for an airplane. The systems encompassed in the analog computers are around us still. Allison

23 years, 12 months

← Newer
1
...
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
...
51
Older →

Jump to page:

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

test-drb November 2000