> > > Imagine different front panels depending on which PDP11 you software
> > > configure...
> >
> > And none of them have the feel of the real thing...
> >
> > -tony
>
> Only if you miss the fan noise...
>
> Bill
I've got to agree with Tony, my /73 in a BA123 is about as quiet as the
Sparc 20 I've run simh on, in fact I think it's quieter. Given the choice
between the two I'll take my /73 hands down! With it I've got a *proper*
terminal, not some whacked out terminal emulation (hmmm, is this when I
admit that the system console for the PDP-10 version of simh is a VT420).
Everything behaves the way it should, and I've got a better choice of disks.
On the emulator I'm pretty much stuck using RL02's, on my /73 I've got two
removable SCSI hard drives, a CD-ROM (yes, I've a bunch of PDP-11
readable CD's), and I can use FTP and TELNET under RT-11 or DECnet under
RSX-11M. Unfortunatly to get files into RSX-11M+ I've first got to boot to
RSX-11M, and copy them over (unless of course they're on CD-ROM). Oh, and
the LA75 display printer hooked up to the VT420 I use for the console comes
in pretty useful!
The only use I see for a PDP-11 emulator personally is so I can run RT-11 on
my wifes laptop when we're on vacation (and then I've got to take a blasted
external keyboard with me). BTW, that's why I'd been running simh on the
Sparc 20, I was setting up my RT-11 RL02 packs.
Where I see emulation as useful is when you need a laptop version of the
system, or you just don't have a chance of getting the hardware (and/or
don't have the space even if you could). There are also commercial
situations where using a emulator makes good business sense. Oh, the other
use, in the case of the PDP-8 emulators with front panel emulation, is so
that you can see what you should be seeing when running diagnostics on a
system you're trying to repair (when you've never used a PDP-8).
Zane
> Probably the two most interesting ISA cards I own are an Iterated
> Systems fractal compression accelerator,
Wow. Dr. Micheal Barnsley (the guy who came up with the technology that
later became Iterated Systems) was my prof at GaTech when I took what I
think was the first IFS class ever taught. I worked in his lab for a while.
He started Iterated after I left.
> The other i860 board I wanted was the Hauppauge
> 486 + i860 motherboard.
Oh, yeah. I lusted after this one at the time, right up until we started
looking at how, um, baroque the i860 really was. Did anyone ever actually
use one of these?
A company called Opus made a number of ISA cards with interesting
coprocessors. I used to have an Opus 32000 ISA card, a National Semi 32016
coprocessor. It unfortunately got tossed out by a careless girlfriend a
decade ago (along with my unbuilt PC532 kit...sigh). I'm pretty sure that
Opus continued this line up to the ns32332; I don't know if they ever made
one out of the ns32532.
I recall someone made an ISA board with a Fairchild Clipper on it, but the
deatils have faded away.
Ken
Anybody need a copy of my scans of a PDP11V03 System Manual?
I have THREE more boxes of documentation on my front porch waiting
for me to go through tonight.. Will post a list on decdocs.org later
to see that this all goes to good homes.
Bill
--
Bill Bradford
mrbill(a)mrbill.net
Austin, TX
On Aug 8, 21:41, SP wrote:
> Some days ago I send an inquiry about the way to format one
> RD52 Hard Disk attached to one DILOG DQ614 board.
> The unique obscure matter is this: the RD52 (in my case) must
> be jumpered like DS0. I reviewed the disk and it only has the
> jumpers: 'DS1', 'DS2', 'DS3' (this is actually selected), 'DS4'
> and 'A'.
Older floppies and MFM hard disks enjoyed two numbering schemes: some
people labelled the four drive select lines as DS0 - DS3, while some people
labelled them as DS1 - DS4. If your documentation refers to DS0 but your
drive is labelled with DS1 - DS4, you just use DS1 instead. DEC's
RXDX1/2/3 controllers normally used DS3 (in the DS1 - DS4 scheme) for all
hard drives, and re-routed the signals on a distribution card to select the
appropriate drive. This allowed you to move drives around without changing
the links, much like IBM arranged all drives to use DS1 and a twist in the
cable.
> Finally, I must appoint that RT-11 and Unix detect that exists
> at least one DL0 and one DL1 in the system, but they can't access
> the 'bad sector info'. In the case of the DL1, Unix BSD2.11 ask me
> for the 'CSR'. What is this, Gurus :-) ?
CSR = Control and Status Register, which is normally mapped into memory at
address 774400(octal) for the first RL(V)11 in a system.
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York
On August 7, Claude.W wrote:
> Saw a 65 year old + with an old 386 the other day, for $30 (just the
> computer) he looked like he taught he was going on the internet with
> this...
Hmm...he certainly could, but not in a way that a neophyte might
consider to be "easy".
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Laurel, MD
On Aug 8, 17:17, John Honniball wrote:
> Which reminds me, anybody ever seen a 32000 second
> processor box for the BBC Micro? That's one I'd like for
> the collection (it's the used in all the examples in the
> above programming handbook).
I don't have one, alas, but I've seen several. There were three versions:
the first two were BBC B era and differed only in the amount of RAM fitted
(was it 256K and 1MB?). The third was renamed the Master Scientific, but
it was just the same device with a new label. About that time, Acorn
produced a Universal Coprocessor box, which was a box which looked the same
>from the outside but had just the PSU and mounting sockets inside. It was
intended to house the coprocessors designed for internal use in the Master
128. There may have been a version of the 32K to fit in it, but I can't be
sure, and I seem to recall some technical problem with it.
Of course, there was also the 32016 fitted inside the Acorn Scientific
Workstation. That machine was a large box housing a BBC B or B+ mainboard,
underneath a Microvitec colour monitor chassis, with swing-out panels to
hold a PSU and a 32016 board, with two half-height 5.25" drive bays
underneath, holding a floppy and an ST125, and a separate keyboard and
3-button mouse. The 32016 was the same board used in the ordinary Beeb
32016 Second Processor, with 1MB RAM.
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York
> My oldest is a Minuteman missile guidance computer from 1961. Rumor
> has it there is 10k of 12 bit words of storage available on the fixed
> head hard disk. Next oldest is a Imlac PDS-1, circa 1970. After that,
> a Scelbi 8H, 1974.
I'd be interested in pictures of the Minuteman missile guidance
computer, esp. ones of a hard drive that can take that kind of
stress.
--
Eric Dittman
dittman(a)dittman.net
Hey! I am in Tampa! My wife says: You have way too much computer
junk! Get rid of it!
So, count me in! You guys are in Orlando?
Louis Schulman
On Wed, 08 Aug 2001 09:15:11 -0400, joe wrote:
#
# Steve Robertson said "Why don't you send out an invitation to the
#"Central Florida Computer Junk Fest".
#
# OK. How many of you live within driving distance of central
#Florida? Steve and I want to have a junk fest and clear out some of
our
#unused junk ^H^H^H^H er, ah, hidden treasures. Steve suggested that
we
#have it on Sept 8th.
#
# Interested?
#
# Joe
#
#>See ya, SteveRob
#X-Originating-IP: [63.68.245.221]
#From: "Steve Robertson" <steven_j_robertson(a)hotmail.com>
#To: rigdonj(a)intellistar.net
#Bcc:
#Subject: Re: Hey Dude!
#Date: Tue, 07 Aug 2001 16:46:55 -0400
#Mime-Version: 1.0
#Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed
#Message-ID: <F89i67EKRuYDlrjbudz0000104e(a)hotmail.com>
#X-OriginalArrivalTime: 07 Aug 2001 20:46:56.0050 (UTC)
#FILETIME=[18828120:01C11F82]
#
#Joe,
#
#
#> Let me know what you're getting rid of. You may have something
that I
#> can't live without!
#
#
#> Don't pitch the Kaypros. I gave away all the ones that I had but
now
#> I've picked up a Kaypro 2 and I'm sort of attached to it. Do >you
have
#> any docs or anything for them?
#
#Actually the KPs are pretty neat little boxes and I really didn't want
to
#toss them. Just want to get some of them outta my way. I do have some
of
#the original DOCs. Nothing technical though. Basic operators manuals,
#wordstar manuals, CPM manuals, Cbasic manuals, etc... I'll throw 'em
in
#the truck when I come up.
#
#I've got some software here... Somewhere... It may take me a while to
drag
#up it up. I'm sure if nothing else, Don Maslin or someone else on the
CC
#list could provide a boot disk. Everything else can be downloaded from
the
#CC archives.
#
#>Mike, Bob or Glen might want it, Bob and Glen are here in town.
Hmm. I
#>was just thinking, we should try to get everyone together and
#>have a mini-swap meet. Besides you and me, Bob and Glen live here in
town
#>and Mike lives in S. Georgia and Phil lives near Naples and I think
#>there's at least one other guy that lives near Tampa.
#
#I think that would be great. Maybe we could do it on Saturday Sept
8th.
#Everyone can throw their junk in their vehicles and we'll fight over
it.
#Anything that doesn't get claimed, can live with you :-)
#
#> Can you tell me more about the 6800 box?
#>
#>Well... Put it this way... It's got Dual 8" floppies and total of 4K
RAM.
#>The OS is just a "monitor" program. I also have a complete accounting
#>package with it but never really tried to make it do anything... It
was
#>interfaced to antique DIABLO keyboard / printer. Let me tell you,
this SOB
#>is primitive! It's probably worth something. I'm just tired of
tripping
#>over it.
#>
#>I could also bring a couple of ATT UNIX boxes (wonder where they came
#>from) with all the docs, an ATT 6300, and some other stuff.
#>
#>Why don't you send out an invitation to the "Central Florida Computer
Junk
#>Fest".
#>
#>See ya, SteveRob
#
On Wednesday, August 08, 2001 1:25 AM, Eric Dittman
[SMTP:dittman@dittman.net] wrote:
> > My oldest is a Minuteman missile guidance computer from 1961. Rumor
> > has it there is 10k of 12 bit words of storage available on the
> > fixed
> > head hard disk. Next oldest is a Imlac PDS-1, circa 1970. After
> > that,
> > a Scelbi 8H, 1974.
>
> I'd be interested in pictures of the Minuteman missile guidance
> computer, esp. ones of a hard drive that can take that kind of
> stress.
> --
> Eric Dittman
> dittman(a)dittman.net
So would I.. My great-uncle holds a patent on the gyro system used in
them.
On second thought, no. He'll launch into his usual tirade about how GD
screwed
him on his later patent on night vision systems..
Jim
18Kg, thats nice and light... My CDC MMD 14" winchester drives weigh 67Kg
apeice and I've physically carried those... I would bet the 6262 weighs
about the same (or less) than my 3262 printers, which are 5 or 6 hundred
pounds apeice... but the beast is definetly my 3880AE4, which weighs
1,500lbs... heh...
Will J
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