January 2002 - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

DEC bus driver/receiver chips (really VT78 docs)

by Antonio.Carlini＠riverstonenet.com

David Gesswein wrote: >I plan to have this all done in 25 years so you should be all set :-). I'm OK with that timescale ! >If you know the UK people need a particular portion of it let me know. I >don't have the time to scan it all in the near term. Email me the >request directly, with the list traffic I might miss it. Actually I only know of one other in the UK, but I expect there are a few more lurking in dark corners. Antonio

23 years, 7 months

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PS/2 Model 70

by dittman＠dittman.net

> I found a couple of 2MB PS/2 SIMMs that I had stashed away and > put them in my PS/2 Model 70, so I now have 8MB of RAM. I haven't > cracked the password on the Xenix386 installation, but thought from > the discussion that OS/2 would be a better operating system to play > with anyway. I have OS/2 2.1. Would that be a good choice? If so, > is there a way to make floppies from the installation CD? I haven't > messed with OS/2 for a long time. Well, scratch the idea of OS/2; my CD has a big scratch in it and is unreadable. -- Eric Dittman dittman(a)dittman.net Check out the DEC Enthusiasts Club at http://www.dittman.net/

23 years, 7 months

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MCA SCSI 11H3600

by dittman＠dittman.net

I have an MCA SCSI adapter with IBM FRU 11H3600. All I've been able to find out is this is for either an RS/6000 or a PS/2, depending on the firmware. I can't find the reference disk on IBM's web or ftp site, and I can't find any way to tell which firmware is loaded without the reference disk. Can anyone help point me to the file? -- Eric Dittman dittman(a)dittman.net Check out the DEC Enthusiasts Club at http://www.dittman.net/

23 years, 7 months

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OT- Job Seeking

by rhudson＠cnonline.net

Hi, I was laid off last november and I am still looking for work. I am a novell network administrator, and help desk support person. I have some hardware experience as well. If the place where you work is hiring my sort of person, please let me know. I am also looking for any short term 'warm body' type job in the San Jose, Sunnyvale, MT. View area. Thanks! Sorry for the off topic....

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> >Ahh -- so what _do_ you call a guy who hangs around with a bunch of > >musicians? > > A drummer of course (as an ex-percusionist, I heard this joke almost > daily) :-) What a relief- I've always heard that "singer" was the punch line... -dq p.s. Would Everyone Here Kindly Step to the Rear And let a TENOR lead the way...

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Lawrence Walker [mailto:lgwalker@mts.net] > And actually force people to learn how to spell without the > use of a spell- > checker. I remember how aghast I was when I learned my sons school Well, in defense of poor spelling, there are more important things -- such as content -- especially on a friendly list such as this. After all, tripe is tripe, no matter how correct the spelling. :) > allowed the use of calculators in math exams. Right On, Fred. ... and in defense of calculators, it's certainly more important for one to learn the theoretical core of mathematics so that it can be applied to Real Life than to waste time calculating things which are practically useless. The actual calculation is generally a mundane, but necessary step. Provided that you know how it's supposed to work, you can always arrive at the correct answer given some amount of time, with or without a calculator. Please don't take this as a defense of the public school system, which doesn't truthfully teach anything. > I was going to > reply to this would-be hacker's input but brushed it off as > more juvenal crap. I was tempted to respond too, but -- and this is the whole problem with the message -- there was nothing to which one could respond. He may as well have said "test message -- please ignore." Regards, Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by acme_ent＠bellsouth.net

> From: Golemancd(a)aol.com > i agree u shouldnt try and read it > ps notice no capitals and not punctuation If thumbing your nose at this group makes you feel better it might be to your advantage to find out why. Personally, I'm curious as to why anyone would intentionally make their postings harder to understand than they have to be. > doesnt matter anyway If our understanding your meaning doesn't matter, why post? > sometimes i forget that computer folks r technical people. > i come from the arts where the only thing that is needed is > understanding. Hmm, I always thought most "art" forms required a modicum of technical ability. > i am on stage sometimes and all the musicians do is > just nod or look at each other and everyone understands them. What you are referring to is called a "cue." A cue is not a spontaneous, mystical form of communication. It is something which is worked out in advance, during rehearsal, and it is expected by the recipient. An example would be a look from a guitarist to a keyboardist which carries the meaning, "I'm done with my variable-length solo, so you may now begin your solo." This may or may not be actually spoken of in rehearsal, but it is still an agreed-upon, precise form of communication which is worked out in advance of the actual performance. As for "understanding," precision in communication fosters better understanding. This has been the entire point of the "Centronics/Crescent wrench" thread. > will try and and be more precise. i guess here that is needed. I think most people here would be happy if you just were a little less sloppy in your presentation, so that we can get a better idea of what you're trying to say. And if we don't like what you're saying we can always call you an ASS and be done with it ;>) Glen 0/0

23 years, 7 months

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Any AMIGA users?

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) [mailto:cisin@xenosoft.com] > IRRELEVANT. > The discussion was how to make an Amiga disk using a PC. > It can not be done with the stock PC hardware. > Somebody said that it could be done with the stock PC, by using Linux. > THAT IS WRONG. Well, you don't have to shout. :) That statement would obviously be incorrect. (I admit that I missed this assertion the first time around) It can _possibly_ be done with a modified peesee, and it can probably be done with a couple of other machines unmodified (but still using linux and the normal floppy drivers). > The "standard linux floppy disk driver" will operate the > Catweasel card? > (It is NOT a floppy disk controller in terms of BIOS level > interaction.) I was under the impression that it would drive a catweasel card. I was not aware that the card was significantly different than other (normal peesee) floppy interfaces, though, so perhaps I got the wrong idea from somewhere. On the other hand, the linux "floppy driver" is, as I understand it, actually a collection of drivers, and the same code-base may actually be used to handle all manner of strange disk/drive setups. > Or > The "standard linux floppy disk driver" will do stuff that is > impossible > with the PC hardware, without needing the Catweasel? Obviously not. :) Well, not if you're running linux on "PC hardware." If you're running linux on, for instance, a Macintosh, it will read and write 400 and 800k mac disks, which is impossible on "PC hardware." ;) (Let's not get into that again, though...) > It WOULD be possible to write a floppy disk driver for Linux > that could > make use of the Catweasel. But it has, apparently NOT been done, and > therefore suggestions of USING that are inappropriate. True enough, and as I said, I've heard of no special catweasel driver; just that linux would operate the catweasel controller. Since I don't have a catweasel, I can't really verify that. > > Or ... one could write an amiga filesystem for linux. I actually > > wonder why this hasn't been done. > For use with linux on an Amiga? No, for use with hard disks, SCSI removable media, and the like, which could likely be transported without trouble. > Or are you trying to say that writing an amiga filesystem for > Linux, would > permit a PC running Linux to read and write Amiga disksettes without > special hardware? Well, for all I know, Amiga may have had a 1.44MB format which could work, but that's just a guess, based on the fact that Apple's works fine. > Could you also write one for NorthStar-DOS? (hard-sectored) Given a hard sectored drive, I would guess... (Or what about putting a soft-sector drive in the NorthStar?) It's a pretty normal format otherwise, right? > How about one for Apple-DOS? (GCR) That's more difficult. > How about one that reads 8" diskettes in a 5.25" drive? > (Maybe trimming > the edges, and not being able to read some outer tracks :-) Actually you might be able to get by with it in a high density drive, given some way of attaching the disk to the "spindle" of the drive, and provided that you didn't really want to keep the disk anyway (or possibly the drive!), and if you were willing to write mind-numbingly useless special-purpose software. Otherwise, I hear that CompatiCard will drive an 8" floppy ;) Regards, Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 7 months

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Crescent wrenches (was: Nomenclature (was: NEXT Color Printerfind

by acme_ent＠bellsouth.net

> From: Douglas Quebbeman <dhquebbeman(a)theestopinalgroup.com> > Heh. Mexican speed wrench... Funny, I've always heard it referred to as a *Kentucky* speed wrench ;>) Glen 0/0

23 years, 7 months

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Connectors (was: NEXT Color Printer find

by CLeyson＠aol.com

In a message dated 31/12/01 Tony Duell writes >> Most of the engineers I work with have never heard of Amphenol or Cannon, >Then I would suggest you're working with engineers who are not > particularly knowledgable about practical electronics. If they're (say) > mechanical engineers or civil engineers, then no problem. If they claim > to tbe electronic engineers I'd probably dispute that claim. I agree, last year they couldn't even build a set of LED Christmas tree lights without blowing them up, never heard of constant current drive !!! I'm not talking about graduates straight out of college but people who've been in industry for a few years. In the engineering department I work in there is only ONE other true practical engineer who lays out his own PCBs, is keen to learn about new and emerging technologies etc. He is, like myself, mostly self taught, and has a passion for this stuff - a rare breed these days. But there we are - pay peanuts and get monkies. > Far too many courses (in all aspects of science and engineering) miss out > the simple practical stuff. Without which the complicated stuff is essentially > useless.. Agreed, I believe any so called engineer should have a practical "hands on" experience in both hardware and software, after all if they don't understand the basics they are of little use. >> On the subject of D-sub connectors I've sometimes come across some with >> metric threaded jackscrews instead of the usual UNF thread, or is it UNC ? > I thought it was 4-40 UNC.... Thanks Tony, wasn't sure of the thread. > FWIW, the stnadard for HPIB jackscrews is M3.5 (metric). I've had to make > such parts on occasions. One HP manual I was reading recently said that > the instrument used metric screws on the connectors, and that a > conversion kit (presumably consisting of 2 jackscrews) was available for > converting older HPIB cables. So I assume that the original HPIB used UNC > jackscrews (probably 6-32). One day I will have to do a search for the original IEEE-488 standard just to see what they specify. I suspect that jackscrew threads are not part of the standard. Chris

23 years, 7 months

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Pro380 question

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

> Since I've got a nice Pro380 with a few options, such as the > decna adapter, what would be the most flexible setup for this > machine? I'd really like to work with this machine but am not too > impressed with POS. > > Jeff You've got a DECNA for it? Wow! Lucky bum! I'd say your best choice for an OS would be RT-11 with the free TCP/IP stack. In fact I think that's about the only way you'll be able to use the DECNA interface. Zane

23 years, 7 months

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Pro380 question

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

> The DECNA isn't too useful outside of a DECnet then? Does > RT-11 support the RD-52? I know that the docs for Venix state that > there's a problem with using Venix and the RD-52 together. How hard > is it to get the RX-50 disks of RT-11 and to straighten out all the > licensing issues? Can you get DECnet for POS? Good luck getting it for RT-11, and even if you do, I don't know if it would support the DECNA. RT-11 shouldn't have any problem with RD52's. As for the RX50's of RT-11 and licensing issues, that's the tricky part. You probably don't want to know what a license costs. Zane

23 years, 7 months

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Intel iPDS Archives accomplished

by dmabry＠mich.com

Well, I just wanted to thank you all for suggesting Teledisk and prodding me into setting up a system that will let me archive my iPDS (Intel Personal Development System) diskettes. As background, this computer uses a 96tpi, double sided 5.25" diskette drive. That amounts to approximately 640k of storage, without my calculating it exactly. Teledisk 2.12 works on that format using a 1.2M HD drive, and it seems to work perfectly. I made a system diskette image and recreated a workable diskette from the image. For me, finding a system with a 5.25" drive was the challenge. I realized in this process that I didn't have any at my house, but I had several old Zenith SupersPort, SupersPort 286, and SupersPort SX laptops. They can access an external drive and I had some Zenith external drives. Unfortunately Zenith never marketed anything but a 48tpi (360k Bytes) drive. Tonight I was able to figure out the jumpering for that drive and put a 1.2M HD drive into that package and make it work with Teledisk. In a former life I had used Teledisk and forgotten how useful it was. Anyway, the point of this post is to offer anyone who would like them images of system diskettes for the Intel iPDS. I have CP/M 2.2 straight >from Intel, CP/M 2.2 with my enhanced BIOS, ISIS-PDS (Intel's operating system), and many ISIS applications (like the EPROM software, IPPS). I would be happy to e-mail anyone the Teledisk images from anything that I have for that machine. Just ask me privately for what you'd like. I think I even have a CP/M Plus that I implemented for that system. All you would need is Teledisk and a system with a 1.2M HD drive to recreate bootable diskettes for the iPDS. And to Sellam, I know I told you I'd mail you diskettes. This is to ask if you'd prefer images. You'll get them faster. ;-) -- Dave Mabry dmabry(a)mich.com Dossin Museum Underwater Research Team NACD #2093

23 years, 7 months

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Can a Mac create an AMIGA system disk?

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

> If a PC cannot, can a mac do it? I've got a performa or quadra just waiting > to do something here. No. However, a PC with a Catweasel board can. Zane

23 years, 7 months

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Any AMIGA users?

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Ben Franchuk [mailto:bfranchuk@jetnet.ab.ca] > OK what was the AMIGA that ran both AMIGA and PC software ... (286 + > 68000 ) > cpu cards on a PC style box. Did that have a special software to write > PC disks? > I saw one once - but it was sure slow! That was the 2000, I think. Slow or not, I've been after one for a while, myself. :) Well, actually any amiga that's newer than my 1000... ;) Regards, Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 7 months

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Any AMIGA users?

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) [mailto:cisin@xenosoft.com] > Certainly the PC hardware, regardless of OS or other software > can NOT do > Amiga. > Can the Linux catweasel drivers actually use the catweasel as its disk > controller for the file system? Or is this an issue that the > catweasel > software (that does NOT work at a filesystem level) can also RUN under > linux? Right, but remember that linux won't run only on peesees. :) Linux on a power-mac (or amiga!) will likely produce bit-for-bit copies of amiga disks just fine. Also, I think it's the standard linux floppy disk driver, which is pretty flexible, and not a special "catweasel" driver, so it would be handled just the same as a standard floppy setup. So I guess you could write ext2 filesystems to 880k floppies if you want ;) Or ... one could write an amiga filesystem for linux. I actually wonder why this hasn't been done. > Has anybody, anywhere, EVER gotten a catweasel to work as a > controller to > do file system level operations? After this discussion, I'm tempted to get one and try. Too bad I can't afford it just now. Regards, Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 7 months

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Can a Mac create an AMIGA system disk?

by SUPRDAVE＠aol.com

If a PC cannot, can a mac do it? I've got a performa or quadra just waiting to do something here. -- Antique Computer Virtual Museum/home of command central south www.nothingtodo.org

23 years, 7 months

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SUN monitor cables

by darek-ss＠wp.pl

> Someone the other day made reference to old-style and late- >model SUN 13w3 >monitor cables. What's the difference between the two? Hi, I think there that the difference is in SYNC signals. The old one had only composite SYNC and the new probbaly could provide also V and H SYNC Look to: http://www.hut.fi/Misc/Electronics/faq/vga2rgb/interfacing.html#v ga_13w3 Darek ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Tylko Nowy Kontakt umo?liwia rozmowy przez inne komunikatory internetowe! Poznaj 100 mln nowych znajomych! Instalujesz? Kliknij! < http://kontakt.wp.pl >

23 years, 7 months

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Any AMIGA users?

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Jan 3, 13:12, Christopher Smith wrote: > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) [mailto:cisin@xenosoft.com] > > The "standard linux floppy disk driver" will operate the > > Catweasel card? > > (It is NOT a floppy disk controller in terms of BIOS level > > interaction.) > > I was under the impression that it would drive a catweasel card. I was not aware that the card was significantly different than other (normal peesee) floppy interfaces, though, so perhaps I got the wrong idea from somewhere. As far as I was able to determine, when I looked into this in the autumn, the only support for the Catweasel under Linux is via a special driver called cwfloppy, NOT the normal floppy driver. This works with Amiga disks (and has limited MS-DOS support) only, and only for the ISA version on x86 and Alpha machines. Quote from the Catweasel page, ISA version section: 'Writing to disks is only possible under Linux at the moment. The drivers are not designed to be easy-to-use. Instead, they are tools "for-freaks-only". You can read disk images from the formats listed above, and single files can be copied from Amiga, PC and C-64 disks.' If you look at the driver homepage, it doesn't even mention C-64 or disk images. There are some additional utilities to allow it to do things with TRS80 disks, though. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 7 months

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Dilog DQ614 diagnostics program first tests

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Jan 3, 8:53, Ethan Dicks wrote: > Personally, I plan to pick something that is _not_ a drop-in replacement > for a DEC drive - I can format all sorts of stuff on an RQDX3, but it's > nice to stick to the right models when you can to make drive geometry > tables in the OS and/or drivers match. Sensible idea. And RQDX1/RQDX2 need the "right" drives; they do bizarre tests to see what they have connected (like stepping to illegal tracks) and won't work unless the drive matches something hardcoded into the RQDX "microcode". > Have you formatted this drive on another controller and scanned for > bad blocks? I know the RQDX3 has a "standard" way of handling them > (well... standard for the RQDX line), so I'm not sure there's a > "factory BBL" to reference Not on MFM/ST412-type drives, no. > or if there is, that the DQ614 does reference > it, but I would see if the drive passes a low-level format on something > else, perhaps a WD1003 in an old 486 that still has the format option > in the BIOS menu. You could also try it on a WX-1 with its BIOS > formatter (accessed through debug, typically). The DQ614P program should include several controller and drive exercises and tests, and a bad block (actually a bad track) utility. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 7 months

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IMSAI HyperCube (Was: Re: Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainfu l employment)

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> ObTopic: > http://www.scientificamerican.com/2001/0801issue/0801hargrove.html > Another Hybercube. Does anyone remeber that IMSAI seems to have been the first to do this, using the 8080? -dq

23 years, 7 months

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Employment wanted...

by bills＠adrenaline.com

Sorry to spam the list, but the times demand... I'm a software engineer with 20 years professional experience. BS in computer science from the University of Maryland, College Park. Seeking embedded development work in the Washington, DC metro area. I know most 8-bit micros, several PICs, x86 and PPC-860/PPC-821. I think I have a reasonable command of real-time programming issues. Contact me off-list if you can help. Again, sorry... this came out of the blue. I figured my current employer would last until March. Thanks, Bill Sudbrink wh.sudbrink(a)verizon.net

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by Golemancd＠aol.com

i agree about the os but i dont agree on the attempt part dont attempt it. do it. a computer is not that complex of a machine at least a pc. an os is all theory and vision. u can think up an entire os away from any pc. u could then just go in and code the entire thing. the hard part is thinking up what it is that u want and how it has to work. the coding and so forth is the easy part. this is the exact project i am working on now joee

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

! -----Original Message----- ! From: Dave McGuire [mailto:mcguire@neurotica.com] ! ! ! On January 4, ysgdhio wrote: ! > > Insert drummer joke here. ! > ! > Q: How do you know when there's a drummer at your door? ! > A: The knocking keeps getting faster. ! ! AHEM. B-| ! ! -Dave, drummer ! ! -- ! Dave McGuire "Hey, who's that behind the band?" "Him? Yeah, he's thier drummer." "Oh. I thought they only let musicians in here..." --- David A Woyciesjes *** 5 string bass player *** --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 905818

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by mythtech＠Mac.com

>Ahh -- so what _do_ you call a guy who hangs around with a bunch of >musicians? A drummer of course (as an ex-percusionist, I heard this joke almost daily) :-) -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by csmith＠amdocs.com

Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); ' > -----Original Message----- > From: John Foust [mailto:jfoust@threedee.com] > And keep in mind that the musicians only *think* they're > communicating. :-) Insert drummer joke here. Ahh -- so what _do_ you call a guy who hangs around with a bunch of musicians? Regards, Chris

23 years, 7 months

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Dilog DQ614 diagnostics program first tests

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Jan 3, 11:51, Sergio Pedraja Cabo wrote: > I did the first tests with the DQ614P.SAV program and my Dilog DQ614 > MFM controller board. This board simulates up to four RL01/02 units > in one PDP-11 using one or two MFM hard disks. I am using: > [...] > * One Dilog DQ614 Revision S > * One Quantum MFM Hard Disk Q540 (Aka. RD52-A) > * RT-11 v.4 > * I assume the vector addresses of the unit is 174400 and 160. That should be correct, unless you have a non-standard PAL at U55 on the DQ614. > The software used is the DQ614P.SAV diagnostics program Revision 0, > and one DL.SYS driver that came with the DQ614P program. Why? Why don't you use the DL driver that came with the OS? The device drivers are OS-version-specific, and the driver I put up beside the formatter is for RT-11 5.04, which is different to RT-11 4.0. > Well, the program starts ok. There is no apparently problem with the > OS environment. It works with its DL.SYS module, with the own DL.SYS > module of the RT11 V.4, and without it too. > > The program startup and asks me if I'm working with a C.R.T (I assume > it speaks about a terminal). Yes, as Ethan said that just means a VDU as opposed to a printing terminal -- it affects how it treats the delete key, and in this case also affects whether it clears the screen; if you answer "N" to the CRT question, it won't print current cylinder addresses becasue the printout would consume a lot of paper. > Later the program asks me about the > access vector for the controller. By default it uses 174400 and 160 > values. I assume them too. The next step is to select one MFM hard disk. > My disk is the 73, one Quantum Q540. If the drive you want to use is not in the list, instead of typing a number >from the list, type "E". You'll then be prompted to enter number of heads, number of cylinders, RWCC (which the manual says isn't used), cylinder at whivch to start precompensation (also not used), and to pick a step rate >from a list. > Inmediately, the program permits > me to select how much DL disks I want to emulate. I can emulate two > RL02 and two RL01. The program asks me: "Are you sure ?". My answer is > yes. The process begins... and some seconds later, the program send me > a message telling: "UNEXPECTED RESPONSE IN ADDRESS 00000160 (sometimes > is the address 00000000). I've tried to change the cable selection, > the address selection, etc... In this case, the message tells me that > the unit can't be accessed. Sounds like you have the correct address and vector but something is generating spurious interrupts. Is there another RL controller in the system? Or something with a misconfigured vector? > Like a final indication, the Q540 hard disk have 5 jumpers named > DS1, DS2, DS3, DS4 and ^. Actually is selected the DS1. That should be right. Make sure you have the 20-pin cable on J2, not J3. Does the drive have a terminator? > What is wrong ? I suspect that the program must be the same revision > than the board (Revision "O" the program, revision "S" the board). I don't think so. The program came with a Rev.K board. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 7 months

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Nomenclature (was: Crescent wrenches

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

I use(d) that one. I believe it's short for 'diagonal cutters'. --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 905818 ! -----Original Message----- ! From: John Allain [mailto:allain@panix.com] ! ! ! Old Boss of mine called the larger triangular headed ! snippers (sim.: Xelite wire cutter) "Dykes". Any word ! on this... word. Is this a correct term? ! ! John A. !

23 years, 7 months

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Connectors (was: NEXT Color Printer find

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

! -----Original Message----- ! From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk [mailto:ard@p850ug1.demon.co.uk] ! Sent: Tuesday, January 01, 2002 10:05 PM ! To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org ! Subject: Re: Connectors (was: NEXT Color Printer find ! ! ! > ! > ! > ! > > Mainly because people think it's just like a larger ! > > version of the DIY electric drill. ! > > right cutting angles on it) then the workpiece spins ! > > round and removes their fingers... ! > ! > ! > They can rip off a scalp too if you get long hair wrapped up ! > in them. ! ! That applies to lathes and milling machines too. It not a property of ! drill presses only, so it's not a reason why they're ! particularly dangerous. ! ! Anybody who has long hair (or loose clothing) near machine ! tools deserves ! all they get IMHO... ! ! -tony Well, anyone who doesn't pull thier long hair back under a good hat, that is. :) --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 905818

23 years, 7 months

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New art-form requires no precision (Was: Trailing-edge compute fa rm seeks gainful employment)

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Golemancd(a)aol.com [mailto:Golemancd@aol.com] > sometimes i forget that computer folks r technical people. > i come from the arts where the only thing that is needed is > understanding. > i am on stage sometimes and all the musicians do is > just nod or look at each other and everyone understands them. > will try and and be more precise. i guess here that is needed. Ok, this will be slightly OT: Do you draw -- paint -- play music? What "arts" are these where precision is not needed? Being an artist and musician, myself, I would really like to know. Regards, Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 7 months

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Kaypro PC?

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Robert Schaefer [mailto:rschaefe@gcfn.org] > I'm looking for info on one of these. I's some kind of XT > clone, with an > eight-bit passive backplane and an upgraded V20 on a CPU > card. It runs > MSDOS, and > currently boots into dosshell. A little googling turns up > numerous resumes > containing Kaypro PC, and a number of old classiccmp posts > regarding them, > but no real info. kaypro.com seems to be down ATM. I'd > especially like to > know what the switch and pushbutton on the back of the CPU > card do. IIRC > it's not a reset button, but I might be mis-remembering. Well, I have one of these. It was given to me a week ago. I have both the computer itself, and a kaypro monitor (in original box ;). No documentation or anything. Let me know if you find out anything interesting. I haven't tried powering it on yet. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 7 months

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Happy Holidays!

by vcf＠vintage.org

Happy Holidays! *<:) Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On January 4, ysgdhio wrote: > > Insert drummer joke here. > > Q: How do you know when there's a drummer at your door? > A: The knocking keeps getting faster. AHEM. B-| -Dave, drummer -- Dave McGuire St. Petersburg, FL "Less talk. More synthohol." --Lt. Worf

23 years, 7 months

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Dilog DQ614 diagnostics program first tests

by CAA007216＠mail.ono.es

Hello everybody and Happy New Year (if applicable). I did the first tests with the DQ614P.SAV program and my Dilog DQ614 MFM controller board. This board simulates up to four RL01/02 units in one PDP-11 using one or two MFM hard disks. I am using: * One PDP-11/23 PLUS with 128 Kwords of memory * One PC connected to the second SLU simulating one TU58 double unit (thanks, Will Kranz !) * One Dilog DQ614 Revision S * One Quantum MFM Hard Disk Q540 (Aka. RD52-A) * RT-11 v.4 Environment tips: * I have configured the Dilog board to work under one PDP-11/23 PLUS like the manual suggest. * I did the probes simulating one up to four emulated RL02/01 disks. * I assume the vector addresses of the unit is 174400 and 160. The software used is the DQ614P.SAV diagnostics program Revision 0, and one DL.SYS driver that came with the DQ614P program. Well, the program starts ok. There is no apparently problem with the OS environment. It works with its DL.SYS module, with the own DL.SYS module of the RT11 V.4, and without it too. The program startup and asks me if I'm working with a C.R.T (I assume it speaks about a terminal). Later the program asks me about the access vector for the controller. By default it uses 174400 and 160 values. I assume them too. The next step is to select one MFM hard disk. My disk is the 73, one Quantum Q540. Inmediately, the program permits me to select how much DL disks I want to emulate. I can emulate two RL02 and two RL01. The program asks me: "Are you sure ?". My answer is yes. The process begins... and some seconds later, the program send me a message telling: "UNEXPECTED RESPONSE IN ADDRESS 00000160 (sometimes is the address 00000000). I've tried to change the cable selection, the address selection, etc... In this case, the message tells me that the unit can't be accessed. Like a final indication, the Q540 hard disk have 5 jumpers named DS1, DS2, DS3, DS4 and ^. Actually is selected the DS1. What is wrong ? I suspect that the program must be the same revision than the board (Revision "O" the program, revision "S" the board). If somebody can supply it to me, I'll agree a lot. Any other suggestion about the vector address, etc, are welcome. Thanks and Greetings Sergio

23 years, 7 months

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Language and English

by jpl15＠panix.com

I am just observing this thread, and have refrained from commenting until now; several posters have echoed my sentiments and thus I will reserve further comments save that, in my lifelong study of the structure and beauty of the English language, I find the use of "sms/icq/chat" formatting, **when used outside of those fora**, to be excruciatingly juvenile and 'cutesy'... the modern equivalent of dotting all one's 'i's with circles or (shudder) smiley faces. And don't get me started on so-called "emoticons", either. ;} As well. I have nothing to add concerning the 'contributions' of AOLamers to the Internet (since Mr. Case first opened the sluiceways)... alt.aol.sucks is there for all to peruse and react to as they see fit. THAT BEING SAID: Since no one seems to remember why we're here - What I want to know from the Gentleperson, 'from the arts' as you say [what form of art? I have studied piano and music for more than 40 years, I am a paid (occasionally) writer, some published poetry, scored a few crummy movies, FYI...] is this: what comprises your collection, or interests, in Classic Computing? Do you have a specialty area? Mine is PDP-era DEC machines. I also collect and restore vintage electronic musical instruments and outboard gear. Do you work on / restore / re-sell classic computers? Do you use classic computers in your Art? I sure do... Do you have a particular name you'd rather be addressed as (other than your 'screen name')? I'm sorry the topic drifted to your choice of communication style. I can share with you that, because a good deal of my professional writing is for three or four consumer audio magazines, and since I provide an e-mail box for readers to use, I am sometimes quite overwhelmed with high-school and college-age correspondants who either 'sms' themselves into incomprehensibility or bludgeon me WiTh HaX0R pRiNtIng D00DZ!!!!! I AM 3LIT3!!!!! It does not, I assure you, impress. My two cents. Please have a happy New Year, and I am very interested in hearing about your involvement in classiccmping. Cheers John

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by Golemancd＠aol.com

i agree u shouldnt try and read it doesnt matter anyway ps notice no capitals and not punctuation Joee

23 years, 7 months

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new email newsletter for classic computing buffs

by mnadeau＠editservices.com

As early as next week, I will launch the Classic Tech Eletter. It is a free, twice-monthly newsletter with short news items on vintage computing resources, collections, rescues, sales of important systems, and events. The eletter's audience is primarily folks who have an interest in collecting and/or preserving vintage systems. If you want to receive the eletter, please send me a note at eletter(a)classictechpub.com. You can see a sample issue at www.classictechpub.com under the News heading. Your contact info will not be sold or shared with anyone else. Anyone who has a news item or announcement is welcome to send it along. I'm eager to hear about your site updates or launches, availability of new emulators, or interesting new finds. Hope you enjoy the eletter. --Mike Michael Nadeau Editorial Services 603-893-2379

23 years, 7 months

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Trailing-edge compute farm seeks gainful employment

by steven_j_robertson＠hotmail.com

> >P.S i hope the grammer helps you understand this. ^^^^^^^ GRAMMAR SteveRob _________________________________________________________________ Join the world’s largest e-mail service with MSN Hotmail. http://www.hotmail.com

23 years, 7 months

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DEC bus driver/receiver chips (really VT78 docs)

by djg＠drs-esg.com

From: "Carlini, Antonio" <Antonio.Carlini(a)riverstonenet.com> I have zero technical info so anything vaguely technical would be nice. I've looked through your list of docs, and apart from WPS, OS/8 (does that apply??) and docs with 78 in the date I don't see any stuff that applies. Printsets, tech manuals, anything that will help me fix it (I'm sure it will break sometime in the next thirty years or so ...) would be nice. The OS/78 would be the applicable OS version for it and that is in the document list. Some RX01/RX02 drive information is also online. The prints I was referring to having are not scanned yet. I probably have scanned half my documentation. These prints are about an inch of double sided 11x17 pages. 11x17 is more difficult with my scanner so tend to be lower on the scan priority list. If somebody has failed hardware I will move the relevant prints to the scan soon pile, otherwise they will appear eventually. (I'm sure it will break sometime in the next thirty years or so ...) would be nice. I plan to have this all done in 25 years so you should be all set :-). If you know the UK people need a particular portion of it let me know. I don't have the time to scan it all in the near term. Email me the request directly, with the list traffic I might miss it.

23 years, 7 months

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OT: Older inventory programs for home computers

by lgwalker＠mts.net

A local general purpose mechanic who mainly works on Ski-doos in the winter and pumps and everything else in the summer gave me a complete Adam (!) collecting dust on the shelf, when I told him I collect computers. He mentioned he could use an old box to keep track of his parts inventory if I had any spares. I volunteered to supply him with something that would serve simple needs thinking of everything from a C-64 to an A2 or an XT to a 386 and that there must be 100s of programs that would be available. And no I don't want to configure a Database program. I did a Google search and found only the newest Gee-Whiz Winblows 9x, 2k, XP, and OSX programs, and while I haven't searched Simtel, out of frustration I've decided to defer to the list about older programs to track inventory and if it also has billing and labour, so much the better. Any suggestions would be appreciated. It would serve as an example that older machines don't have to be delegated to land-fills. This area is in north- central Manitoba,Canada and not exactly a hotbed of technology. The temperature at present is -20 C, but the air is breathable. Lawrence Lawrence Reply to: lgwalker(a)mts.net

23 years, 7 months

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Nomenclature (was: Crescent wrenches

by mythtech＠Mac.com

>Old Boss of mine called the larger triangular headed >snippers (sim.: Xelite wire cutter) "Dykes". Any word >on this... word. Is this a correct term? I learned that Dykes were the square nosed pliers/wire cutters. Later to learn them by a seemingly more proper name of "Bull Nose Pliers". And I have heard the triangular headed ones called Dykes as well, but I have always just called them wire cutters (but I interchange Dykes and Bull Nose pliers all the time for the other ones.) I have NO idea if these are the right terms (I would lean towards thinking Bull Nose is correct, but I tend to doubt Dykes is anything more than an used term) -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 7 months

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Nomenclature (was: NEXT Color Printer find

by mythtech＠Mac.com

>Chris, I suggest that you do not have all of the relevant facts. The >wrench carries that name because Crescent Tools were the original >developer and manufacturer of it. That the name is used generically for >all adjustable wrenches of that design is a tribute to its popularity >and usefulness. Much the same as we speak of `xeroxing' copies. > >Centronics did not invent the Blue Ribbon connector. Amphenol did. >Centronics merely found a useful application that became the standard >parallel connector on printers (and on early computers - pre IBM). Not >quite the same accomplishment. I know the facts, and I know exactly why it carries that name (much like a Yankee Drill). But the arguments regarding the usage of terms was that you should call the item by its name, NOT by the common usage term. It becomes irrevlivant if the common name is that of the maker (in the case of Crescent), or of the company that popularized it (in the case of Centronics). The name is wrong either way. Under the "Crescent" logic, lets just call the "Centronics" connector an "Amphenol"... unless that will confuse the issue as they already have a number of connectors commonly refered to as "amp". I was really pointing out the irony that support for the "its not a Centronics" argument was itself using a term that is doing EXACTLY what the Centronics term is doing... miscalling an item because of a popular name. I guess that was lost in the typing... I'll try to sprinkly more emoticons in my text next time. -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 7 months

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backdoor account for Micro/RSX ? --> follow-up, a bit long

by GOOI＠oce.nl

Hi all. Well, what Johnny proposed works almost, but the information was useful enough to get in. He's the story of yesterday eve. ^Z will pop up the time/date prompt again. Hitting ^C gives the DCL> prompt. When you enter RUN $ACNT (without the CR because I was re-reading the e-mail from Johnny again), the system appends ^U after some 30 seconds and asks again for the time and date. Again ^C, followed by RUN $ACNT and now with the CR, gives the response "MCR -- Task active" and the time and date prompt reappears. So I hit ^Z (according to my notes when I am typing this, but now I am not sure whether it was ^Z or ^C, followed by a CR. To my surprise the screen blanks and the top line shows: *** Micro/RSX Account File Maintenance Utility *** Account file is now sorted by UIC Account Utility options are: <the list> Using the List option it shows just two accounts: Owner=[001,010] L_name=MICRO Login_defaults=SY00:[SYSMGR] Password=(ENCRYPTED) Def_CLI=DCL F_name= Account=#1 Total_logins=39 Session ID=PRV Characteristics=NOSlave Last_login=14-FEB-97 13:41:51 NODef_Protection Def_dir_string NOSilent Owner=[201,001] L_name=USER Login_defaults=SY00:[USER] Password=(ENCRYPTED) Def_CLI=DCL F_name=A.NEW Account=#0 Total_logins=0 Session ID=USR Characteristics=NOSlave Last_login=None NODef_Protection Def_dir_string NOSilent So, it appears as if the user of this system has always used the priveleged account. With the Modify option I changed the password to supervisor and the I terminated the utility. Guess what? The account MICRO/SUPERVISOR lets me in! This shows up: Micro/RSX V3.1 BL24C [1,54] System MICROD 2-JAN-02 20:24 Logged on Terminal TT0: as PRV1 Good Evening ****************************************** * Welcome to Micro/RSX * * Version 3.1 Base level 24C * * This is file LB:[1,2]LOGIN.TXT * ****************************************** $ @LB:[1,2]SYSLOGIN.CMD $@ <EOF> $ I entered "SHOW DEV" and this is the result: TT0: [SYSMGR] [1,10] Logged in Loaded TT1: Loaded TT2: Loaded TT3: Loaded TT4: Loaded TT5: Loaded VT0: Loaded VT1: Loaded RD0: Loaded DU0: Public Mounted Loaded Label=MICRODRSX Type=RD53 Cached DU1: Loaded Type=RX50 DU2: Loaded Type=RX50 DU3: Offline Loaded Type=unknown MU0: Loaded Type=TK50 NL0: Loaded TI0: CO0: NL0: CL0: NL0: SP0: DU0: LB0: DU0: SY0: DU0: I do not know what DU3: could have been. MU0: is recognized because the controller is in the system, I presume. At the rear a 3-row, many (50?) pins male "D"-connector is fitted. I will open the box this evening. Here are some questions aI have. Is Micro/RSX 3.1 an old version? It accepts 2002 without any problem. Are there special things to look for? What commands do I need to get the information about the system? I want to add a DELQA. Can this be placed in any slot? I finished the proper way: "RUN [1,54]SHUTUP". That's what I am doing now. The mail is long enough. - Henk.

23 years, 7 months

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VMS 6.1 S/W Kit

by Antonio.Carlini＠riverstonenet.com

>If one wanted to be "historically correct", which version >would have been on a MicroVAX II during the time they >were in production? How would you now get that version >on a TK50 tape? Well MicroVMS V1.0 was (IIRC) based on VAX/VMS V4.0 with some bits cut out. That probably shipped with the MicroVAX I. The MicroVAX II came hot on its heels (again, IIRC) so an early MicroVMS would be appropriate. Good luck finding one. By the time we were running our LAVC with a MicroVAX II and a VS2000 in 1987 in the UK, VAX/VMS V4.5 was current and shipped with our MicroVAX II. It needed to be upgraded to either V4.5B or V4.5C to support the VS2K or the VS2K in a LAVC (I forget the exact issue, I do remember it was the first upgrade that I ever did). Antonio

23 years, 7 months

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Kaypro PC?

by rschaefe＠gcfn.org

I'm looking for info on one of these. I's some kind of XT clone, with an eight-bit passive backplane and an upgraded V20 on a CPU card. It runs MSDOS, and currently boots into dosshell. A little googling turns up numerous resumes containing Kaypro PC, and a number of old classiccmp posts regarding them, but no real info. kaypro.com seems to be down ATM. I'd especially like to know what the switch and pushbutton on the back of the CPU card do. IIRC it's not a reset button, but I might be mis-remembering. Bob

23 years, 7 months

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KIM-1 (was Re: Cheap Video cookbooks and machines WTD)

by RCini＠congressfinancial.com

Ethan: I may actually have a copy of the Cheap Video Cookbook that I got with the TVT6 board for the KIM that I have (unbuilt in the package -- it's killing me). Is it black with a multi-color image on the front? If the binding is in acceptable condition, I'll copy it and scan it. Now I have to find it :-) Rich ========================== Richard A. Cini, Jr. Congress Financial Corporation 1133 Avenue of the Americas 30th Floor New York, NY 10036 (212) 545-4402 (212) 840-6259 (facsimile) -----Original Message----- From: Ethan Dicks [mailto:erd_6502@yahoo.com] Sent: Monday, December 31, 2001 3:01 PM To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org Subject: KIM-1 (was Re: Cheap Video cookbooks and machines WTD) --- Ben Franchuk <bfranchuk(a)jetnet.ab.ca> wrote: > Hans B Pufal wrote: > > > > Philip Pemberton wrote: > > > > > Hi, > > > I'm trying to get a copy of Don Lancaster's "Cheap Video > > > Cookbook" and "Son of Cheap Video" books I don't think the "Cheap Video Cookbook" would survive the scanning process (or at least, mine surely wouldn't - the binding would fragment and I would have a stack of loose sheets - easier to scan, but kinda messy for later). The guy who gave me the pile of S-100 stuff this week had "Son of Cheap Video", but he kept it. > I think somebody has done a KIM clone on the web if you need a clone. The KIM is one of the items on my list from that era to aquire (got a SYM-1 and an AIM-65). I'd love to see a website about a clone. Was it this - http://home.hccnet.nl/g.baltissen/kim-rb.gif - you were thinking of? A schematic, but no board layout (I can generate schematics all day long with OrCAD, but for a variety of reasons, I've never been able to successfully migrate one of my designs to a layout package, which is why the Elf99 project stalled). > From what I remember off the web > a 'true' KIM used custom 65xx parts for I/O and memory select. They do - custom 6530s - 1K ROM, 64 bytes of RAM, I/O and timer. Handy if you are trying to make a reduced-part-count machine. I think there's been some effort to imitate a KIM-1 6530 with a daughter-card, but I don't know if anyone has ever successfully emulated one. There's a *nice* KIM-1 page at, surprise, surprise, http://www.kim-1.com/ as well as Ruud Baltison's page at http://home.hccnet.nl/g.baltissen/kim.htm (Ruud is a frequent poster on the cbm-hacker's list) -ethan __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Send your FREE holiday greetings online! http://greetings.yahoo.com

23 years, 7 months

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MV-III CPU vs RD53 drives

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

> q2: Do the RD52's, RD54's have this flaw too? > (I have 4 RDxx'es, no 53's) > Are these suckers all Quantums? > John A. Both the RD52's and RD54's have proven to be pretty good drives, especially considering their age. Basically the RD53 is the only lemon. Zane

23 years, 7 months

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MV-III CPU vs RD53 drives

by doc＠mdrconsult.com

Hey, all. I've been offered a trade of a MV-III CPU, 8M memory board to match, and a graphics board for the naked BA123 in the garage. I have some spare RD53 disks, and a couple of TK50 drives. The gentleman is asking how many disks the CPU boards are worth, and I haven't a clue. Any opinions? Doc

23 years, 7 months

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Nomenclature (was: NEXT Color Printer find

by mythtech＠Mac.com

>This is a grey issue. Brand names often become generic. I bet when you >want an "aspirin" you don't ask for a "pain reliever" or >"analgesic", and, unless you are a polymer chemist, what would you call >"styrofoam" other than "styrofoam"? Examples abound: >Kleenex, Band-aid, Thermos (from King-Sealy Thermos), Frisbee, etc. The >purpose of language is to communicate with precision, and >sometimes the most precise way is to use the "common usage" term. You >would sound pretty preposterous asking someone to toss you >that "plastic flying disc." Ok.. THANK YOU... this is the whole point. Crescent Wrench, Yo-Yo, Centronics... it matters not what the "correct" name is... what matters is that people understand what you are talking about, and that means, sometimes the "common name" takes over. Why is it that when it comes to a wrench, people can understand this, but when it comes to connectors they get their underwear in a bunch? My guess is, for the same reason I see red every time someone pulls out a video camera and says "let me film this"... it is TAPE damnit not film... to "normal" people, this makes no difference, to someone that spent years working in TV, it makes all the difference in the world (and if confused when talking about going on location for a shoot, you could wind up with a radically different set of equipment). -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 7 months

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OS/2 1.3 EE

by SUPRDAVE＠aol.com

In a message dated 1/2/2002 8:58:44 PM Eastern Standard Time, jhellige(a)earthlink.net writes: << >OS/2 v 1.3 runs decent on a PS/2 model 60 286-10 with 3 meg. Too had it >doesnt have the WPS though. How different is the interface and such with 1.3? Didn't they make major changes with 2.X? >> it kinda looks like win3.1 in a twisted way except you dont have the program manager window. not many icons at all either. 2.x was a big change in the way it looks. OS/2 trivia: OS/2 had a 'start' command before micros~1 used it in the version after 3.1 ! -- Antique Computer Virtual Museum www.nothingtodo.org

23 years, 7 months

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test-drb January 2002