test-drb March 2002

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

292 participants
932 discussions

Osborne 1 disk drives (was RE: 5.25" floppy model numbers)

by Robert_Feldman＠jdedwards.com

Osborne also replaced the electronics on the drive with their own board. My O1 had Siemens FDD 100-5 drives. I have the cable pinout and disk controller schematics in my copy of the Osborne 1 Technical manual, if anyone wants a copy. Question: the tech manual says that with the double density option installed, the O1 could read/write IBM 40 track 8 (512 byte) sectors, Xerox 820 40 track, 18 (128 byte) sectors, and DEC 1820 DD 40 track 9 (512 byte) sectors. Can anybody verify this (Fred?)? -----Original Message----- From: Don Maslin [mailto:donm@cts.com] Sent: Thursday, March 28, 2002 3:48 PM To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org Subject: RE: 5.25" floppy model numbers On Thu, 28 Mar 2002, Erik S. Klein wrote: > Before you scrap them? > > I'm looking for some old 5.25" drives to bring back a couple of Osborne 1s > to dual drive status. Be advised that the Osborne drives are not directly interchangeable with `normal' 5.25" drives. The ribbon cable to the card edge carries drive power as well as signals and is wired differently. You will need to conjure an adapter to use normal ones. - don > Does anyone know of a good source for old floppy drives? Or better yet, a > source for getting them repaired? > > Erik S. Klein <snip>

22 years, 1 month

Osborne Floppy Drives

by r_beaudry＠hotmail.com

>>Before you scrap them? >> >>I'm looking for some old 5.25" drives to bring back a couple of Osborne 1s >>to dual drive status. > >Be advised that the Osborne drives are not directly interchangeable with >`normal' 5.25" drives. The ribbon cable to the card edge carries drive >power as well as signals and is wired differently. You will need to >conjure an adapter to use normal ones. I have an Osborne 1 that has had dead video for a while. Since it is a spare anyway, I would be willing to disassemble the drives, and send them to the original poster (Erik, I think?). I'd also try to save any cables, connectors, screws, etc. One caveat... this O1 has had dead video since I got it, so I have never fully tested out the floppies... I suppose at some point I could have swapped them into a working O1, but I never had the time.... If the original poster could email me off-list, we can exchange shipping information. I will not charge for the drives, but because they're not light, I'd appreciate reimbursement for shipping.... Thanks! Rich B. _________________________________________________________________ Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com

22 years, 1 month

QL-Quality (Was: ZX-81 Question)

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk [mailto:ard@p850ug1.demon.co.uk] > > >Anyway, I repair my PCs to component level as well.. > Doesn't everybody??? > > No. > OK, does _anybody_ (else)? Yes. In fact, I am at the moment endeavoring to become competent enough with electronics to make repairs like this (especially the simple ones). I'm not quite there yet. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

22 years, 1 month

The Future End of Classic Computing

by jeff.kaneko＠juno.com

On Fri, 29 Mar 2002 13:56:46 -0600 Owen Robertson <univac2(a)earthlink.net> writes: > on 3/29/02 12:47 PM, jeff.kaneko(a)juno.com at jeff.kaneko(a)juno.com > wrote: > > >> This will require lots of work to defeat, I think, as > >> the politicians have bought into the fantasy that a > >> pirated copy of something conctitutes a lost sale. > > > > Even if it does pass, there's nothing *anyone* can do > > about it. Everyone (who matters) will ignore it. > > Well I seriously doubt than anyone will go along with this, > even if it is passed. But didn't the people who came up with > this consult people who know something about computers > and software? Surely you jest. This is *LEGISLATION* remember? It has almost nothing to do with the real world. The only people lawmakers consult when writing legislation, are the people who sign the checks. > If they had, surely someone would have explained > to them that this is: A) total shit, and B) impossible to > enforce. Part "A" is actually true of *any* legislation made in the past twenty years (probably even further back than that). It's almost a requirement. Part "B" is irrelevant, because the whole legislative exercise in this country is about getting re-elected, and aquiring the money to achieve this end. Period. If it pleases the guys who sign the checks (and if the aforementioned checks have the requisite number of digits), it will become law-- one way or another. > I'm not very 'up' on intellectual property laws, but > how can they *force* programmers, both corporate > employees and individuals, to do this? That's just it: They can't, at least not without spending massive amounts of money (which we don't have) on enforcement. It's little more than a game. Geez, look what you've done-- now I need a beer! After that, I think I'm going to practise my kung-fu on this here soapbox . . . . Jeff ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

22 years, 1 month

NeXT Laser printers in Redwood City

by mtapley＠swri.edu

S.F. Bay area collectors, I assume and hope you are ahead of me on this, but: ------ From: ronfronberg(a)earthlink.net (ron fronberg) Newsgroups: comp.sys.next.marketplace,ba.market.computer,ba.market.computers,misc.forsale.co mputers.workstation,ba.marketplace.computers Subject: NeXT Laser Printers - Complete in Original Box $15 Date: Fri, 29 Mar 2002 05:21:38 GMT Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net I have access to a large quantity of NeXT Laser Printers. The printers are complete with all cables and trays. The printers are in original, not their own, NeXT Laser Printer boxes. The printer condition is unknown. The cost is $15 each. The printers must be picked up in Redwood City, CA the first week of April, thru Friday the 5th. The printers will not be shipped or held. The method of payment would be by PayPal. The printers would need to be paid for in advance. If interested, email me at ronfronberg(a)earthlink.net by Sunday. thanks ron -- ronald fronberg 650 - 366-2566 650 - 369-5665 fax redwood city, ca ronfronberg(a)earthlink.net -------- contact him, not me. - Mark

22 years, 1 month

The Future End of Classic Computing

by Robert_Feldman＠jdedwards.com

Well, they could send in the police to confiscate all of your computer equipment and software, and then not give it back until after the court has thrown out the case, which could be a year or more. Try writing much real software without a computer. -----Original Message----- From: Owen Robertson [mailto:univac2@earthlink.net] Sent: Friday, March 29, 2002 1:57 PM To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org Subject: Re: The Future End of Classic Computing <snip> I'm not very 'up' on intellectual property laws, but how can they *force* programmers, both corporate employees and individuals, to do this? -- Owen Robertson

22 years, 1 month

The Future End of Classic Computing

by jeff.kaneko＠juno.com

On Fri, 29 Mar 2002 11:52:46 -0500 (EST) "Douglas H. Quebbeman" <dougq(a)iglou.com> writes: > The End of Classic Computing, and in fact, the end > of Computing as a hobby for almost all of us, is on > the table in the U.S. Congress in the form of The > Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion > Act (CBDTPA). This insidious bill would strike at > the very heart of this community, the software that > keeps our ClassicComputers running, unless we or > someone incorporates anti-pirating measures. I say fuck 'em. Any software that complies with this probably won't be worth using anyway. History has proven time and again that 'anti-piracy' measures don't work. If the 'protections' are too cumbersome, no one will use the product. Conversely, it is also possible to implement 'protections' that don't pose a serious obstacle. > Now, if that sounded inflammatory, it should. It's > not quite accurate either. The bill will cover only > software created from the time of the bill's passage > and on into the future. The stuff we play with now > would therefore be exempt. Yeah, it looks like it's written to cover all of the M$ crap. Don't need it. Don't want it. > There appears to be a loophole for stuff you do that > you never distribute. There also appears to be a loophole > for computers that do not contain microprocessors. RIght. 'We'll never distribute this version of Linux' (wink, wink). It will just ram a whole bunch of creative people underground (but maybe we'll see a rebirth of CPUs implemented in discrete logic :^). > But there would be a horizon coming soon. If the bill > is passed, computers and software being developed now, > once 10 years old, might be on-topic, but you'd be > breaking federal law to share software. Like I said, fuck 'em. If they come after one guy, you know they'll have to come for about 1,000,000 other guys who are doing the same thing. There ain't gonna be no budget for this . . . > Sponsored by someone who must surely be certifiably > insane, one Senator Fritz Hollings of South Carolina, > if you want more information, see: Certifiably insane? I don't think that's open to debate: It's a job requirement, and has been for decades. > This will require lots of work to defeat, I think, as > the politicians have bought into the fantasy that a > pirated copy of something conctitutes a lost sale. Even if it does pass, there's nothing *anyone* can do about it. Everyone (who matters) will ignore it. My $0.02 Jeff ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

22 years, 1 month

DEC 3000-600

by Mzthompson＠aol.com

On 2002.03.27 22:29 pat(a)cart-server.purdueriots.com wrote: > Also, I didn't get a keyboard > with it and didn't see one there. What kind of keyboard does it use, And Jochen Kunz <jkunz(a)unixag-kl.fh-kl.de> wrote: > You need a special break out cable like on the DECstation 5000 2{0,4,6}0 > machines. It has a 15 pin D shell connector on one side and a litle box > on the other. Keyboard (any DEC LK{2,4}01) and Mouse (DEC VSXXX) are > connected to this box. And then pat(a)cart-server.purdueriots.com also wrote: > Does anyone have the pinout for this? Or even better, does anyone have a > pinout for both this and a Framebuffer Console cable that works with a > VAXstation 3200 and 4-plane mono framebuffer- a BC18P? OR should I just > try to plug it in? I want to get some sort of confirmation that it won't > blow up my keyboard or DEC3000 first. I am under the impression that the same cable used for the DECstation 5000 series is also used with the DEC 3000 series of machines. Given that, a BC18P (or BC18Z) is not compatible. Although I don't have a complete pinout on the BC18P, I do know that pin 3 of the BC18P (pins 1,2,3 of the BC18Z) is used for video. For the 5000 (and hopefully the 3000) the first few pins are used for the keybaord. And Doc <doc(a)mdrconsult.com> added: > The kbd/mouse dongle pinouts are posted on the web somewhere. Try > Googling "dec 3000/300x pinout" or something. I looked briefly last > night and can't find it, but it's out there. Having not found the 5000 cable pinout myself, I did a pinout for it some time back. I will paste it to the end of this and we will go from there. Mike DECstation 5000 keyboard/mouse cable and related info --------------- --------------- --------------- --------------- --------------- The DECstation 5000 has a 15 pin (male) D connector on the back for keyboard and mouse connections. There is a cable that plugs into the 5000 connector and has a keyboard socket (RJ-11) and a mouse socket (7 pin mini-din) on the other end. I am under the impression that the same cable is also used with the DEC 3000 series of machines. The part number for the cable is 17-02640-01. For a keyboard, use a LK201 or LK401. For a mouse, use a VSXXX-AA (round hockey puck) or VSXXX-GA (rectangular). CABLE INFO The cable pinout (from the DECstation 5000/240 manual) is: Pin Signal Desc. 1 GND Ground (to keyboard socket) 2 KEY.TX Keyboard transmitted data 3 KEY.RX Keyboard received data 4 +12v Keyboard power 5 GND Ground 6 MSE.RX Mouse received data 7 MSE.TX Mouse transmitted data 8 GND Ground (to mouse socket) 9 GND Ground (to mouse socket) 10 NC 11 NC 12 NC 13 +5v Mouse power 14 -12v Mouse power 15 GND Ground (to mouse socket) I have also verified the above info with a VOM. KEYBOARD INFO As for the keyboard, I had a couple of them open a while back (to clean out the cookie crumbs) and traced them out somewhat. Looking into the end of the plug on the cable coming from the keyboard. |------------| | o o o o | | B R G Y | |___| |___| |____| B - Black - Data from keyboard R - Red - +12v to keyboard G - Green - Ground Y - Yellow - Data to keyboard And looking into the socket on the end of the 17-02640-01 cable: (also applies to the keyboard socket on a terminal such as a VT420) |------------| | o o o o | | Y G R B | |___| |___| |____| Pin Y to pin 3 of the 15 pin D connector on cable 17-02640-01 G to pin 1 ... R to pin 4 ... B to pin 2 ... I do not include pin numbers for the keyboard connector because I have found on-line references to some of this info and in some cases the pin numbers differ. Your mileage may vary. MOUSE INFO As for the mouse, you will find the pinouts below and the signals. Please note that the pin numbers may not be the official DEC numbers. Here again, I have seen on-line references to some of this info and the pin numbers differ. Looking into the plug coming from the mouse: 5 6 7 o o o 4 o === o 1 o o 3 2 1 - -12v 2 - Data to mouse 3 - Ground 4 - Data from mouse 5 - +5v 6 - nc 7 - nc And looking at the socket on a machine or end of the 17-02640-01 cable: 7 6 5 o o o 1 o === o 4 o o 2 3 Pin 1 to pin 14 of the 15 pin D connector on cable 17-02640-01 2 to pin 6 ... 3 to pins 8, 9, & 15 ... 4 to pin 7 ... 5 to pin 13 ... 6 nc 7 nc

22 years, 1 month

DEC field veterans: what's KA64A's self test #21?

by Antonio.Carlini＠riverstonenet.com

> Ethan Dicks wrote: > >--- "Carlini, Antonio" <Antonio.Carlini(a)riverstonenet.com> wrote: >> To verify (for sure) you should have >> the yellow LED off (self-test failed) >> and the red LEDs below that >> reading OFF, ON, OFF, OFF, OFF, OFF, ON >> (which is 21 in BCD - no, I don't know why!) > >What doesn't make sense? The use of BCD ... what's wrong with good old binary! I guess they were trying to make it easier for the hard of counting. Antonio

22 years, 1 month

Free Cipher M990 manual

by pcw＠mesanet.com

Came upon this manual and dont see I'll ever need it This is for a Cipher M990 9 track tape drive manual has complete schematics and maintenance info interesting machine, has both a Zilog 8002 and a 16 bit bit-slice processor in it... Free for shipping costs Peter Wallace Mesa Electronics

22 years, 1 month

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test-drb March 2002