test-drb April 2002

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

280 participants
1162 discussions

Sun help needed... [was: RE: open "dumpster" event in New Hav en, CT]

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

"Zane H. Healy" wrote: > > > > > try to describe the scsi bus and termination. > > > > do a probe-scsi and a probe-scsi-all... > > > > > > > > let me know what that does. > > > > I'm pretty sure that there is a Sun screwup in the Ultra1 boot ROM such > > that "probe-scsi" doesn't work right when "auto-boot" is enabled. > > > > auto-boot?=false > > After turning off auto-boot you need to type 'reset' and hit return, this is > true on both Ultra 1's and 2's. If the auto-boot is already off, you still > need to do a 'reset' before doing teh probe-scsi/probe-scsi-all. > > Zane Well the RRD42, external CD worked. And I found out exactly why no CD drive worked internally... the plastic ribbon cable was tearing away! Oh well. Guess it's time to stick my CD-ROM in a SCSI case... -- --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 905818 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Ver. 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

22 years, 1 month

Period pricing references (was Re: Micro$oft Biz'droid Lusers)

by fmc＠reanimators.org

"Erik S. Klein" <eklein(a)impac.com> wrote: > My first IBM PC (December 1981) cost nearly $2,800 for a 64K machine, 1 SSDD > floppy (120K with DOS 1.0) and a color card with an RF Modulator. Back in the early-to-mid 1990s some friends of mine and I were comparing microcomputers we had over a roughly 15-year time span. Our conclusion was that from 1976 'til then, it cost about US$3000 to buy "the computer system you wanted", meaning what your computer system eventually grew into. That usually included some sort of peripherals, often bought after the initial purchase, and we were looking at an IMSAI 8080, a couple TRS-80s (Model Is), an Apple ][+, an IBM PC/XT, an Amiga 1000, and I'm not sure what else. I think at the time I was thinking my 486/33 desktop PC was below the curve (at about $2000), but I bought it from someone who was closing his computer store so got a pretty good deal. (BTW, I think it's on-topic now, it's still in use as a dial-on-demand NAT router, and it's been on 24x7 most of the last 10 years. Yes, you can blame me for last year's power woes in California.) I'm not sure where things are today but I think prices have come down. My last couple systems bought new for a purpose are notebook PCs, and of course there's a premium associated with that. I'm thinking they are something like $2500 and $2000, and the latter is an iBook that hasn't cost me that much yet but probably will by the time I'm done with it (I want to get it some more RAM, an Airport card, maybe a USB stiffy drive). -Frank McConnell

22 years, 1 month

Recycling donated PCs

by bpope＠wordstock.com

Check out this place in Oakland, CA: http://www.linuxjournal.com//article.php?sid=6021 They are taking donated PCs, installs Linux on them a provides them to schools, scientists, governments, non-profits, the underprivileged and the handicapped. They also are creating cluster farms which are being used in *very* cool ways! Cheers, Bryan

22 years, 1 month

DECStation Ultrix

by meltie＠myrealbox.com

Whilst i'm in a "fixing problems with my classiccmps" mood, does anyone have a copy of the Decstation Ultrix Installation CD at home that they could make an ISO file of for me, so I can resurrect my DS3100? Thanks Alex -- My computer's heavier than yours.

22 years, 1 month

Toshiba T3100/20

by Alexanderfam＠aol.com

Hi, I have a secondhand T3100/20 and on the left hand side, the side where the hard drive is, next to the A,B,PRT switch there is a small DIN socket. Does anyone know what this does? If it's the internal modem, how do I communicate with it please? Many thanks, Lawrence

22 years, 1 month

R.I.P. for D.I.Y.

by uban＠ubanproductions.com

>What I do for BGA protos is this: > >1. Solder the BGA(s) first! >This is for a couple of reasons, its easier to inspect the soldering, and if >you mess up the BGA soldering you can start with a fresh board and not have to >remove the BGA part. (Though I have removed and resoldered BGAs with pretty >good luck) > >2. Build a "frame" around the BGA by soldering pieces of scrap circuit board >material on all 4 sides of the BGA, leaving a little (5 mill) clearance on >each side. I do this with pieces of paper as a shim that I later remove. This >is the most critical part, the BGA part must be located in the right position >on the PC by the frame. The 5 mill clearanec on the side is so the BGA can >"float and settle" when the balls melt -surface tension will bring it into >perfect alignment with the PCB pads. I do the frame alignment by setting the >BGA on edge (vertical) against each of my frame pieces and checking the >ball/PCB pad alignment. So do you lay out the PCB with areas on the four sides to which you can solder your "frame"? >3. Put _A LOT_ of rosin core flux on the PC BGA pads. You dont need any solder >with the common solder ball type BGAs they have plenty in the balls. > >4. Heat from behind with a heat gun. I use a standard $59 Granger heat gun. >This requires some pratice to avoid overheating the board. You can pratice by >soldering small SMT parts to scrap or used PCBs. Moving the heat gun around in >a small circular pattern will help avoid PCB damage. When the Rosin flux >really begins to smoke, the temperature is just about right. You can see when >the BGA solder balls melt, because the BGA chip will sink about 1/2 mm. When >you see it sink, Your done! When you say "behind", I assume you mean the underside of the PCB, not the top of the BGA? Does the board want to be laying flat so that gravity helps or does the solder surface tension take care of it? I assume that you don't press the BGA part down? I've heard that moisture from humidity can cause problems, sometimes refered to as the "popcorn effect". What can you tell us about this? I've heard it has to do with component storage... >5. Checking: When the PCB is cool you need to remove the flux and inspect the >soldering. If the BGA is soldered properly the solder balls will have a >squashed appearance on all 4 sides of the BGA and you should be able see >through all the interball rows in both directions by along the underside of >the BGA. If the balls are not melted enough, you can re-apply flux and re-heat >The worst thing that can happen is that your frame is mis-aligned so far that >the balls ended up stikinf to 2 pads and have have merged underneath the BGA. >In that case you need to remove the BGA and try again (with a new part) > > >I have not been 100% successful but am close to 85% good solders first time... Thanks for the advice. It doesn't sound too bad... --tom

22 years, 1 month

CP/M-86

by pat＠purdueriots.com

I've been playing around with cp/m-86, and was wondering if anyone knew if a multiuser (like MP/M) version was available somewhere? My next step is to try making it work under Dosemu on Linux if I cant... -- Pat

22 years, 1 month

Sun help needed... [was: RE: open "dumpster" event in New Hav en, CT]

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

> > > try to describe the scsi bus and termination. > > > do a probe-scsi and a probe-scsi-all... > > > > > > let me know what that does. > > I'm pretty sure that there is a Sun screwup in the Ultra1 boot ROM such > that "probe-scsi" doesn't work right when "auto-boot" is enabled. > > auto-boot?=false After turning off auto-boot you need to type 'reset' and hit return, this is true on both Ultra 1's and 2's. If the auto-boot is already off, you still need to do a 'reset' before doing teh probe-scsi/probe-scsi-all. Zane

22 years, 1 month

Unix versions

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 26, 10:19, Bill Pechter wrote: > > I'm slightly puzzled by what you say about DEC X-11, though. My exposure > > to it and XXDP is only in the form of the diagnostics available to end > > users and third-party service organisations, and I suspect there's more to > > it than that. The reason I think of XXDP as the OS and X-11 as the, well, > > application in a way, is that all I see are the X-11 modules to run build > > and series of tests, whereas XXDP includes the monitor, system handlers etc > > (as well as the diagnostic programs and utilites, of course). To me, > > that's the OS. > > > > -- > > Pete Peter Turnbull > > Network Manager > > University of York > > You're exactly correct, except the XXDP doesn't have drivers for > the comm gear and other stuff, whereas DECX/11 can have modules > running simulating disk and tape i/o, comm i/o and can do task > scheduling and timeouts. Also DECX/11 is interrupt driven where most of > XXDP polls status registers. Yes, I knew about the polled operation. > I stretched my view a bit. DEC training called XXDP a diagnostic > monitor... which was ok until the DS> diagnostic supervisor got loose... > and the names collided. > > The XXDP monitor is single tasking, non-interrupt driven, polling and > can hang forever waiting for an event that never comes. DECX/11 won't. > DECX/11 seemed much more os-like. Batch streams do exist in XXDP > (the .ccc chain files) -- but that's just minimal scripting. Yes, .ccc is of rather limited use. Enough for sets of diagnostics and not much more, really. Thanks for the information -- I'm enlightened. Did DECX/11 ever make it outside of DEC's walls, other than in the form of strings of modules for field confidence tests? -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

22 years, 1 month

Some new finds and Some Wanted Items

by jrkeys＠concentric.net

Picked new in the box Apple II SCSI Card for II Plus, IIe, and IIGS, has cool little wrench with the apple logo stamped in the metal. New in the box System 6 IIGS. New in the box HyperStudio for the IIGS, Version 3.1 with System 6.01. Books - Introduction to Analog Computation by Joseph J. Blum, Mac Internet Tour Guide with software, TEX for the BeginnerMicro-Computer Handbook by Charles J. Sippl (from 1977), the Z-80 microcomputer handbook by William Barden, Jr., Programming the Z80 3rd Ed. by Rodnay Zaks and last VAX software Source Book Volume 2 Systems software, second edition January 1985 by digital. A Sega PowerBack for the Gamegear ($2.99) at a local thrift and from the same place a Logitech joystick (digital 3D) for $3.99, and a cool controller for the PS1 for $2.99. Now for the wanted items - looking to complete my Mac collection that I started years ago trying to collect one of each model from 1984 to 1995 for a total of 103 machines. PB160 - working or not Mac 512Ke Quadra 800 WGS60 Performa 466, 467, 550, 275,, 560, 577,578, 658 Duo250, Duo270, Duo280, Color classic II 610DOS PM8100 WS6150, WS8150, WS9150 PB520c, PB540, PB540c, PB150 LC630 PF6110, PF6112, PF6115, PF6117, PF6118 6100/110 8100/100 If anyone has one or more of these that they would like to unload email me off list at jrkeys(a)concentric.net. Thanks for reading.

22 years, 1 month

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test-drb April 2002