test-drb April 2002

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

280 participants
1162 discussions

"Toy" computers (was Re: Micro$oft Biz'droid Lusers)

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Richard Erlacher [mailto:edick@idcomm.com] > > That pretty much describes commodore disk drives, yep. The > An external IDE drive would be hazardous thing to use because > of cable length. Didn't think of that -- you're probably right. > > handled all of the complexities of disk I/O, so that the CPU didn't > > need to -- so there are good points to them. > What you may have had, then, is a toy with a computer as a > peripheral. That > was probably quite a bit after the time reference of 1980. Actually, I don't remember what CPU was in the 1541 drives, but I seem to recall that it was actually more powerful than the computer. I also remember somebody working on a way to get code into the drive to be executed, but that's kind of fuzzy. > What I am focused on is where the intelligence to run the I/O > resides. Once So does the computer have to come with it, or simply allow space for it on the inside of the case? > peripherals made great deal of sense. However, it resulted > in ugly and > awkward packaging, which was addressed even later with more > elegant interface > standards, say, by 1986, with the standardization of SCSI. Well, I certainly won't argue with that. > > Would you also have considered 9-track tape "mass storage" for the > > time? > I'd tread lightly around that subject, unless your Atari or > whatever, had a > 9-track drive in '80 or so. Obviously not, I'm just curious as to whether it would need to be some form of "fast" disk-like storage, or if a high-capacity tape would be ok. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

22 years, 2 months

Micro$oft Biz'droid Lusers (was: OT email response format)

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Richard Erlacher [mailto:edick@idcomm.com] > Open the box. Open the S-100 mainframe. Open the individual Wow, an S-100 mainframe. I want one of those. :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

22 years, 2 months

Micro$oft Biz'droid Lusers (was: OT email response format)

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: r. 'bear' stricklin [mailto:red@bears.org] > I have worse news: today, it's called a Macintosh. Before you > argue with > me, consider that nobody in their right mind would want to > buy a computer > with less than 10% market penetration, without a pretty > compelling reason. Having considered that, I've decided that the fact that it's a very nice system, and you prefer it to a Macintosh is a compelling reason to buy a system with less than 10% market penetration. Of course, there's also the "which market" argument, which I don't think I have to get into... > I find that most Mac users I talk to have compelling reasons > for owning > Macs. People that want a PC will buy a PC. People that want a They like them; indeed, that's a compelling reason. No matter how good the system is, you can't do a thing with it if you're not comfortable with it. (well, ok, you can, but it's much harder) > Mac will buy > a Mac. People that want a computer will buy a PC (though IMO > they would be > better served with Macs, but that's solely my own opinion and They certainly would, though that's not really high praise for Macintosh. They'd be better off with an Atari 400. :) People buy peesees for one of four reasons: They favor them -- usually because they've never seen anything else. Their friend-who-knows-everything-about-computers likes them (yeah...) Everybody else is doing it They don't know that anything else exists I can't think of another reason to buy a peesee. Personally, I'm much happier with my used workstation than I would be if I'd bought a peesee at the same time, for about twice the money. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

22 years, 2 months

Micro$oft Biz'droid Lusers (was: OT email response format)

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Richard Erlacher [mailto:edick@idcomm.com] > ... and you feel it's warranted to spend vast amounts of > money, which the > Altair cost, on a machine with no means for putting code/data > in or out except > for single-bit LED's and a few switches when there's no other > means for > inserting/extracting information? Even Ed Roberts indicated Dick, I think you're the only one on the list who _wouldn't_ spend vast amounts of time and money for a computer like that ;) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

22 years, 2 months

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

by mythtech＠mac.com

> This may be an off-topic post, but Chris is nuts for old HP laser >printers and old Macs! More nuts for old Macs and Apple's. I wouldn't have done the drive for the printers if I didn't have a use for them. But for Mac's or Apple's... yeah, I'd have done it just to add yet another one to my pile (and if it was one I didn't already have... then I would have driven even farther) -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

22 years, 2 months

URGENT: 1979 vintage Linoterm system needs home!

by kyrrin＠bluefeathertech.com

Hi, gang, Even though my interests have swung pretty much back to ham radio, etc., I still get the occasional E-mail advising me of a classic computing system that needs a new home. This one's a doozy -- an honest-to-God Mergenthaler 'Linoterm' system. The owner is located in the Puget Sound region, Washington state. Please contact him directly using the info in the following note. Note that this one is time-critical. If you can help this fellow, please contact him ASAP. Thanks much. Message copy follows. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Hi Bruce - I have a Mergenthaler Linoterm Model 50M computer phototypesetter, and it needs a home. It was bought new by the previous owner (a Seattle ad-agency owner) in 1979 for roughly $52,000. This machine is the transition between the hot-lead Linotype mechanical typesetters and the Linotronic, the first of today's computerized typesetting gear. The Linoterm set what might be the all-time high-water mark for typographic quality. There's a combined CRT/keyboard terminal that runs everything (looks like a Wang VS terminal). The main processor is a big cardcage that holds a bunch of doormat-sized circuit cards (looks to be TTL) with 16K of RAM, and (2) 8" floppy drives. The typesetting unit is optical, controlled by a Z80 chip. OS is supposed to be proprietary, but it seems to respond to typical CP/M commands, so it's probably CP/M with some custom extensions. Then there's quite a bit of support equipment and accessories, a good batch of 8" floppies (old files, training stuff, and the OS), and a complete set of manuals. I had it cabled up and running about five years ago, so it's all there and it all works. We just moved a few weeks ago from Mill Creek (just south of Everett) to Burlington, which is why I need to find a new home for the Linoterm. It's in the garage at our old place in Mill Creek, so when that place sells, it needs to be gone. I also have quite a few other vintage bits and pieces that might belong in somebody's restoration, but those were small and easily moved. The Linoterm is good-sized, about a pickup load, and weighs a couple hundred pounds. Thanks for any help you can give me on this: I'd hate to have to just scrap it. - Rick Harrison - rgh(a)fidalgo.net - richardgharrison(a)yahoo.com - (360) 707-5989 (land line and answering machine) - (425) 330-2084 (cell phone) PS: I don't have the scanner hooked up at the new place yet, but if some scans out of the manual will find it a home, I'll get it hooked up, just let me know. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Bruce Lane, Owner & Head Hardware Heavy, Blue Feather Technologies -- http://www.bluefeathertech.com ARS KC7GR (Formerly WD6EOS) since 12-77 -- kyrrin(a)bluefeathertech.com "I'll get a life when someone demonstrates that it would be superior to what I have now..." (Taki Kogoma, aka Gym Z. Quirk)

22 years, 2 months

Micro$oft Biz'droid Lusers (was: OT email response format)

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

> From: Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) > > > > Altair cost, on a machine with no means for putting code/data > > Dick, I think you're the only one on the list who _wouldn't_ spend > > vast amounts of time and money for a computer like that ;) > > Isn't that one of the ones for which he saves the power cord and dumpsters > the machine EVERY time he finds one? > Did someone say power cords??? I got a box of about 4 dozen if you need any. -- --- 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 Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

22 years, 2 months

Sysgen Omni-Bridge Floppy Controller

by tarsi＠binhost.com

Anyone got docs or at least jumper settings for an 8-bit Sysgen Omni-Bridge Floppy Controller? I just found one and it works (or at least it loads its BIOS on boot) and so I'd like to get it going. I'm gonna try to run it in an AT&T 6300. Thanks! Tarsi 210

22 years, 2 months

Hp2100 software available. Where ?

by aek＠spies.com

> Next question: Where ? You probably aren't going to find a disc image that you can boot on SIMH in the near future. HP sold EACH program separately, and what is currently available are several thousand paper tape images that will require someone with DOS or RTE experence to sysgen. You will need the docs, too, which currently have been scanned, but haven't been cleaned up or pdf-ed and won't be available for at least a month.

22 years, 2 months

Fluke 9010 Micro-System Troubleshooter ??

by aek＠spies.com

> Does anyone know where I could pick up/buy one of these pieces of test > equipment? I have several without pods (the expensive part)

22 years, 2 months

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test-drb April 2002