On Mar 4 2005, 10:56, Dwight K. Elvey wrote:
> I think many don't realize the damage that can happen
> when the group becomes a "Please fix my PC" group.
> I watched this happen to a news group that had too many
> people that tolerated such off topic post. From Jim's own
> words, he thought that this was a general computer
> group. It is not.
[ snip ]
FWIW, I'm in complete agreement with Dwight, and well remember the
newsgroup he means, having used it from 1994 until its eventual demise.
Actually, it's still there - but has become an alt.fix.my.pc group.
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York
Anyone having any contact with Fred or Ed, or who can possibly get a
message to either of them - it would be a Good Thing for either (or both)
of them to get in touch with me ASAP..
Thanks!
Cheers
John
Quoting from the Wired article:
"A new book tackles modern computers in a uniquely hands-on way -- by
getting the reader to build a replica of one of the most famous personal
computers of all: the Apple I."
"Apple I Replica Creation: Back to the Garage by Tom Owad explores the
architecture of modern digital computers through the process of building an
Apple I replica for about $100."
Wired News,
http://wired.com/news/mac/0,2125,66742,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_3
"The book focuses on the basic knowledge of digital electronics required to
understand how the computer does its most basic work. Many diagrams and
photographs illustrate specific tasks or functions.
But the book is not simply a cookbook directing readers to "insert tab A
into slot B." It attempts to teach the fundamentals of digital computer
design along the way.
The "Digital Logic" chapter, for example, which can be downloaded as a
sample chapter (.pdf), shows how to build "and," "or" and "not" gates from
resistors, diodes and LEDs.
Owad said building microcomputers is within many readers' grasp, if they
have the appropriate guide.
"Apple I Replica Creation attempts to be that guide," Owad said. "
The Woz himself wrote the Forward to the book.
-T
[Authors] "90% of everything is crap" --T. Sturgeon "111% of crap is
everything" --L. Wall
--... ...-- -.. . -. ----. --.- --.- -...
tpeters at nospam.mixcom.com (remove "nospam") N9QQB (amateur radio)
"HEY YOU" (loud shouting) WEB ADDRESS http//www.mixweb.com/tpeters
43? 7' 17.2" N by 88? 6' 28.9" W, Elevation 815', Grid Square EN53wc
WAN/LAN/Telcom Analyst, Tech Writer, MCP, Cisco Certified CCNA
In which environment?
Powered up Phaeton, from both SysV and Aegis the user-look was
//{system_name}/directory/directory/file
maybe underneath it's different, but that's what "pwd" and "wd" show
Rock On
-Scott Quinn
vrs writes:
>> At 09:26 AM 3/4/2005, Jim Leonard wrote:
>> >You could make a case that CP/M was modeled after Unix, but we won't go
> there :-)
>>
>> Never! RT-11, maybe.
>
> I always thought both were modeled after OS/8 :-). (Which was, in turn, a
> souped up DMS.)
>
> Vince
>
It was originally written by Tim Patterson of Seattle Computer Products, as
86-QDOS (Quick and Dirty OS). The initial purchase by Microsoft was for
$15,000 IIRC, but full rights to the OS were purchased later for a larger
sum. Patterson was originally planning on including multitasking, but did
not due to time constraints. The OS gained tree-structured directories and
I/O redirection/pipes (< > >> |) in 2.0 (inspired by UNIX), and a major
rewrite for 5.0 (I believe this rewrite was largely the work of Charles
Simonyi, but could not be sure).
Tim Patterson was hired by Microsoft for a period of time.
John
John P. Willis
Coherent Logic Development
I am curious about what is in the HSC70 but the the door is locked and
the key is lost. There should be a PDP11 and several HD's inside, at
far as I know.
I think people on the list might know how to open the door without a
key or force. The lock is not the round cylinder type found on a vax
4000.
Thanks.
vax, 9000
> I thik one of the old HP plotters would "sing" a song using the motors,
> given the proper power up sequence.
>
In the '68-70 timeframe I heard an amazing rendition of the Barcarole
on the tape reader of an HP 2115 using the pinch roller solenoid with a
punch card inserted as a resonator. However, the best use of music on
computers was done by a friend who received special treatment from the
Cyber operators after playing Charge on the high speed chain printers
at the end of his job. Since he didn't advance the paper the printing
effectively cut the paper causing the next several jobs to make an
squirel's nest out of the insides of the printer.
CRC
> 9000> I am curious about what is in the HSC70 but the the door is
> 9000> locked and the key is lost. There should be a PDP11 and several
> 9000> HD's inside, at far as I know.
>
> 9000> I think people on the list might know how to open the door
> 9000> without a key or force. The lock is not the round cylinder type
> 9000> found on a vax 4000.
>
> Is it a flat key lock? If so, that would be the "other" standard key
> that DEC used. I think it's a three pin lock -- you should be
> able to
> pick it with a paperclip.
>
> Alternatively, a drill will do wonders.
>
And I have always used C-4......
-----------Original Message:
Date: Fri, 4 Mar 2005 07:54:47 -0800 (PST)
From: Vintage Computer Festival <vcf at siconic.com>
Subject: Re: Re installing XP on Sony
The point is that if I went onto a PC mailing list and asked someone to
help me troubleshoot my Commodore 64, I would probably be ignored,
possibly even laughed off, and rightly so.
So, even if it were true, which in my experience it isn't, does this mean that
we have to be equally rude and condescending?
Actually, in my experience the people on the PC & other lists I'm on tend
to be quite helpful with off-topic questions if they can, or (nicely) suggest other
resources if they can't.
I would have thought that especially this list would be more mature and polite
(as indeed many people here are, although they tend to be rather quiet).
I always have to remind myself that there are a lot of other people on
this list who don't say anything unless they actually have something
useful to contribute.
We have a very special mailing list here with a specific character, which
is of great value to people in this hobby. If we allow really common,
unextraordinary PC maintenance issues to be discussed any old time someone
wants to bring them up even though there are an infinite number of tools
and resources available only a few clicks away, we'll lose that unique
character, and subsequently most of the people who currently inhabit this
space who are valuable resources for the hobby.
Well, actually I correspond with several people who used to be on this list and
have/are valuable resources who have unsubscribed because of the amount of
irrelevant garbage and the "attitude" on this list; I doubt that the occasional
PC-related topic would have bothered them. I went through my email files from
before I unsubbed a year or so ago to find people with whom I have unfinished
business, and quite a few people who used to be useful contributors seem to no
longer be heard from now that I'm back...
It would be interesting to know how many actually unsubscribed, and why.
Every person who unsubscribes because of the way they're treated or the amount
of junk on this list is a lost potential resource.
Folks have used the list in the past to ask PC related problems, but that
has been in situations where they have already exhausted all other
resources, or they are in a serious pinch and needed immediate
information, and they always explain this. This has been a rare occurence
as most people respect the character of the mailing list and its members.
Jim's issue could've been answered after 5 minutes of Googling.
So what? I ask and get asked lots of questions of/by people, and I've never
said or heard "Don't bother me, look it up on Google!"
As to the "character" of this list, it appears to be a place where you can talk
and ask questions for days about just about anything, cars, guns, what have you,
ignoring pleas to "finally get off this OT topic," as long as it's not about what
many if not most of us actually have sitting in front of us, a PC-compatible,
maybe even (God forbid) running a Microsoft product. Are you really afraid
that if we do answer the occasional OT but computer-related question that
we'll suddenly be deluged?
Can't we (at least some of us) be a little nicer, especially to "outsiders" who
may not be aware of our anal attitudes, or would that totally destroy the
"character" of this list?
mike
