>
>Subject: 8" disk drive project
> From: Grant Stockly <grant at stockly.com>
> Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2007 22:04:47 -0900
> To: cctalk at classiccmp.org
>
>I want to use a QUME 842 or SA800 in an altair disk subsystem.
>
>Both seem to have the same interface.
>
>The FD400-5x0-5x1 manual seems to show the drives being quite similar.
>
>The first thing I see is that there are extra signals.
>
>"Trim Erase", "Write Enable", and "Write Data" where the Shugart
>interface only has "Write Data" and "Write Gate". I assume that gate
>and enable are the same thing. The FD Pertec drives also have "IN",
>"OUT", and "STEP" instead of "STEP" and "DIRECTION", but that is not
>a big deal. That can be generated in software.
Trimerase is usually jumpered to Write-enable.
>What I don't see is any input to perform the function of head
>current. How does the shugart interface handle this?
Not all drives required or used it.
>Can I ignore the trim erase feature?
No.
>How do I generate a write busy
>signal? I'm willing to make some circuits to fake these signals if required.
Write busy is easy set a oneshot on write enable and use the output as
a response. If you think about it why sould you need write busy if
your busy writing? However some used that as a Door lock signal
to prevent opening a door during write.
The 8" interface world is generally complicated by difference names,
pinouts and signals for the same or very similar signals. That and
just as many signals and options that go unsued or just not required.
Allison
>Thanks,
>Grant
>
>Subject: Re: modern serial terminal
> From: Cameron Kaiser <spectre at floodgap.com>
> Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2007 15:17:38 -0800 (PST)
> To: cctalk at classiccmp.org
>
>> > You're going to have to 'splain that one to me, Lucy. There were
>> > plenty of bitmapped graphics machines for the home market.
>>
>> Name is not lucy. The LISA and MAC I consider BITMAPPED.
>> C64's and others had sprite graphics. Amiga and Atari(sp)
>> were maketed as games machines. The APPLE II split screen
>> I liked for text on the bottom (FAST) , graphics on the top
>> slow. Only the development of fast 2D graphics cards even
>> make modern software usable.
>
>You have an odd taxonomy here. The Amigas and Atari (STs and otherwise)
>computers were not marketed strictly as game machines (or else you should
>include the C64 in that category). And they are most definitely bitmapped.
>
>The C64 has sprite graphics, but it definitely has a bitmapped graphics
>mode. It's somewhat more inconvenient to work in because of its cell-
>oriented arrangement, but it's bitmapped.
>
>So, I'm not sure where you're drawing the line here, but all of the machines
>you mention have bitmapped graphics and were home computers, except perhaps
>the Lisa, but only due to cost.
Comentary:
The problem as initially launched was small inexpensive terminal "box"
of insignificant size that used PC display and keyboard. Paraphrased
more or less.
One, most applications that use "terminals" are non graphic or if they do
it's low res and minimal. If that were not true my Vt125 and VT340 would
see more action as they are both graphic and support color.
With that most terminals are text, 80x24 or 80x25 and some can do 132x20.
The "terminal" is expected to comply with ANSI escapes, VT52 or ADM1/3
typically to be most useful. This is often important to editors and
many other applications that do screen handling.
With that anything with more than an 8051, character cell display is
likely over kill and under utilization. The simplest home brewed
terminal I'd seen was a computime SBC880 (z80,1k ram, 2k rom, 1 serial
IO and a parallel IO) and a PT VDM1 (yes it's 64x16lines) though a 80x24
card could be used. The whole mess was wrapped in a minibox with PS
measureing 12x7x4 inches making it smaller than the monitor and
serial keyboard used. It did a fair (limited to 64x16) VT52 emulation
with soft scroll and no flashing and could support 19.2kbaud serial
rates. The guy that bilt it spent $200 for the boards, 2 S100 connectors
and power supply, aluminum box and even a 9" B&W monitor back in 1982.
I'd think with current parts [one of the 8051 clones or eZ80 and a CPLD]
a 80x25 terminal could be put on a 4x5" card with minimal effort. The
output should drive a standard PC tube/LCD with one selectable color
and use a PC keyboard power would come from a wall wart.
Personally a VT320 with a mono LCD rather than a CRT would be ideal
and much more compact at 2 peices total (display and keyboard).
Allison
>--
>------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ --
> Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com
>-- BOND THEME NOW PLAYING: "All-Time High" from "Octopussy" -------------------
I have found your following post by Google when I was
trying to solve the same problem.
--------------------------------------------------
Hi
I have the system unit for a Victor V286C PC
manufactured in
1991. Its in really nice condition.
Keyboard and mouse are no problem. However the display
is a different
matter. It has a nine pin
display connector which would make it a CGA ,MGA or
Hercules output.
Anybody any ideas as to where I might find a matching
monitor?
Rod Smallwood
----------------------------------------------------
I could not find any solutions on the Internet, and
then start experiment. I have found ISA video card
with standard vga-connector, put it to the top ISA
slot... and have no effect. Then I switched a jumper
near ISA slot to DISABLE position and miracle happend.
:) By the way, DIP switch on the back panel of system
unit was in the following position: 1-on, 2-on,
3-off, 4-on, 5-off, 6-off.
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It isn't necessarily the motor either; I've seen a couple units that
require some kind of "disc present" feedback from the laser diode before
they spin....lots of adjustments possible here. I'd start checking power
supplies, and putting a scope on the motor drive, might tell you if you're
barking up the right tree.
As for motors though, I've found slow speed computer CDROM drives can have
compatible motors -- if you find one that will mount properly. I got sick
of trying to find compatible parts; and so, I've been working on converting
a 101-disc cd audio changer for use with data cds and dvds.
T.H.x.
Devon
(I hope this doesn't upset Jay. I think it's on-topic according to the
semi-bogus the ten-year rule, and it's certainly on-topic in the
non-mainstream sense - what I'm trying to do is well outside the norm.
Except, possibly, for populations like the one on this list. :)
I have a Technics SL-PD8 five-disc CD changer. It's been working fine
for a long time; in recent months, it's had trouble ejecting the tray
(but not, interestingly, retracting it).
Then a day or two ago it stopped playing discs at all. I can't even
hear the disk spinning up.
So I opened it up, and I have been completely unable to make the disc
drive motor spin, with or without a CD in place. I've pulled it apart
far enough to have the CD transport mechanism out in the open, and it
still won't spin. (In the process, I found the stretched belt that was
responsible for the weak eject; I dug through my rubber band collection
and replaced it, and now the tray eject works fine.)
Now, I'm not Tony; I'm not about to rewind the motor or some such. But
I was wondering if anyone knows how similar the mechanism is likely to
be to a cheap computer CD reader - basically, I'm wondering if I can
raid one of my extra CD drives (of which I have several) for parts to
resurrect the Technics. I can just open things up and have a look, but
if anyone has experience, it could save me some headaches.
Any thoughts?
/~\ The ASCII der Mouse
\ / Ribbon Campaign
X Against HTML mouse at rodents.montreal.qc.ca
/ \ Email! 7D C8 61 52 5D E7 2D 39 4E F1 31 3E E8 B3 27 4B
respond offlist please?
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At 01:42 PM 10/19/2007, you wrote:
>Grant Stockly wrote:
>>What do you guys think? The thing has a peripheral expansion header.
>>We could hook a modern floppy chip to that, connectors for
>>different drives, and off we go...
>
>What's the cost like? Is the board made up of separate components
>(CPU, ROM, RAM, USB chip, buffers for I/O, Ethernet chip etc.)?
>
>I'd find Ethernet more useful than USB, and in an ideal world I'd
>prefer a board where the functional areas are segregated (rather
>than some complex and expensive single chip, where if disaster
>strikes the thing basically needs throwing out and replacing as a
>complete unit)
The base eZ80SBC from howard is $250. Add $100 for the disk board...
-----REPLY-----
Hi,
By the time you add in all the costs of the CPU board with IO, case, power
supply, cables, documentation, plus the specialized disk controller, AND
write most if not all of the software this project is quickly going to
become uneconomical for all but the most patient and financially well off.
You could use a throw away old 486 or Pentium II computer with ISA and/or
PCI slots to provide any interface you'd like (ethernet, SCSI, ST506, USB,
whatever) for a whole lot less time and effort. A double sided 48tpi floppy
drive will read practically any format given the right controller. The same
can be done for whatever sort of drive you'd like to test.
I have made and am using a few bench stations for testing floppy drives,
ST506/ST412 hard drives, SCSI, etc for a small fraction of what the cost you
are proposing. I am sure many others here are doing the same thing as well.
In addition, reusing old PCs effectively removes them from the waste stream
which is not only economical it is environmentally friendly as well. Get a
small enough PC and they are portable assuming you choose standard interface
for peripherals like VGA, PS/2 keyboards & mice, etc.
On top of the above, as an added bonus much of the software is already
written. You can use ImageDisk for soft sector floppy disks, SpinRite II
for ST506/ST412 hard disks, etc.
Respectfully, it seems like the proposals being discussed are reinventing
the wheel by developing and/or repurposing a new CPU and IO board rather
than reusing proven and cost effective solutions which already exist.
It is just my $0.02. Best of luck with your project. Thanks!
Andrew Lynch
>
>Subject: Re: Kaypro 4/84 questions
> From: Fred Cisin <cisin at xenosoft.com>
> Date: Mon, 05 Nov 2007 15:27:29 -0800 (PST)
> To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" <cctalk at classiccmp.org>
>
>On Mon, 5 Nov 2007, Roy J. Tellason wrote:
>> selecting the drive should be apparent as Kaypros tend to leave the light on
>> all the time.
>> > Will it be supported in some manner by the software?
>> Hm, kinda doubtful, though I couldn't say for sure as it's been a long time
>> since I dove into those particular interface specs.
>
>There WERE patches available for using 720K (3.5" or 5.25") drives on
>Kaypros.
>
>"Advent"?
Advent supports both 720k and 781K formats on DSDD 96tpi 5.25 or 3.5"
Advent Turborom with the Advent disk personality board. I have both in mine
One floppy is the 48tpi two sided half height, the other is 3.5" in a PC 5.25"
adaptor and inside I have a third 3.5" as a default boot drive. Lots of storage.
Allison
>MicroCornucopia?
>Chuck might know.
>
>
I saw this from Bill Whitson dated 1997 on the web,
Bill,
I saw your list of classic computers. Now over 10 years old but - Great!!
I am looking for more info on this computer >>
Control Data Corp.------------------------------------------------
Model 110 6809 64K ?? MICRO 83
I would appreciate anything - more specs or a photo(s)?
I do have the CDC announcement of the product in the NYTimes and it was
September 14, 1981.
http://query.nytimes.com <http://query.nytimes.com/>
It was "priced at $4,995" with "business and educational applications cost
between $625 and $4000"
I am not sure when (or if) the product actually was available for shipment.
Thanks,
Larry G. DeVries
Eden Prairie, Minn.
952-949-9604
Hello folks,
I picked up a couple of Intertec Superbrains last week, and have
finally got around to cracking the cases. One has memory problems, the
other has keyboard problems.
I'm fairly sure the one with memory problems is down to a faulty 4116,
but I can't work out how to find out which one it is. I'm guessing it's
in the lower part of memory, because although the system boots it hasn't
got enough marbles to run DDT.COM - if I could get that working I could
prod around in memory until I found the stuck bit.
The keyboard problem on the other one is a bit odd - not all the keys
work (haven't worked out the pattern but it *seems* like the outer three
on the ends of each row work, the middle ones being dead), and the key
repeat starts instantly. I'm a tad concerned that this is a sign of a
dying keyboard controller chip - I doubt I'll ever find another,
although if it was a problem I'd just program up a PIC to do its job.
Any thoughts? Is there a way to trick CP/M into loading DDT into higher
memory?
Gordon
Rumor has it that Curt @ Atari Museum may have mentioned these words:
>New thing these days, thieves are stealing the krypton headlights out of
>cars...
Is this so when they get caught by Superman they have a chance of getting
away???
Sorry, just had to. Grabbing coat, calling taxi... ;-)
Laterz,
Roger "Merch" Merchberger
--
Roger "Merch" Merchberger -- SysAdmin, Iceberg Computers
zmerch at 30below.com
What do you do when Life gives you lemons,
and you don't *like* lemonade?????????????
This isn't even close to on-topic, but maybe it's of general interest.
Paypal is offering a SecureID fob, the "Paypal Security Key", for
authentication to your Paypal account. I haven't seen it mentioned on
the Paypal descriptions, but the coworker who showed me his tells me
that it works with eBay too. Worth mention, I suppose, is that it's *in
addition to* your email/password login info, not instead of.
Also, it's $5 USD shipped. :)
Doc
..Sellam really outdid himself this year. VCF X rocked. I'm looking forward to seeing all the pictures, because there sure were a bazillion people taking 'em.
I've got a BASF 6185 ST412-interface drive which is spinning up, zeroing the
heads, and then giving three short pulses on the LED followed by one long one.
Anyone have a reference handy to tell me what that particular error code
means? I suspect it's the same on various BASF ST412 drives, so a manual from
one of their other models might give the answer too. I'm kicking myself as I
found these once a few years ago online and now they seem to have vanished.
I had the drive working - briefly - this morning, although it was throwing up
too many data errors to actually boot the OS [1] that was on it. Now it's just
giving the LED fault code above and not returning anything though, so I
suspect something terminal has happened. (And the exact meaning of the fault
is probably academic)
[1] It's the only copy of Torch UNIX for BBC micros (using a Torch 68000
co-processor) that I'm aware of, and a viable set of install media doesn't
seem to exist, unfortunately.
cheers
Jules
Hey folks. Does anyone know of any used raised flooring
available, either free or really cheap, preferably in the
southeastern US? I'm only looking for about 800 sq. ft. or so.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL
Farewell Ophelia, 9/22/1991 - 7/25/2007
> Anyone? Please speak up now if you are interested.
Real 5251s and their keyboards are just annoying uncommon enough that
a number of IBM collectors on this list will probably kill you for
every modification you make.
Use another keyboard, please.
--
Will
-----REPLY-----
Well, I suspected as much when I did some quick google searches and only
found them in either computer museums or at parts resellers charging some
fairly steep prices. I had a hunch this part deserved a better fate than
what I had in store for it. I can do without the death threats though, I
did at least *ask* before gutting it. :-)
I have nothing against IBM mainframes or their collectors and I can
sympathize with their plight as to finding those rare parts. However, I
still need a rather mundane parallel ASCII keyboard and am going to either
build or buy one.
If any of the IBM collectors out there want this keyboard, I will gladly
trade it for a like valued item. No, that does not mean those ridiculus
prices the IBM parts resellers are asking, just something I need or want
like a parallel ASCII keyboard, a 100tpi 5.25" floppy disk drive, or some
other S-100 related doodad.
Me keeping this keyboard in my basement is not much better than throwing it
away. I have zero interest in IBM system 34's or 5251 terminals or whatever
these things are really used for. Someone please make a reasonable offer.
Thank you.
Andrew Lynch
>>I can get one of those for $0-10. It's called a DSL modem and even
>>comes with wireless networking in addition to USB, serial, and
>>10/100BaseT interfaces.
>
>But no VGA interface for the monitor. : (
Watch for NS Geode thin clients (like Neoware EON). I picked up five of them yesterday for $10 ea
mostly to use as firewalls.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320157041439
for example.
Hi,
I recently purchased an old keyboard looking to reuse
the parts for another project. I did a little
research into exactly what I bought since no one
seemed to know. It turns out it is a keyboard for an
old IBM 5251 terminal from approximately 1977. Here
are some photos:
http://www.eldocountry.com/Computer/5251.jpghttp://content.techrepublic.com.com/2346-10878_11-3370-4.html
Now, I don't really care too much about IBM mainframe
terminals or whatever this thing is but as I *do* care
about vintage computers. I know how hard it can be to
get parts sometimes so before I tear this keyboard up
and recycle it into something else, is anyone looking
for one of these keyboards? Are they common? Are
they rare? It is IBM part 7361073.
All I want it for is the case, the mechanical switch
keyboard, and the cabling. I was planning on tossing
the small controller inside into the trash but I
thought I would ask the CCTALK list to see if anyone
cares before I rip this keyboard up for my latest
project.
Anyone? Please speak up now if you are interested.
Thanks!
Andrew Lynch
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2007 17:40:25 -0500
From: Dave McGuire <mcguire at neurotica.com>
Subject: Re: modern serial terminal
On Nov 4, 2007, at 4:59 PM, Tony Duell wrote:
>>> I don't understand why someone would want to spend 10x more
>>> tima and money on a one-purpose device, when they can get
>>> everything they want and more off a cheap PC.
>
>> Probably for the saem reason that some of us run classic computers in
>> preference to PCs...
> For me, the reason is simple. Terminal emulators are too damn
>much trouble...emulation problems, key mapping, etc. I've used
>pretty much all of them over the years, I think...the best one I've
>used was SmarTerm 240, and even that is far from perfect. Sometimes
>what one really needs is an APPLIANCE...not an emulation of said
>appliance built upon an unstable and problematic platform.
----
Well, since this thread is (was) about building your own terminal box,
that's not really relevant; if the emulation isn't true that'd be your
responsibility. If you're going to program that box correctly you
could program the emulator just as well, probably much more
easily, and then you could share it with the rest of us who wouldn't
have your custom box but do have a "computer."
I've certainly written emulators, and it looks like I'm
about to write another, for an obscure terminal. What's the
difference between programming an EEPROM for your box
and a Flash card or USB stick for a box that says IBM or Dell
on it?
In case you hadn't noticed, computers have been APPLIANCEs
for a few years now; to keep thinking of them as 'computers' tends
to restrict your vision. To me, the laptop that connects my Cromemco
to the Internet, the one that logs phone calls and voice-announces the
Caller-Id and the one that monitors the furnace and sends RS-232
data to my desktop are just protocol converters; fun of building aside,
none of those applications justified my building dedicated hardware -
I just wanted something to do the job quickly and reliably without
getting sidetracked with yet another "project."
===
> Further...A VT320 terminal pulls less than half an ampere at 120V,
>and is available for use within about fifteen seconds of
>powerup...can anyone say either of those things for a PC running
>terminal emulation software?
-----
Yes.
But to each his (or her) own...
m
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2007 21:59:11 +0000 (GMT)
From: ard at p850ug1.demon.co.uk (Tony Duell)
Subject: Re: modern serial terminal
>
>> Dave McGuire wrote:
>> >
>> > I really cannot fathom why people keep suggesting a computer when
>> > the OP wanted a *terminal*.
>> 4. Ease of Repair. If the hardware dies, worst case you just need
>> another run to the local thrift store. With a specialized solution,
>> you need to spend several hours repairing it, wait for several
>> days for repair parts to be shipped to you, ...
>However, if you built it yourself, you presumably know how it works, and
>you managed to get all the bits once, so you have a good chance of
>gettign them again.
>I know which _I'd_ rather repair..
-----------
So do we all ;-)
Thanks, Tony; I knew that was coming and I wouldn't have been able to
sleep tonight without it.
And to return the favour with some grist for _your_ mill, I'd just *replace* it!
<ducks>
;-)
m
not very expensive at the moment, and has a few
problems, but at least well worth it at the current
bid (sorry, forgot to copy the item #):
http://cgi.ebay.com/ZENITH-data-systems-computor_
W0QQitemZ110186173215QQihZ001QQcategoryZ1247QQss
PageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
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Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2007 12:55:10 -0500
From: Dave McGuire <mcguire at neurotica.com>
Subject: Re: modern serial terminal
On Nov 4, 2007, at 12:39 PM, woodelf wrote:
>>> I really cannot fathom why people keep suggesting a computer when
>>> the OP wanted a *terminal*.
>> A 6809 terminal sounds easy. :)
> And fun!
-----------------
A moot distinction; what's the difference? If you must have a terminal box
instead of just running your vintage hardware from the computer on your
desk, just take an old laptop, remove the (perhaps broken) display, stick a
USB or Flash disk in it to boot and run emulation S/W from, plug in your
keyboard, display and RS-232 cable and how's that different in any real
sense from a fancy terminal? CPU, EEPROM, RAM and I/O; sounds the
same to me, and probably free...
Except of course for the added features of programmability, extra memory,
up/download and text capture capability, network access, RS-232<>Internet
bridge capability, printer & USB ports, alternate keyboard, modem, etc.
I've got a dozen terminals here gathering dust; my small 486 Compaq laptop
is portable and way more convenient. The only terminal I have kept on my desk
is a Cromemco C-5 to run one particular HD diagnostic program because AFAIK
there isn't an emulator for Cromemco 3101-style terminals, but a couple of
us are working on it so I hope to be able to retire that one as well soon.
I have to admit that using an XT doesn't make much sense to me either though;
why would anyone... (oh, oh, starting to sound like Tony...)
If you insist, I have a couple of 6502-based Linger 65/9028VT terminal
boards (abt 6"x4", Heath/Televideo/Hazeltine/ANSI etc.) and also a bunch of
8631/8563-based Crestline CT-128 colour terminals in enclosures
(abt 8"x5"x2", Intecolor, VGA/composite); the only catch is that there's no
source available for the EPROMs AFAIK (although there _might_ be).
mike
Hey folks...I don't know if there are any Atari hackers around
here; I may be alone...but I wanted to let any interested parties
know that I've located a source for the proprietary connectors that
Atari used for their "SIO" bus, which is used to connect nearly all
of their peripherals in a daisy-chain configuration.
http://www.connectworld.net/cgi-bin/iec/fullpic?AZndUfrS;AT13F;6
I've purchased a connector from the page referenced above, and it
is indeed the right thing.
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL
Farewell Ophelia, 9/22/1991 - 7/25/2007
I used to work on similar Mullard core stores.
They where part of the memory units in 4100 mainframes.
The ones I knew where definatly 4K (4096).
They were mounted in the centre of a card rack with read/ write boards
on either.
OC81 and OC71 transistors in great profusion.
Some had to be gain matched. You started with a box of 500 OC81's, a
pile of paper cups
and a transistor tester set to measure hfe.
Rod Smallwood
-----Original Message-----
From: cctech-bounces at classiccmp.org
[mailto:cctech-bounces at classiccmp.org] On Behalf Of Roger Holmes
Sent: 01 November 2007 00:38
To: cctalk at classiccmp.org
Subject: Re: Info about a Mullard Core
Hi,
> From: "Gavin Melville" <gavin.melville at acclipse.co.nz>
> Subject: Info about a Mullard Core
> Hi,
>
> I have had for many years a large core, and while I don't really want
> to part with it, I also see what little pieces of core sell for on
> ebay....
>
> I was told when given this about 15 years ago that it was from a
> Burroughs mainframe which was installed at the Cadburys head office in
> New Zealand and that they had paid GBP 20,000 for it in 1960.
20,000 for the core or for the mainframe?
How sure are you about it being Burroughs? Wouldn't they be using U.S.
components rather than British?
I know Cadburys bought an ICT 1300 series machine around 1963/4, and its
now in a museum in NZ. It was a 48 bit machine, but I think it had a
much smaller store of 1200 or 2000 words and would have cost around
100,000 GBP. I have read there was an option to replace all the 'barn
door' core stores with a single store of 4,000 words of 48 bits, though
I've never seen one, nor the logic diagrams. I have always wondered
whether it used a full binary decode (using 16384 words to provide 4000
words of usable memory) of the 14 bits rather than a BCD decode. The
1300s use lots of Mullard components.
Just a small piece of a jigsaw puzzle, maybe not even the right puzzle!
Roger Holmes.
Owner of the last working ICT 1301.
> I have
> been unable to find out if this was correct however. Does anyone on
> the list know anything about it ?
>
> pictures at http://www.flickr.com/photos/8788341 at N05/?saved=1
>
> There are 921600 cores in the array, which is made up of 48x48 cores,
> 4 to a layer and 100 layers.
>
> _________________________________
>
> Regards,
> Gavin Melville
> Senior Engineer
> Acclipse Electronic Ltd
>
Hi list,
I have here a card bearing no ID except the stickers on the EPROMs,
which say "(C) 1991 DataCare International Co.".
It's EISA, and has two IDE connectors (marked "TO FIRST IDE DRIVE" and
"TO SECOND IDE DRIVE", a floppy connector, and 4 30-pin SIMM sockets
(all are populated). I don't know anything more than this about it.
If anyone would like this, pay shipping from Yorkshire, UK for it and
it's yours.
Ed.
Hello,
Since this has mostly been gathering dust lately, I have the following
Clipper system for trade/sale/???:
Intergraph 2000 system with 64MB RAM (maximum)
extra 3x 16MB RAM (new)
20" monitor (with metal housing :) )
keyboard and mouse
Clix installation media (floppies + cd's) and a set of documentation
Last time I tried this system was working great, but it has been at
least two years since I last tried it. There was a CAD package
installed, IIRC microstation. All reasonable offers considered, located
in The Netherlands. Shipping would be possible, but probably without the
20" monitor.
greetings,
Michiel
Hi,
>> Memotech
>>
>> Originally a maker of add-ons for the ZX-81, RAM packs etc.
>>Great machines IMHO.
>
> I was given one recently. The mechancial design in beautiful....
One of the best designed home micros IMHO (mechanically).
> Is the manaul for these machines on the web anywhere?
Dunno about on the web, but I probably still have my copy lying around
somewhere....I don't recall seeing any PAL equations in it though.
TTFN - Pete.
This talk about an FPGS style terminal sounds neat, but...
How about a set of EPROMS that will fit into an XT, or AT motherboard that in
combination with standard I/O cards (serial port, CGA video) and will emulate a
standard terminal on power on. Obviously this would require input from the
keyboard and proper coding of the video display memory. I suspect that very
little ram memory would be needed (alternate pages or scrolling memory). Given
that smallish older XT motherboards exist with other "surplus" parts, this
could be an interesting exercise.
For extra credit, add a network interface to make a telnet terminal.
While this may not exactly fit the bill, it could possibly fall into the
"classic" category, expecially if one uses an old XT motherboard and say 256k
bytes of memory (8/9 256k x 1 chips, it was before SIMMs).
Just a thought....
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Jason T wrote:
> Not sure if any computer ever used them, but I remember having an old
> Akai sampler that used a bizarre "Quickdisk" format. The sampler is
> long gone, but somewhere I have one or two of the disks, which will be
> handy should I ever try to create a magnetic media display of some
> sort. I think they measured...2.75" (?) and held...not much at all.
They were used on some MSX home computers, although I have only ever read about them (and seen pictures). I don't think they were commonplace outside of Japan and Korea. They were sort of a cross between tape and disk media; data was written sequentially in a spiral pattern on the disk.
,xtG
tsooJ
---------Original Message(s):
----------
From: Jim Attfield[SMTP:james at attfield.co.uk]
Sent: Friday, November 02, 2007 5:11 AM
To: M H Stein; cctalk at classiccmp.org
Subject: RE: IMI drives (was WTB/WTT S-100 Chassis (UK/Europe only))
> From: M H Stein [mailto:dm561 at torfree.net]
> Sent: 01 November 2007 07:33
> To: 'cctalk at classiccmp.org'
> Cc: 'james at attfield.co.uk'
> Subject: IMI drives (was WTB/WTT S-100 Chassis (UK/Europe only))
>
>
> Re: Looking for IMI drives for a Cromemco:
>
> Another solution would be to find an STDC HD controller; then you could
> use most ST406/512 drives, and they'd also be quite a bit faster (and it
> would be a lot cheaper to ship ;-). I'm running two 150MB Maxtors and
> two 20MB IMIs on the same system BTW.
>
> I don't believe there are any CDOS drivers for it though, so you'd have
> to run any CDOS or CP/M programs in Cromix.
>
> As an aside, there's also an ESDI/SCSI controller; they're pretty scarce
> and your card set wouldn't support one AFAIK, but there is at least one
> person out there putting a 1.2GB disk into his Cromemco (you know who
> you are); not sure if it's working yet though, looks like the
> drive may be bad.
An STDC would be nice and I agree, in some ways perhaps more desirable than
the WDI-II but I haven't seen one come available for a looooong time (YMMV).
I also prefer not to lose CDOS or the possibility of CP/M (although I always
preferred MP/M-II even for single user use).
Jim
--------------Reply:
Well, yes, My M does V... ;-)
But you wouldn't "lose" CDOS or CP/M, just direct HD access from CDOS;
I haven't seen any CP/M drivers for a WDI-II and IMI HD - have you?
If Cromix couldn't run your software for some reason or you want the CP/M
"look and feel" you could always still run off a couple of 1MB floppies and
then use Cromix to archive your files on the HD.
Anyway, just thought I'd mention it in case you happen to run across
an STDC before you find an IMI HD.
mike
Does anyone have experience with these programmable bipolar ROMs
failing after a long period of time? I have an old piece of test
equipment that has 8X300 running the display reading its program from
the aforementioned ROMs and the text info is missing pixels -
apparently in the same place in the same letters.
I am pleased to announce that Hewlett Packard and The Computer History Museum have as
of today entered into an agreement allowing CHM to preserve and redistribute all of the
software (objects and sources) along with documentation for the 21xx/1000 family of
computers for non-commercial use.
The software has been explicitly licensed for use both on simulators and real hardware.
HP has also donated a large collection of manuals and software distributions, primarily
>from the late 80s and forward, which complements what CHM already had from earlier software
releases.
CHM will continue to be actively involved in trying to find all of the earlier software
releases which weren't in the HP archives.
On 2/11/07 22:50, "Gordon JC Pearce" <gordonjcp at gjcp.net> wrote:
> Hey folks,
> I've bought a sampler off eBay - Casio FZ-10m, contains an 8086, is
> user-programmable (Casio released the SDK, apparently) and is way more
> than 10 years old, so fairly on-topic I'd say. I need to get it shipped
> from Huddersfield up to Glasgow. Is there anyone within striking
> distance that could be persuaded to pick it up from the seller, package
> it and send it up? I'll pay for all the costs and throw in a few beer
> vouchers too.
>
> Gordon
More than happy to assist.
I'm around 10 miles from Huddersfield (Saddleworth). I'll be back in the UK
and available to collect / package / post from Monday onwards.
Regards,
Austin.
Hey folks,
I've bought a sampler off eBay - Casio FZ-10m, contains an 8086, is
user-programmable (Casio released the SDK, apparently) and is way more
than 10 years old, so fairly on-topic I'd say. I need to get it shipped
>from Huddersfield up to Glasgow. Is there anyone within striking
distance that could be persuaded to pick it up from the seller, package
it and send it up? I'll pay for all the costs and throw in a few beer
vouchers too.
Gordon
> That is extremely cool. What are the plans for where / when / how
> this will all be made available?
It will probably go out on CD/DVD in stages as things are sorted out.
There has been a volunteer going through the tape images as I've been reading
them checking the contents and making inventories. I need to check with the
people working on 2000 TSB to see what they might have as well.
We wrote the license so that a sublicensee can redistribute with the
same rights that CHM has, so a CD tree may be possible. I don't think
CHM will be able to handle a click-through distribution on the web any
time soon.
I suspect some subset of the software will be available with SIMH as well.
> Woah. That is a huge deal! I can't imagine the amount of time &
> patience that went into making this agreement.
The exciting thing is this is the most comprehensive agreenment we've ever
been able to get from a computer manufacturer, and we're hoping we can use
it as an example for other systems.
Anna Mancini, the HP corporate archivist, along with the corporate PR department has always been very aware of and friendly to historians and hobbyists. For example they're allowing me to republish the 1979 Gordon Dickson story, "Thank you, Beep" which they commissioned for an issue of the HP Calculator Journal -- the article was never published elsewhere or online. So I am happy, but definitely not surprised, to hear this news about the manuals.
On 2/11/07 09:35, "Gordon JC Pearce" <gordonjcp at gjcp.net> wrote:
> That's it exactly. It was the Akai S612 - or more specifically, the Akai
> MD280 external disk drive. IIRC the sampler could be bought without the
> drive, and either send and receive samples over sysex or from tape. I
> *think* it had 48k of memory.
>
> I passed up the chance to buy one, with the drive and a large library of
> disks, for 50 quid in a music shop in Inverness a few years ago. Oh well.
>
> Gordon
Great little piece of kit. The samples were 12-bit (from memory) and there
was *the best* interface for trimming samples I've ever encountered -
basically two sliders representing 0 - 100% of the sample length. The top
represented "start" and the bottom "end". If the "start" slider was further
along than the "end" slider it would play the sample in reverse, still
obeying the trim length - genius! MIDI compatible too....
I'm ashamed to say I threw mine out a few years ago after the disk unit got
crushed (still functional, mind you). The right hand side of the disk unit
was just red metal diagonal slots for storing the diskettes - pure 80's
chic!
-Austin.
I have an old Xerox Memorywriter 630 typewriter. It works great except for the fact that it needs a new set of membranes in the keyboard. I can get a set of the membranes but I have no idea how to install them. Any help out there?
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Date: Thu, 1 Nov 2007 15:43:36 -0700 (PDT)
From: David Griffith <dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu>
Subject: modern serial terminal
I'm thinking of a device about the size of a couple CD jewel cases that
has two serial ports, a ps/2 or usb port, VGA port, power jack, and
perhaps a JTAG header concealed within. This device is a regular RS232
serial terminal. Plug in a monitor, keyboard, and something talking rs232
and you're ready to go. Inside there would be a microprocessor, some ram,
some flash, and an FPGA to take care of glue logic and talking to the VGA
port. The FPGA would be loaded with the digital schematics of a
particular terminal and its firmware, for instance, a Wyse 85 or 99GT (my
favorites). That would get you most of the usual emulations.
How hard would it be to create something like this? How much would it
cost?
---------------------------
Take an old Laptop, remove the screen and you're in business. Probably
wouldn't cost anything, especially if the screen's broken; boot & run
>from floppy or USB if the HD's bad.
You've even got a built-in keyboard for those times you can't find the main one.
(and, if it's still got a parallel port, a parallel ASCII keyboard if you need one),
And you could probably listen to your favourite CD while you're working...
A little bigger than two jewel cases but a cinch to upgrade...
Not to mention one less land-fill item...
m
I got a file box full of 30-pin 9-bit 4 megabyte SIMMs if anyone has
need of them.
Most are 80nS, going down to 60nS, and even a few 3-chip "why bothers"
(curiously with Sun numbering). Many 9-chip Sun 501-1739 parts if you
want original
Unsorted or semi-sorted chips (same-manufacturer, I went through many
bags to come up with enough Toshibas to max out my Personal IRIS 4D/25)
are free for shipping. If you want a matched set or guaranteed 70nS (or
60nS) kick in a little more to make it worth my while to sort through
the bin.
Probably not a high-interest item, but thought I'd pass them on if
needed. In Renton, WA.
Alexandre Souza wrote:
>> They were used on some MSX home computers, although I have only ever read
>> about them (and seen pictures). I don't think they were commonplace
>> outside of Japan and Korea. They were sort of a cross between tape and
>> disk media; data was written sequentially in a spiral pattern on the disk.
>
> MSX with 3.25 disks? Is that the QD drive?
No. QD disks are 2.8". Several drives are mentioned here: <http://www.faq.msxnet.org/hardware.html>
,xtG
tsooJ
Please bear with me one more time... What was that URL to the stuff about
the mythic 3.25" floppy disk? (the one that looked like a shrunken 5.25"
and loaded onto a tray).
--
David Griffith
dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu
Re: Looking for IMI drives for a Cromemco:
Another solution would be to find an STDC HD controller; then you could
use most ST406/512 drives, and they'd also be quite a bit faster (and it
would be a lot cheaper to ship ;-). I'm running two 150MB Maxtors and
two 20MB IMIs on the same system BTW.
I don't believe there are any CDOS drivers for it though, so you'd have
to run any CDOS or CP/M programs in Cromix.
As an aside, there's also an ESDI/SCSI controller; they're pretty scarce
and your card set wouldn't support one AFAIK, but there is at least one
person out there putting a 1.2GB disk into his Cromemco (you know who
you are); not sure if it's working yet though, looks like the drive may be bad.
mike
-------------Original Messages:
Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2007 10:41:24 -0000
From: "Jim Attfield" <james at attfield.co.uk>
Subject: RE: WTB/WTT S-100 Chassis (UK/Europe only)
Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:57:19 -0400
From: M H Stein <dm561 at torfree.net>
Subject: WTB/WTT S-100 Chassis (UK/Europe only)
------------Reply:
I have several IMI 20MB (and 5MB) drives, but they're also on the wrong side
of the Atlantic (Toronto). Also, I'm not sure at this point how many are
still
working reliably or how many I can spare (if any). I have scrapped a few
though,
so if you happen to find an ST-412/506 version (they were used in some PCs)
I could probably send you the PCBs to convert it.
Why not just build a nice custom case & PS?
mike
------------------------------
Hi Mike, glad to see they are still around to be had. Shipping a 20Mb IMI
wouldn't be as bad as shipping a Z2D lol Nice tip on the PC drives although
I believe I have only ever seen Seagate, Rodime, Micropolis, IBM etc. but
I'll look more carefully from now on. Please keep me in mind, though, as
soon as I have a chassis of some sort organised I'll want to run up the
WDI-II (was a working pull from my old CS1-H, no longer with me, along with
the DPU , 16-FDC and 256KZ) and get Cromix back on the go.
Jim
I'll be heading up to VCF tomorrow and will be bringing quite a bit of stuff. A
partial list can be found at:
http://www.west.net/~marvin/2007vcf.txt
Also, for those of you who either live in the area or will be attending VCF, the
Livermore swapmeet is Sunday starting at about 6:30AM or so. My intention right
now is to go there with a selling spot ... it makes a great place to meet people
AND store stuff bought there :) ... and head back to VCF about 10:30AM or so.
Livermore is approximately 30 minutes or so from the CHM. If anyone is
interested and needs a ride, see me at VCF.
