test-drb October 2008

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Anyone know of a 1970s-style dot matrix "computer photo" generator/converter?

by aek＠bitsavers.org

http://aa-project.sourceforge.net/

15 years, 9 months

form feed tapes on printers (was Re: Mona Lisa)

by tsw-cc＠johana.com

On 08 Oct 2008 22:28:12, Chuck Guzis wrote: >On 9 Oct 2008 at 1:12, Dennis Boone wrote: > >> > Some funny words just came into my head in >connection with printers: >> > SPIM, SKIP, SKAP, SPAP. Can't remember the system >or language they >> > were associated with--although I'm certain it wasn't >CDC. > >No, I don't think so. Probably IBM--maybe 1620 SPS II >printer >mnemonics? > >Cheers, >Chuck > Why right you are. For those of you who aren't reading at home, these mnemonics mean: SPIM: Space immediate (1-3 lines) SKIP: Skip immediate (to carriage control channel) SKAP: Skip after printing (carriage control) SPAP: Space after printing (1-3 lines) All of these were control instructions that referenced the printer (unit #9). The carriage control tape was a standard 12 channel one (IBM used them on LOTS of printers like 407's and 1403's). You could access any one of the 12 channels. The 1620 had two indicators for "summary line" (channel 9) and "end of printable page" (channel 12), which if you have a hard copy impact printer are probably still there. Yes, if you skipped to a channel that WASN'T punched, you fed lots of paper, which is why (if you were smart) you punched the unused channels on the same line as the "end of paper" channel (12). Oh, standard Fortran: blank, single space; 1, top of form; 0, double space; +, overprint (not supported everywhere). Feel free to consult your friendly Unix man page for the program 'asa' for further reference. One of these days I'll dig out the computer pic I made back in the late 60's using a video camera connected to an 1130. 16 levels of gray, and 200x160 or so resolution. Cool for the day!

15 years, 9 months

Mona Lisa

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

> From: Mike Loewen <mloewen at cpumagic.scol.pa.us> > > > Does anyone here have the source code for the program (FORTRAN?) > which > produced the large Mona Lisa printout on the 1403? The one I > remember had > 3 or 4 printouts taped together. Have any of the card decks survived? I don't have it in Fortran nor for IBM but I think I have a deck of cards for my ICT 1301 which produces a two or three page printout, printing across the perforations. At the moment, I don't have a 100% working card reader and I'm in the process of selling my spare 1301 so all my 'spare' time is used up trying to put back together a 5 ton jig- saw I dismantled over 30 years ago. At least I have an assembled one for reference but I keep finding differences between the two machines, one being the first one to leave the factory and the other probably being one of the last. I hope to make all my 1301 software, including the Mona Lisa, Snoopy, the lady on a stool etc available online sometime together with some of my many manuals and a simulator which will run on a Mac. Will need to find someone to host the archive in perpituity, maybe BitSavers would be willing to do it, but I haven't got the data off the Ampex ten track tapes yet. Roger Holmes ICT 1301 S/N 006 and a cut and shut of 075 and 159.

15 years, 9 months

NEC SX-4B on Ebay

by mtapley＠swri.edu

At 8:50 -0500 10/9/08, Chris M wrote: >But what are the practical applications that this thing could be set >to use from the get-go? 1.) Wrong group to ask that question. 1.5 tonne paperweights are OK here, if the kewl factor is high enough. One that says "supercomputer" on the side is OK on kewl factor. (But it sounds like Dave actually has an answer, which is even better.) 2.) http://www.distributed.net/ Drool! (I still want to get a Mac OS 6.0.8 client going so I can put my Mac Plus on the stats chart...then on to the Color Computer and NitrOS9! :-) ) -- - Mark 210-379-4635 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Large Asteroids headed toward planets inhabited by beings that don't have technology adequate to stop them: Think of it as Evolution in Fast-Forward.

15 years, 9 months

Stuff I need rid of, ASAP...

by gordonjcp＠gjcp.net

DEC LA-36 and some spare ribbons Tektronix Phaser 560 colour laser printer Two not-entirely-working Superbrains a Sanyo CP/M-86 machine (MBC-4050? possibly) In Glasgow I can hang onto them for a couple of days, but not much more than that. Gordon

15 years, 9 months

looking for racks

by rescue＠hawkmountain.net

A friend is looking for 6 computer racks. He is looking for ones with "high ventilation (mesh doors, etc) and locking is a requirement". Anyone got anything like this in the MA/RI/NH area (or possibly local enough that can ship (at an affordable rate) via freight) ? If you don't have 6 then let me know what you have, and I'll pass it along with your contact info. -- Curt

15 years, 9 months

Anyone know of a 1970s-style dot matrix "computer photo" generator/converter?

by ethan.dicks＠usap.gov

Hi, All, I'm sure many of us remember the "computer photo" craze of the late 1970s - go to a mall, get your photo taken by a computer, then buy one of a number of trinkets (calendars, coffee mugs, etc.) with your photo rendered by dot matrix... an old family friend even had one of those rigs - driven by an Ohio Scientific Challenger III (a machine I've long lusted after). There must be a way to simulate that look today - some sort of GIMP filter or web app or something. I've been googling around for "ASCII art" and "dot matrix photo", etc., and have found some interesting stuff (http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2006/07/27/ascii-art-1939/) but not what I'm looking for. Ultimately, I just want to take a snapshot of me and filter it to resemble that 1970s "computer photo" look. Any suggestions where to turn? Discussions of how it was done and how it could be done with vintage hardware now are interesting and probably on-topic, but not the goal of my question. Thanks, -ethan -- Ethan Dicks, A-333-S Current South Pole Weather at 9-Oct-2008 at 00:40 Z South Pole Station PSC 468 Box 400 Temp -67.5 F (-55.3 C) Windchill -105.5 F (-76.4 C) APO AP 96598 Wind 12.7 kts Grid 31 Barometer 667.8 mb (11092 ft) Ethan.Dicks at usap.gov http://penguincentral.com/penguincentral.html

15 years, 9 months

AmproLB+ SCSI...

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: AmproLB+ SCSI... > From: Gene Buckle <geneb at deltasoft.com> > Date: Wed, 08 Oct 2008 10:40:26 -0700 (PDT) > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >On Wed, 8 Oct 2008, Allison wrote: > >> >> Jeff.. >> >> I have a AmproLB+ and a SB180 both in use. Both have hard drives on them via >> SCSI adapters. >> >I apologize for hijacking the thread. :) > >I've got an Ampro Littleboard with a SCSI interface on it (it uses the NCR >chip) and I was wondering what drive you're using with yours? I've been >unable to get mine to see any drives at all. Is there another board that >plugs into the 50 pin header required to make it work? No other board. Your suffering from PCism, you expect it to work like a PC and it will not. I'm using a 45MB fujitsu 3.5" scsi drive That was given to me and a modified version of the ampro scsi bios. The base SCSI software supports a limited number of drives and SCSI to MFM bridges that were available in the mid to late 80s. Those would be the Xebec and Adaptec and one seagate drive all in the 10-30mb size range. Add to that at the time the AmproLB+ software was written SCSI nee SASI was still somewhat developmental. Yes, I had to take the Ampro sources and rework them a bit for that drive and debug them. The basic code is online in one of the repository sites and it's well done so modifying it should be resonable. I'll admit it's been 17 years since I did it and it's running so I haven't looked at it in a long while. Hope that helps. Allison > >tnx! > >g. >-- >Proud owner of F-15C 80-0007 >http://www.f15sim.com - The only one of its kind.

15 years, 9 months

Unusual software carriers.

by feldman.r＠comcast.net

>Message: 12 >Date: Wed, 8 Oct 2008 01:00:44 +0100 >From: "Pete Edwards" <stimpy.u.idiot at gmail.com> >Subject: Re: Unusual software carriers. (Was :Vinyl Data- Classic > Computers ) <snip> >Does anyone else remember 'Tomorrow's World' in the UK transmitting software >via a flashing square in the bottom right of the TV picture? There was some >kind of photocell dongle that attached to the computer. Memory is vague - >did it plug into the tape input? I can't remember what the target system >was, possible several via the basic translater mentioned earlier in the >thread? No idea what the data rate was. >-- >Pete Edwards My son had a Timex Ironman watch that you programmed by holding it up to a computer screen that flashed the data to a sensor on the watch. It would not work on an LCD, only a CRT. Bob

15 years, 9 months

Vinyl Data- Classic Computers / Indie music tricks crossover

by tpeters＠mixcom.com

http://www.kempa.com/wp/2004/03/09/vinyl-data/ Excerpt: One strategy that major record companies have been employing lately to deter downloading is adding bonus computer content to new CD releases. I recently discovered that this technique is not unique to CD?s, but had in fact been practiced in the vinyl era as well. That?s right: there were a handful of records released in the late 70?s and early 80?s that contained computer programs as part of the audio. This is totally insane, and totally great. Most of these programs were written for the Sinclair Spectrum home computer series. The Sinclair Spectrum was a relatively cheap home computer system that used a television set as a monitor and loaded programs from tapes. It thrived in England in the early 80?s: ----- 240. [Literature] "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,..." -- opening line of Charles Dickens, _A Tale of Two Cities_ --... ...-- -.. . -. ----. --.- --.- -... tpeters at nospam.mixcom.com (remove "nospam") N9QQB (amateur radio) "HEY YOU" (loud shouting) WEB: 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, CCNA, Registered Linux User 385531

15 years, 9 months

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test-drb October 2008