Hi,
Since some time the only mirror of my site is gone, so all scanned
material and some additional info are only present (as a set) via my
local site. This site resides on cheap consumer grade quality hardware,
so is not very reliable. So if anyone want to mirror it, I would be
grateful.
The site contains information on a limited set of computers, like DAI,
Epson, some obscure DEC, etc.
The url is http://electrickery.xs4all.nl/comp/. A list of the scanned
documentation is at http://electrickery.xs4all.nl/comp/virtlibrary.html.
Please contact me before starting copying; - the site is at the wrong
side of an ADSL line, and contains mirrors of other sites (in
http://electrickery.xs4all.nl/comp/mirrors). Also it
_contains_copyrighted_material_ (but of vintage or cctech interest).
Fred Jan
Date: Sat, 28 Nov 2009 16:49:20 -0500
From: Murray McCullough <c.murray.mccullough at gmail.com>
Subject: Different take on 10 Yr. 'RULE'
A different interpretation on the 10 Yr. 'Rule'. Many experts, CPU mag
being one, say that we shouldn't store info on CDs, DVDs, etc. as they
may be unreadable in less than 10 yrs. Wouldn't it be sad if we lost
valuable information on the classic computing era? I guess
old-fashioned paper is the best way after all! Let's hope these
technologies last longer than my Zip-drive and disks that can't be
read because the drive died and I can't get it fixed or at the very
least at a decent price. So Sad!
Murray--
--------------Reply:
Only sad if you want it to be...
No problem finding a working ZIP drive for free or next to nothing
these days; all kinds of them on eBay at .99 with no bids, or just
ask on the various forums and I'm sure someone'll be happy to get
rid of one.
Never had any problems with my drives or disks, FWIW.
m
I don't know if the 10 year rule applies here, but I have a old 3com
switch (3c3500) that I'd like to use. Problem is that the previous
administrator was competent and changed all the passwords. So, how
should I reset this unit? Mind you, there is a socketed flash SIMM
... Any ideas? There's also a bad SRAM chip, but that's another
kettle of fish.
>
> Date: Wed, 2 Dec 2009 13:23:18 -0600
> From: Brian Lanning <brianlanning at gmail.com>
> Batteries I can handle. But leaky surface mount caps scare me to death.
> I can solder, but not on the new surface-mount stuff. My eyes aren't what
> they used to be. Maybe I should practice some and invest in a reflow
> setup. But I don't have enough time either.
The surface mount electrolytics aren't bad at all. You should be able to
manage with reading glasses.
To remove the old ones, just get two soldering pencils. Heat controlled
is nice, but you can use a pair of Radio Shack 15watt grounded pencils
(>$10 ea. last time I checked). Apply one pencil to each side of the
capacitor until it lifts easily off of the board. Do not pry.
Remove the old solder with a bit of desoldering braid. Clean the pads
with your favorite solvent(s). Lightly tin one pad. Position the new
capacitor on the pads and hold in place by pressing down with a flat blade
screwdriver or similar (pencil eraser at end of pencil might work well).
Heat the tinned side until the capacitor sinks flat on the pad. Remove
heat, then remove screwdriver. Solder the other terminal normally.
In the old Macintosh world we've been replacing the SM electrolytics with
SM tantalums in hopes that they will last longer.
Anyway, this may not be best practice, but it gets the job done for about
$20 in equipment (two soldering pencils) and less than $10 in supplies
(solder, flux, braid).
Jeff Walther
This discussion about old LEDs makes me wonder...Is anyone aware
of a mailing list for discussion of vintage electronic components?
It's not terribly off-topic here of course, but many people here may
not care.
And on that note...does anyone know if any manufacturer made
74LS244 (actually any logic family, doesn't have to be LS) in a gold-
capped ceramic through-hole DIP package? And if so, would anyone
happen to have any?
-Dave
--
Dave McGuire
Port Charlotte, FL
Hi,
As some of you may be aware, I managed to hose the OS on my 16500B
while trying to upgrade to the latest software. I've now got the
analyser booting again, and it seems to be working more or less OK.
Unfortunately (for me) it seems my backup (done with Filezilla, i.e.
FTP) is totally duff -- apparently I had FZ set to "transfer files with
no extension as ASCII", which has naturally hosed just about all the
System, Driver and Extension files. Which means I've lost the E2450
Symbol Utility software. Bit of a pain when you want to use the analyser
to debug microprocessor code.
Seeing as there are a few folk here with 16500B analysers, I was
wondering if I could ask a small favour... I need a copy of the Symbol
Utility install floppy, HP part number E2450-17504, aka "Symbol Utility
for HP16500B/C/CS". It should be either a normal 1.44MB DOS format
floppy, or a HP LIF floppy (more likely DOS than LIF).
If there's anyone on here with a copy of this disk (possibly stashed
away in the manuals folder for their 16500B analyser), could I possibly
ask for an image of it? Almost anything is fine; I'd prefer something
reasonably standard though -- WinImage .IMA, ImageDisk, or even a raw
"dd if=/dev/fd0 of=imagefile" (rawrite) dump.
For what it's worth, I had V3.02 installed, but I suspect I might need
something a little more recent now the analyser is running the V3.14
operating system.
Thanks,
--
Phil.
classiccmp at philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/
Hi,
As a few of you may be aware, I managed to hose the OS on my 16500B
while trying to upgrade to the latest software. I've now got the
analyser booting again, and it's picking up the I/O cards correctly.
Unfortunately (for me) it seems my backup (done with Filezilla, i.e.
FTP) is totally duff -- apparently I had FZ set to "transfer files with
no extension as ASCII", which has hosed all the System, Driver and
Extension files. Which means I've lost the E2450 Symbol Utility software.
Seeing as there are a few folk here with 16500B analysers, I was
wondering if I could ask a small favour... I need a copy of the Symbol
Utility install floppy, HP part number E2450-17504, aka "Symbol Utility
for HP16500B/C/CS". It should be either a normal 1.44MB DOS format
floppy, or a HP LIF floppy (more likely DOS than LIF).
If there's anyone on here with a copy of this disk (possibly stashed
away in the manuals folder for their 16500B analyser), could I possibly
ask for an image of it? Almost anything is fine; I'd prefer something
reasonably standard though -- WinImage .IMA, ImageDisk, or even a raw
"dd if=/dev/fd0 of=imagefile" (rawrite) dump.
For what it's worth, I had V3.02 installed, but any version is fine by me.
Thanks,
--
Phil.
philpem at philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/
Hi guys,
I've just got my hands on a HP 16500B logic analyser mainframe,
complete with a few acquisition cards (16530A 2-channel 400Msps
oscilloscope and 16550A 100MHz State/500MHz Timing logic analyser). Now
I'd rather like a keyboard and mouse for it...
I'm aware that the HP-HIL keyboard and mouse used on the 16500B were
HP-proprietary, and that they were also used on a couple of HP
workstations. My question is, does anyone here have a HP-HIL keyboard,
mouse, or (preferably) a mouse and keyboard pair for sale?
(I'd also settle for a PS/2-to-HP-HIL adapter, if such a beast exists)
I've had a quick look on Greed-bay, and it seems the only listings
for HP-HIL kit are from test-and-measurement dealers whose prices are a
bit... well... "out there".
I could also do with the manuals for the 16530A oscilloscope card; at
the least I need the Front Panel Operations Reference, but the Service
Manual would be good too. I can't say I'm too fussed about the
Programmer's Manual (it's on Agilent's website as a PDF), but it would
be nice to have a complete set. I'll take PDF, (good quality) photocopy,
or dead-tree, whatever's easiest.
Thanks,
--
Phil.
classiccmp at philpem.me.uk
http://www.philpem.me.uk/
If you live in Vancouver you MUST check this out:
http://freegeekvancouver.org/en/computer_museum_auction
Almost 120 machines are for sale, including:
* Boxed IBM 5150 Personal Computer - The original PC from 1982, from which
all modern PCs are still derived. Comes in box with accessories and manuals.
* NeXT cube and NeXT Stations - The computers on which the World Wide Web
was created.
* Boxed Amiga 1000 - The first of a revolutionary line of computers. Comes
in box with accessories and hardware upgrades.
* Atari 1040STE - One of Atari's best and well know in the world of music.
* Apple Macintosh 128k - The original Mac from 1984.
* In addition to systems, there are other goodies like Model M keyboards for
sale
I have seen the stuff with my own eyes and this is not something to miss.
There are some real gems going up for grabs.
Sadly, no PDP stuff. :(
John
John wrote:
> Sadly, no PDP stuff. :(
The SERF sales at UBC were really a goldmine of good minicomputer stuff in my past.
And they had a lot of lab equipment too.
I'm 3000 miles away now, and see that SERF still exists, but their online presence shows none of their inventory :-(.
Tim.