Hi ccTalk!
My name is Ryan and I may have been in contact with a few of you already (Rich, most notably) about this topic. I am on a pretty wide search of any versions of 86-DOS, or any information regarding it.
As of now, I have 7 copies of 86-DOS. They cover a disappointing range of versions ? from 1.00 to 1.14. There are a lot of duplicates. Versions prior to 1.00 were sold ? for example, I know of 2 collectors with versions in the 0.3x range, but both are unable to image it due to technical limitations.
I?ve already contacted quite a few people. Most interestingly are 5 former Seattle Computer Products employees, as well as 2 family members of SCP owner Rod Brock. Tim Paterson, the creator of 86-DOS, didn?t have a copy, nor its source code. Pat Opalka, who contributed a bug fix, is in possession of a few copies, though none are prior to 1.00 (he may or may not be able to image them ? if he does, I?ll send another message here). 3 other employees didn?t have any documents from the time, nor any copies of the software. The 2 family members of Rod Brock don?t have any copies, but have relevant documents and recordings that they are in the process of sending over.
So, if you have any copies of 86-DOS, even if you don?t want to share or its version is 1.00 or above, please send an e-mail back. I can send over imaging instructions. It was sold with the following computers:
- Seattle Computer Products 8086 System
- Seattle Computer Products Gazelle
- Lomas Data Products LDP88
- Lomas Data Products LDP1
- Lomas Data Products LDP2
There are 8? copies for Tarbell and Cromemco floppy disk controllers, as well as 5.25? copies for NorthStar disk controllers.
I will also take other relevant things such as people to contact, manuals, recollections of versions you may have had, etc.
Thank you all for your time!
- Ryan Ottignon
I think I should pass on my experience as a warning to others.
I googled around for a particular PDP-11 board I needed and tamayatech.com
was a hit, with "buy now" option and condition: refurbished. Seemed
convincing and the price was in the sane ballpark. So I bought it, paid
through their ecommerce routine, etc.
Sent a mail thanking them and asking if it would be despatched soon as I
had work time off in the coming week.. No reply.
Waited a week and telephoned their phone number from the purchase
confirmation email. No answer. Left message.
Several (well over ten) repeated email and phone contact attempts through
the last months (this began early November) to no avail. There has been
absolutely no response. So my conclusion: it looks as though they took my
credit card and never shipped it, then just ignored me. I hope the fellow's
okay but feel quite thoroughly ripped off.
So 'buyer' beware.
Interestingly their SEO is rather well maintained and punching DEC part
numbers into Google, etc. often results in a hit to their site. So they're
at least keeping that part of the business updated.
Anybody else with similar experience? Any way to rectify the situation?
thx
jake
Long-time HP3000 programmer/user/evangelist, and friend, Chuck Shimada
passed away yesterday, 12/26.
Many list members will have seen Chuck at Interex and SCRUG conventions,
running the tech side, or as part of the convention staff. He was a major
force in the creation of the early "swap tapes" for contributed software.
The science fiction fans on the list may have also seen him running tech at
many science fiction conventions.
>From a facebook post by Michael Donohue:
I am very saddened to report that Chuck Shimada passed away this morning,
Dec 26, 2021. He had been doing okay but was not feeling great Dec 24/25.
I spoke to him Dec 24 and we had a nice conversation.
He had some episode in his sleep, the nurse found him this morning alive
but unresponsive with weak pulse and he passed away a few hours later. So
he likely did pass without conscious discomfort.
//
Hi cctalk,
Ever since CuriousMarc put out his YouTube horror film last April
about a killer
HP 9825T power supply
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-eN93L6yX8&list=PL-_93BVApb58Hy846J52DT8Fe…>,
I've been worrying about how my own comparably-aged systems might avoid a
similar fate, at least until I have the wherewithal to do a Jerry Walker
<https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGkakWu37P6CuzIZbTlCmvg>-esque
high-quality PSU refurbishment.
In the end, borrowing a tactic from Commodore fans, I made a circuit that
sits between a DC power supply and a load and cuts off the power if it
senses an overvoltage or an undervoltage condition. I'm happy to share it
with you now, with the usual anxiety amateurs feel when an audience
includes some professionals. I hope at least some elements of the design
can be useful! Here it is: https://github.com/stepleton/voltmitten/
(There are two reasons for the name "Voltmitten". One is that the gizmo is
shaped a bit like a hand. The other is to remind you that it wasn't really
designed by the most serious practitioner.)
You can see my cute mock video advert for Voltmitten here:
https://youtu.be/hSaAHBhTh_A
I hope it's an adequate homage to Marc's inspiring videos. Most of the
effort here went into a brief gag view of a carefully rotoscoped
<https://twitter.com/tstepleton/status/1475093211983097860> Bob Stern aka
"Mr. Fancy Pants", which may not have been the best use of time but is at
least a result I can feel proud of :-)
With best wishes for a bright 2022,
--Tom
I have a PDP-11/44 system in the DEC 41" high cabinet.
It is designed to be tilted up for service, aided and
supported by two gas struts, one on each side.
Unfortunately, after all these years, the struts have
failed and do not provide any assistance. That box is
heavy!
Does anyone know where I can get replacement gas struts?
Thanks,
Alan Frisbie
Does anyone on this list know of a company or individual that does work
(maintenance or anything) on these older 3065 test systems. The internal
brain and drives are all HP 1000 stuff. A900 control unit and HP-IB
drives. I have a user that needs help installing a drive and software on
one. If anyone knows of anyone that can assist, let me know and I'll
forward the info
Thanks
Jesse / Cypress Technology Inc
Rob Jarratt <robert.jarratt at ntlworld.com> wrote:
> I am looking for the service guide for the RF30 DSSI disk. It is not on Manx
> and not on BitSavers. Does anyone know of a copy? The part number is
> apparently EK-RF30D-SV.
If anyone finds one, I would greatly appreciate a copy also.
Thanks,
Alan Frisbie
Well, DSL Extreme is getting out of the T1 business, leaving me high and dry
(they've really gone to hell since GTT bought them out) since they don't offer
a static IP option on any of their lines anymore. I'll be working around that
problem for the next couple months while we move ...
Anyway, I have a spare Ubigate iBG-1000 T1 router here set up by the tech, but
no password to access it. It appears to be an embedded PowerPC system, around
603 level. I have some possible reset instructions and can access its serial
console, but was wondering if anyone out there has the administration manual
for it. It might be fun to repurpose it.
--
------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ --
Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com
-- PowerPC inside! ------------------------------------------------------------
