- test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org - classiccmp.org

by madodel＠ptd.net

> Why all this discussion about the iPad? For the stated purpose > (reading PDFs) would not a similar-form-factor _designed specifically > for that purpose_ serve much better? By now there are a bunch of > "e-readers" with e-ink displays - which one of those is currently best > for scanned PDFs (which is what in this context is the primary > application!)? > > I know that many of the current ones have (fairly) low pixel density > (thus bad for scanned text even if adequate for OCR'd documents) and > many suffer from bad PDF support; but I'd expect that at this stage > _someone_ has made one that is of a good size with high resolution. > > At least most of these now support slapping an SD card full of files > into them, right? This way you're not tied to a network (wireless or > wired). While the iPad doesn't have an SD slot there is an adapter from Apple that acts as an SD card reader and USB connecter. Next time I'm at the Apple store I plan to pick one up. Mark -- Mark Dodel<madodel at ptd.net> sent by ibisMail on my Apple iPad!

16 years, 2 months

1
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6809 transistor count -- a better PDF !

by waltsfo＠gmail.com

Also had trouble reading the images with Evince. Here's a copy I could read: The *BYTE* 6809 Articles (Jan?February 1979)<http://tlindner.macmess.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/09/byte_6809_articles.p…> http://tlindner.macmess.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/09/byte_6809_articles.p… 30. Re: 6809 transistor count? (CSquared) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > > Message: 30 > Date: Mon, 31 May 2010 18:23:07 -0500 > From: CSquared <csquared3 at tx.rr.com> > Subject: Re: 6809 transistor count? > To: General Discussion: On-Topic Posts Only <cctech at classiccmp.org> > > I get about 40K transistors as ball park figure. > > Ben. > > > Thanks for that link; I love reading stuff like that. I'll admit I've > not diligently researched all the possibilities, but of all the > 8-bitters I've ever encountered, the 6809 is definitely my favorite. > The only problem I have with that pdf file is, with my Foxit reader > anyway, all the pictures are blank. I need to go try it with Adobe to > see if that matters. Any one else have that problem? > Later, > Charlie C. > > > > End of cctech Digest, Vol 82, Issue 1 > ************************************* >

16 years, 2 months

1
0
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Free: Macintosh IIcx motherboard

by sieler＠me.com

Hi, If anyone wants a Macintosh IIcx motherboard (free, and allegedly "new"), please email me offline at sieler at allegro.com. Board was found in the estate of a friend, box is marked as "new". Board was unopened until I broke the seal so I could get the model number: Macintosh IIcx Apple Computer 820-0230-B (c) 1988 Preference goes to anyone who can pick it up in Cupertino, CA. Otherwise, cost of shipping Fed-Ex is needed. thanks, Stan

16 years, 2 months

2
1
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by nig.bailey＠virgin.net

My 2 pennorth, The business of listing "4 systems you have had experience of" is a little odd & seems to hint at an administration that don't know one end of an electrolytic from the other, it's rather like choosing a builder based upon "what type of housing stock he's worked on". ("Door sticking?, No mate, I only do victorian terraces & 1930s semis") Personally I was musing with the idea of volunteering when the kids are both in school, as I'm 44 and have been doing electronics for about 42 years, and I'm not a million miles away, but it's going to kill me seeing stuff rot, and not being able to get my hands dirty for the sake of a piece of paper.

16 years, 2 months

4
7
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Hacking an RS-170 tap into a B&W TV set?

by NewmansKnight＠bellsouth.net

To Ethan Dicks, 7 years ago, you posted in an electronics forum, asking about how to install a composite video input into a cheap, 5 inch, 12 Volt b/w TV set. I've discovered how to do so, and if you're still interested but haven't found out, Let me know and I'll send you the info. I know this message may seem strange, coming to you so very looong after you first posted the question, but oh well... Here is the link to the forum where you posted the question. http://www.classiccmp.org/pipermail/cctalk/2003-March/020120.html Sincerely, Justin Newman NewmansKnight at bellsouth.net

16 years, 2 months

5
4
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TI 990 micro terminal on ebay

by rborsuk＠colourfull.com

Hi All, Cool TI Micro terminal on ebay for the 990 family Item # 300432266833 Rob Rob Borsuk email: rborsuk at colourfull.com Colourfull Creations Web: http://www.colourfull.com

16 years, 2 months

2
1
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Authenticity opinions

by billdeg＠degnanco.com

> I have brought my SWTPC 6800 system back to life that I built as a kid > in 1976. It is pretty heavily loaded with RAM cards, floppy controller, > etc. and the 8V power supply rail was never really able to hold its own. > It sits at about 6.5V now... driving many 5V regulators on the various > cards. No where near enough margin going into those. > > So, I am contemplating the following, > > 1) rebuild entire power supply using three switchers, 7.5v unit nudged > up to 8V and two 12V units to supply ?12 on the backplane. <snip> > > 2) add a new transformer to the existing supply just for the 8V rail. > <snip> > 3) scuttle the legacy RAM cards, most of which are 4K in size built > with 2102's... and one 16K built with 2114... and replace them with a > single homebrew RAM card using one 32Kx8 SRAM drawing almost no power > in comparison to these old cards. > > Any recommendations on the best choice? > > Chris > > Chris, If you're planning on using the system somewhat frequently I suggest making the newer RAM card, keeping the power supply as-is, and saving the old RAM cards for the future in events where you want the original system intact. Best of both worlds. Bill Degnan

16 years, 2 months

1
0
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RD53 Restoration - Progress!

by aek＠bitsavers.org

On 5/31/10 10:54 AM, Rob Jarratt wrote: > Why is the graphite pad needed? What would happen if I > removed it? > static charge builds up, and zaps the read preamps.

16 years, 2 months

1
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RD53 Restoration - Progress!

by pete＠dunnington.plus.com

On 31/05/2010 18:54, Rob Jarratt wrote: > Thanks to the people on this list and one other (thanks Matt!) I have got my > RD53 working reliably now. I currently have it installed in a MicroVAX 2000 > with 6MB of memory running MicroVMS 4.6 and DECnet. > > I had to remove the old bumper which had become sticky. But to make the disk > work I had to replace the bumper, so I used some folded over post-it notes > taped to the top of the head assembly. This seems to work for now, but I > fear a better solution is needed. You could try a thin bump-on rubber foot, as used on some small electrical equipment. > I also get a grinding noise which becomes > apparent after the disk has warmed up. I think this comes from the graphite > pad underneath. I plan to loosen the mounting bolts a little more to see if > that gets rid of the noise, but I am wondering if there is any other way to > get rid of it. Why is the graphite pad needed? What would happen if I > removed it? It's an antistatic measure for the spindle. Try bending it a little. It's unlikely to do any harm running with it bent right our of the way for a while, so you can find out if that's what's making the noise. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

16 years, 2 months

1
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RD53 Restoration - Progress!

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> apparent after the disk has warmed up. I think this comes from the graphite > pad underneath. I plan to loosen the mounting bolts a little more to see if > that gets rid of the noise, but I am wondering if there is any other way to > get rid of it. Why is the graphite pad needed? What would happen if I > removed it? The graphite pad is an earthing contact for the spindle/disks. The idea is that if the spindle is insulated from the chasis, static build-up could cause data errors (or even damage to the read amplifier). I've seen plenty of dissk runnign without the earthing contact, so it is probably not essential to have it. Often if you bend the mountign spring so a different bit of the pad touches the spindle, the noise will go away. Another trick is to stick something (foam tape is good) on the spring to deaden the sound. -tony

16 years, 2 months

1
0
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RD53 Restoration - Progress!

by robert.jarratt＠ntlworld.com

Thanks to the people on this list and one other (thanks Matt!) I have got my RD53 working reliably now. I currently have it installed in a MicroVAX 2000 with 6MB of memory running MicroVMS 4.6 and DECnet. I had to remove the old bumper which had become sticky. But to make the disk work I had to replace the bumper, so I used some folded over post-it notes taped to the top of the head assembly. This seems to work for now, but I fear a better solution is needed. I also get a grinding noise which becomes apparent after the disk has warmed up. I think this comes from the graphite pad underneath. I plan to loosen the mounting bolts a little more to see if that gets rid of the noise, but I am wondering if there is any other way to get rid of it. Why is the graphite pad needed? What would happen if I removed it? Thanks Rob

16 years, 2 months

1
0
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Roman Numerals ( was Re: Anyone off to VCF-UK)

by jfoust＠threedee.com

At 03:14 PM 5/30/2010, William Donzelli wrote: >The Roman merchants and engineers had a fairly standard abacus thing, >so math for them was not as bad as one might think. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_abacus Similar to the Japanese soroban, it says... and "undeniable proof that Romans were using a device that exhibited a decimal, place value system, and the inferred knowledge of a zero value as represented by a column with no beads in a counted position. Furthermore, the bi-quinary nature of the integer portion allowed for direct transcription from and to the written Roman numerals. No matter what the true usage was, what cannot be denied is that these instruments provide very strong arguments in favour of far greater facility with practical mathematics known and practised by the Romans." - John

16 years, 2 months

1
0
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need help on PDP8/a

by trestivo＠cfl.rr.com

Does anyone know a reason why I can't remove the G8018's and G8019 and replace them with newer OEM power supplies? I know that one G8018 supplies 5V @ 25a, +15V @ 2a, -15V @ 2a and +20V @ 4a. I believe the 20V is only used for core memory. So.a 5v supply @ 50a should be sufficient, and a 2 dual output +/- 15v supply @ 2@ each should be a reasonable substitute. I am aware of the functions of the G8019 and that I would be defeating the "dead fan shutdown" and battery backup feature. OR. Does anyone have a written procedure for troubleshooting the backplane, specifically the SC260m triac, the opto isolator, the 2n6531 transistor and what causes the 47 ohm resistor to burn. With all boards removed I know how to defeat the removal of the two G8018's and on a good backplane by adding a jumper between two pins on the G8018 connectors. I can apply 3v to a pin on the G8019 connector to get the triac to fire. But this is not enough for troubleshooting a bad backplane. All help will be greatly appreciated. Thom Melbourne Florida

16 years, 2 months

1
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Looking for Tektronix 4051 programs...

by clay＠ArcherServices.com

> Josh wrote: > I was working on software to dump 4051 tapes over a serial port or the > GPIB bus, as well as an emulator. Both are still works in progress > (progress being very slow at the moment) based on disassembling the > system ROMs and going through the service manuals. I recently came into > possession of the actual source code for the 4051's ROMs on microfiche, > which I've passed on to Al for archiving. Looking forward to reading > through those once he's done! > > I'm hoping that once I work out enough to write a basic emulation, I'll > know enough about the hardware to write some assembly code for the real > 4051 to allow raw dumps of 4051 tapes (and hopefully writing them > back!). But I have a few other things stealing time from me at the > moment, so it won't be in the near future... I found some of my notes to "un-secret" the programs on the 4051. You need to load a string variable with 6800 program code and execute it to clear the secret flag. This is what I found: You can execute at the command line: L$="7?008039" CALL "exec",L$ The string is code for the hexadecimal equivalent, where A through F is replaced with a=":", b=";" c="<", d="=", e=">", f="?" Or the real hex codes are: 7F,00,80,39 Which represent the 6800 instructions: CLR 00 80 ; clear memory at 0x8000 RTS ; return from subroutine I have one tape that came with the 4051 I recently acquired. After replacing the broken band I borrowed from another cartridge I have been able to read parts of it. It gets a read error part way through the first file. My question is, how long will old tapes and disk media remain readable? This tape was written about 20 years ago, and I have tapes & disks for other systems that are much older. Other than keeping media in a cool, dry climate away from magnetic fields, what is the best way to preserve them? How long can the magnetic encoding survive?

16 years, 3 months

3
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OT: Hot dogs vs buns (was OT: Anyone off to VCF-UK)

by wbblair3＠yahoo.com

> As to the 8 egg holders in the fridge, perhaps it is > related to why hot dogs are sold 10 to a pack, and hot > dog buns are sold 8 to a pack.? One cynical answer to > that would be a deliberate attempt to force you to buy > 40 at a time.? Or maybe it is due to the same cause > for number of appetizers tending to be realively prime > with the number of diners? This is an critical, longstanding problem that needs to be addressed. Here is an attempt to do so: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhXzM70CNrw

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Pravetz 82

by silent700＠gmail.com

This is a longshot but I know this list reaches far and wide, so I'll give it a try. I am looking for a Bulgarian Apple ][ clone known as the Pravetz (or Pravets) 82: http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=956&st=1 They were sold (or attempted to be sold) outside of the Eastern Bloc, I believe in the UK and mainly. Maybe one of them defected during this time or remained hiding in an attic somewhere in the Motherland. If you know of one already in the US, that would be great. Otherwise leads on one (working, preferred!) to be shipping stateside are appreciated as well. (And to those with experience with Eastern Euro machines, what is needed to run them on US power? Just a 220v->110v converter, or does the video have to be processed from PAL->NTSC as well?) -j -- silent700.blogspot.com Retrocomputing and collecting in the Chicago area: http://chiclassiccomp.org

16 years, 3 months

19
52
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Bodylink System (C64/C128)

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

I just found an interesting sales pamphlet in some of the stuff from the January Commodore delivery. It was mixed in with a bunch of non-Computer books that I also got, so I hadn't noticed it when I went through the Commodore stuff from that load. Has anyone heard of, or seen, a series of sensors, electrodes and cartridges from an outfit called "Bodylog, Inc."? It looks like you plugged the "Bodylink" into the cartridge slot, which had its own cartridge slot, microprocessor, and I/O channels for various sensors and electrodes. Pretty wild, I've never seen anything like this for a Commodore Computer. One of the most interesting things is a "Micromem Cartridge", a solid state storage device for storing Bodylink BASIC programs. Zane -- | Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Administrator | | healyzh at aracnet.com | OpenVMS Enthusiast | | | Classic Computer Collector | +----------------------------------+----------------------------+ | Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, | | PDP-10 Emulation and Zane's Computer Museum. | | http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |

16 years, 3 months

2
1
0 0

Bigboard's Daughters

by elazzerini＠interfree.it

Hi at all, in the newsgroup comp.os.cpm, more than 10 years ago, there has been a little discussion about the varying of SBC Ferguson BigBoard 1. Below i indicate where to find all topics availabe also at this address: http://elazzerini.interfree.it/FERGUSON BIGBOARD's Daughters.doc The folks were: Alastair S. Preston, bill_h, David Tweed, Don Maslin, Holger Petersen, Max, O. Alan Jones, Paul Lenz, and Scott Marti. I'm interested to know better those SBC varying: schematics, layout, pictures, EPROM listing, experiences, and so on to try to assemble those info in my website: http://elazzerini.interfree.it even with link to other materials across internet. Here you can find the entire discussion in word format in my website. Those SBC were: - JLS Computers (aka Vidtek). produced in Toronto similar to SBC BB1 supported through the Micro/Access online BBS system; - California something or other name: Bill Sigmund and another fellow who got Ferguson to 'fix' most of the shortcomings of the original BB and the Xerox 820 from the SBC BB1; I'm interested also to get contact with who have or had BBII came with VARBIOS and ZCPR3... Twente Digitaal in the Netherlands. Some info seems to be on a magazine called Computing Now!, the Canadian computing magazine. Is anybody who could help to find some issues (already scan on internet)?? At this moment I prefer to leave out from my searches the Kaypro and the Xerox 820 already WELL documented on Internet. Bigboard motherboard 1 O. Alan Jones 8 Feb 1998 2 David Tweed 9 Feb 1998 3 timolmst 9 Feb 1998 4 Don Maslin 9 Feb 1998 5 Alastair S. Preston 9 Feb 1998 6 bill_h 9 Feb 1998 7 Paul Lenz 11 Feb 1998 8 bill_h 12 Feb 1998 9 Max 13 Feb 1998 10 bill_h 13 Feb 1998 11 Don Maslin 13 Feb 1998 12 Paul Lenz 14 Feb 1998 13 Alastair S. Preston 12 Feb 1998 14 Max 13 Feb 1998 15 Max 13 Feb 1998 16 Holger Petersen 10 Feb 1998 Thanks for any kind of support. Regards Enrico - Pisa - Italy

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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OT Measure for measure, was: Anyone off to VCF-UK

by technobug＠comcast.net

On Fri, 28 May 2010 21:02:27 -0400, Patrick Finnegan <pat at computer-refuge.org > wrote: > km signs indeed do exist. I-19 from Tuscon, AZ south to the Mexico > border is an example.. distances and exit numbers are given in km. I > can't remember for sure if speed limits are give in km/h at all, but I > think they aren't. > > Pat > -- They were for a while (mph and kph) until someone beat a speeding ticket claiming that he mistook the kph posting to be mph... CRC

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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Anyone off to VCF-UK

by cisin＠xenosoft.com

On Fri, 28 May 2010, Rob Jarratt wrote: > I think we should adopt the Weights and Measures system proposed by The > Register: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/24/vulture_central_standards/ Why not just switch everything to Donald E. Knuth's Potrzebie System of Weights and Measures. http://www.neatorama.com/2008/01/15/the-potrzebie-system-of-weights-and-mea…

16 years, 3 months

1
0
0 0

Bigboard's Daughters

by enricolazzerini＠interfree.it

Hi at all, in the newsgroup comp.os.cpm, more than 10 years ago, there has been a little discussion about the varying of SBC Ferguson BigBoard 1. Below i indicate where to find all topics availabe also at this address: http://elazzerini.interfree.it/FERGUSON BIGBOARD's Daughters.doc The folks were: Alastair S. Preston, bill_h, David Tweed, Don Maslin, Holger Petersen, Max, O. Alan Jones, Paul Lenz, and Scott Marti. I'm interested to know better those SBC varying: schematics, layout, pictures, EPROM listing, experiences, and so on to try to assemble those info in my website: http://elazzerini.interfree.it even with link to other materials across internet. Here you can find the entire discussion in word format in my website. Those SBC were: - JLS Computers (aka Vidtek). produced in Toronto similar to SBC BB1 supported through the Micro/Access online BBS system; - California something or other name: Bill Sigmund and another fellow who got Ferguson to 'fix' most of the shortcomings of the original BB and the Xerox 820 from the SBC BB1; I'm interested also to get contact with who have or had BBII came with VARBIOS and ZCPR3... Twente Digitaal in the Netherlands. Some info seems to be on a magazine called Computing Now!, the Canadian computing magazine. Is anybody who could help to find some issues (already scan on internet)?? At this moment I prefer to leave out from my searches the Kaypro and the Xerox 820 already WELL documented on Internet. Bigboard motherboard 1 O. Alan Jones 8 Feb 1998 2 David Tweed 9 Feb 1998 3 timolmst 9 Feb 1998 4 Don Maslin 9 Feb 1998 5 Alastair S. Preston 9 Feb 1998 6 bill_h 9 Feb 1998 7 Paul Lenz 11 Feb 1998 8 bill_h 12 Feb 1998 9 Max 13 Feb 1998 10 bill_h 13 Feb 1998 11 Don Maslin 13 Feb 1998 12 Paul Lenz 14 Feb 1998 13 Alastair S. Preston 12 Feb 1998 14 Max 13 Feb 1998 15 Max 13 Feb 1998 16 Holger Petersen 10 Feb 1998 Thanks for any kind of support. Regards Enrico - Pisa - Italy

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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LCD TVs for classic computers

by brianlanning＠gmail.com

I'm thinking of heading over to frys this weekend to pick up an LCD TV for use with a few classic computers and maybe classic gaming consoles. I'd like something that will have good image quality for use with things like Amigas and c64s. I'd like to avoid things like submarining mouse pointers, ghosting around letters (ringing?) and aspect ratio problems. A VGA port would be nice also. Bonus for being able to use the NTSC frequencies when the signal is coming from the VGA port so I can attach the amiga right to that. Obviously, I'd want a composite and svga input also. Even coax would be useful in case I pick up a 2600 or colecovision. Can anyone suggest a make and model that has all of this? brian

16 years, 3 months

7
7
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PDP-11 card set M-215

by wdonzelli＠gmail.com

I have a set of cards installed in a PDP-11/24 I am readying for sale, and I can not ID them. They are a pair of quad heights, linked by a ribbon cable, and the etch says M-215 INTERFACE. The logo is a B with eight arrows coming out, sort of forming a square. The logo looks familiar, but I just can not place it. There is a place for an external cable or two to connect. Any ideas? M215? There is also a mystery hex height CDC card in this thing - possibly the mythical Unibus Cyberchannel card. -- Will

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Nice HP 250 system on eBay

by john_a_s2004＠hotmail.com

Search for item 200305540332. The listing includes some very clear photos, including terminal, desk, manuals and floppies. I hope it works! Regards, John _________________________________________________________________ http://clk.atdmt.com/UKM/go/197222280/direct/01/ Do you have a story that started on Hotmail? Tell us now

16 years, 3 months

4
3
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cctalk Digest, Vol 81, Issue 67

by ken＠seefried.com

On 5/28/2010 1:01 AM, Eric Smith<eric at brouhaha.com> wrote: > > On 05/27/2010 10:30 AM, Dave McGuire wrote: >> > Especially by it's being an attached processor, nearly all Cray-1 >> > software (save for things like libraries) would be specific to whatever >> > front-end system was in use. > Not usually. The operating system needs to know a little bit about > what's connected to the I/O channels (including the front-end systems), > but user-space software, including applications, normally relies on > operating system services from COS or UniCOS running natively on the > main CPU. Application software didn't normally interact directly with > the front-end systems any more than than application software on IBM > mainframes interacts with the mainframe's service processor. The > front-end systems were there to boot and manage the system and provide > I/O services for the operating system. Usually when sites upgraded from > a Cray-1 to an XMP they didn't have to change their application software > at all, even though the front end was completely different. Eric is correct, at least in my experience on the XMP-48 that was at PSC. VAX/VMS front ends were used to edit programs and submit them to to the Cray (running COS), and some time later the results would return. I sent code to someone else on a different front end, and as I understand, all he had to do was mod the script to submit the jobs for the local toolset. No changes to the code. KJ

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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SuperPet add on board

by rborsuk＠colourfull.com

Hi All, I was chasing some links this morning when I got wondering if anyone reverse engineered / upgraded the superpet add on board for the 8032 PET? 8032 PET's are pretty common and it would be pretty cool to get an upgraded add on board to turn it into a Superpet. Maybe with an SD slot on it or a networking port. Rob Rob Borsuk email: rborsuk at colourfull.com Colourfull Creations Web: http://www.colourfull.com

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

> Waiting for people to volunteer will not get you the right people at the > right time. But how do you find them? > If you have a system that needs fixing then find somebody who > has experience and will help. Don't waste their time with travel to BP or > anywhere else. Can't do that with Germanium giants like mine, anyway the volunteer would need 700 square feet to install it and then wire wrap tens of thousands of connections to get back to where it was when it left its home. > Get it in a vehicle and deliver it and collect it when done. And another three months to reassemble it. > > The two major issues most restorers have are space and transport. Agreed. > They would > save more systems if they had the right transport and space to work. So if > you want to be a working computer museum get yourself a big van and some > hefty volunteers. Then make friends with known restorers. Horse trade parts > they may need for their work on your systems. Don't be afraid to exchange > items in storage for something a collector ahs and you would add to your > display. The old 'the donor wouldn't like it' excuse is nonsense. Well if I do eventually donate my mainframe it will be on the proviso that it remains my property until I die so that they cannot do that even if the machine is in storage in the hanger in Dorset. If I didn't mind it being messed with I could sell it for a lot of money myself. Spare parts I donate with the machine are a slightly different matter, provided they are swapping for things to be used on my machine. I am still amazed at the price of punched cards on eBay. I've got enough we make notes on them and that horrifies some people, but I bought 110,000 of the for 11 pounds back in the late '70s, though I did break the suspension on my father's Daimler transporting them. Roger Holmes ICT 1301 5 ton / 13kVA mainframe from 1962

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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p112 thoughts

by dgriffi＠cs.csubak.edu

After getting another inquiry about the P112 kits, I started wondering how many people would be interested in putting down money for a pre-order before I actually order the parts and boards. That's partially the way it ran for the run of 100 I did a few years ago. More recently, I made an expensive mess running a prepaid group order for FP-6120 toggle switches, so I'm bit shy about taking preorders again. If anyone out there has deep pockets to help me finance something like this, I'd be glad to get the help. I could use the business too. Unless and until I get a new job, this is probably the only way I can get P112 kits made. See me at 661.org if you have any questions. -- David Griffith dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu A: Because it fouls the order in which people normally read text. Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing? A: Top-posting. Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Cray-1 resurfaces in pieces on eBay • The Register

by woyciesjes＠sbcglobal.net

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/05/24/cray_1_gate_module_ebay/ I'm kinda surprised nobody bid on this: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CPU-module-Cray-1-Serial-No-1-1st-supercomputer-/2606… Item number: 260600179087 Item location: Didcot, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom Maybe someone from Bletchly should try contacting the seller about putting it on display? And here's the other: http://cgi.ebay.com/Super-Rare-CRAY-1-GATE-CPU-Board-2-planes-LAST-ONE-/140… Item number: 140408191311 Item location: Jupiter, Florida, United States Then again, they probably aren't worth that much, are they; since they are only a small part of the Cray.... -- --- Dave Woyciesjes --- ICQ# 905818 --- AIM - woyciesjes --- CompTIA A+ Certified IT Tech - http://certification.comptia.org/ --- HDI Certified Support Center Analyst - http://www.ThinkHDI.com/ Registered Linux user number 464583 "From there to here, From here to there, Funny things are everywhere." --- Dr. Seuss

16 years, 3 months

10
12
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by classiccmp＠philpem.me.uk

Hi guys, Just out of curiosity, is anyone planning to attend the UK Vintage Computer Festival this year? The one that's running on the 19th and 20th of June at Bletchley Park? I'm toying with the idea of booking some time off work and going down on the train for either the Saturday or the Sunday; I'd rather like to see the talks by Sophie Wilson and Tony Sale, although it'd be nice to meet up with a few of the UK-based classiccmp'ers as well. The mailing list is fine, but it'd be nice to put names to faces :) I also figure the "VCF Flea Market" might be a good way to get my sticky paws on some 8-inch floppy drives, discs and possibly an MFM hard drive and controller pair or two. I still don't have a working 8in drive to test the DiscFerret with... Speaking of which, I could be persuaded to bring the current "circuit test" prototype down with me, though booking a table will probably be a real pig at this late stage, and I'm willing to wager it's probably going to be too expensive for my budget anyway (I'm saving my last ?150 to get a run of prototype PCBs made!)... Cheers, -- Phil. classiccmp at philpem.me.uk http://www.philpem.me.uk/

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by dm561＠torfree.net

Date: Wed, 26 May 2010 11:40:05 +0100 From: Andrew Back <andy at flirble.org> Subject: Re: Anyone off to VCF-UK? On (05:45 26/05/10), RodSmallwood wrote: <snip> >> Will somebody who knows these people explain what they have done and at >> least get an apology for Tony. >What an absurd suggestion and one that speaks volumes. >Regards, >Andrew ----------- Yes, that a suggestion to hear an actual reasoned response to Tony's (and others') observations and experiences instead of just dismissing them with childish name-calling, word-twisting and insults is considered "absurd" does indeed speak volumes....

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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CNC nitwittery

by dgriffi＠cs.csubak.edu

I was wondering if anyone here has access to a CNC machine. The thing is a smooth elongated toroid about the size of a little finger with a small side hole. -- David Griffith dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu A: Because it fouls the order in which people normally read text. Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing? A: Top-posting. Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?

16 years, 3 months

3
3
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by woyciesjes＠sbcglobal.net

> Message: 5 > Date: Wed, 26 May 2010 15:01:21 -0400 > From: William Donzelli <wdonzelli at gmail.com> > Message-ID: > <AANLkTik3IF6D3zdmI22zLpME9I0kH5bNp_8jVpF37VKt at mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 > > > ? ? ? ?Really? Must've missed that part. > > Recall that Tony has a history of being an ungrateful schmuck when it > comes to VCF. Go back in the archives maybe five or six years - it was > with one of Sellam's events. There is also a history of BP museum > bashing. Okay, I'll amend my comment to "I don't recall" him coming across as ungrateful; and I don't remember an incident regarding VFC Sellam & Tony.. Maybe before I joined the list? > > ? ? ? ?Perhaps, he may have; but after being a member of this list > > for a few > > years now, I highly doubt that what is happened. I have never seen > > _any_ > > evidence on this list of Tony being an ego-maniac, as you seen to be > > trying > > to paint him as. > > Hmm... I'll take that as a disagreement... There may have been a message or 3 where he was egotistical, but I don't remember the messages exactly. They must've been few & far enough in between for them to not give me a bad opinion of him. I try to judge people on thier overall history average. Good people do stupid things occasionally, and I'm sure even Charles Manson was nice once. > > ? ? ? ?Enough is enough already. > > Yes, if the museum bashing were to stop and some certain people just > came clean, it would be great. > > Not going to happen... Unfortunately, you are right. Humans are imperfect, and amazing creatures of habit. -- --- Dave Woyciesjes --- ICQ# 905818 --- AIM - woyciesjes --- CompTIA A+ Certified IT Tech - http://certification.comptia.org/ --- HDI Certified Support Center Analyst - http://www.ThinkHDI.com/ Registered Linux user number 464583 "From there to here, From here to there, Funny things are everywhere." --- Dr. Seuss

16 years, 3 months

1
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by woyciesjes＠sbcglobal.net

The degradation of this whole thread highlights _exactly_ why email is a horrible communication method when you need to convey opinions, emotions, intent, and other subjective information. Tony, please don't go. Even though I only read here, and only contribute the odd link to a classic computing article; I ( and I guarantee many others) enjoy and appreciate everything you contribute here. That's very likely why people offered to get you to the event. Now for some comments & observations, placed inline: > Message: 2 > Date: Tue, 25 May 2010 19:08:59 -0400 > From: Evan Koblentz <evan at snarc.net> > Message-ID: <4BFC588B.6010102 at snarc.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > > >> But my original message asked how others would benefit from having me there. > > That is exactly what I * said * that you said! And my point is, if you > have the attitude "What will others benefit from MY attendance," then > you're looking at it all wrong. You should go to VCF for * your own * > benefit. But the event certainly won't succeed or fail because of any > one attendee. That may be what he wrote, but you seem to have taken it all wrong. >> Ah, I see, SO the reason to attend a VCF is for what you can take, not >> what you can offer. > > No, but your attitude seems to be all about yourself. It may be for this particular topic; but not in any ego-centric way. It seems he was saying (in a round about way) 'Why do you want me to go?'. > Message: 3 > Date: Tue, 25 May 2010 19:18:01 -0400 > From: Evan Koblentz <evan at snarc.net> > Message-ID: <4BFC5AA9.7000108 at snarc.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > >> I think Tony's just humbly asking why it's so important to these folks >> to persuade him to go. > > I think Tony's being an ungrateful schmuck. And honestly, your usage of alternate names & descriptions does nothing good for your image. >> he said that in his judgement it is not aimed at somone like him any >> more than a dog show or exhibition of the latest sex toys might be > > "There might be common, non-serious collectors present! I'm too good > for THOSE people!" Ugh .... spare us. Hmm, nope. I'd say he thought (being a very intelligent person who knows quite a bit about this) was more like 'The displays there probably won't go into enough detail for my (Tony's) interest.' What's wrong with that? >> He might be wrong of course and if he had attended he might well have >> enjoyed it, but it is his choice after all; why does that offend and >> upset so many people? > > It offends and upsets me because he's not just saying, "Thanks, but no > thanks;" instead he's insulting the entire VCF franchise, all computer > museums, and all people who attend such things. Really? Must've missed that part. > ------------------------------ > > Message: 14 > Date: Wed, 26 May 2010 01:13:22 -0400 > From: Evan Koblentz <evan at snarc.net> > Subject: Re: Anyone off to VCF-UK? > Message-ID: <4BFCADF2.1090102 at snarc.net> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > > >> he had already gone there, volunteered and been insulted, charged for entry and given no respect whatsoever. They clearly know even less about the community of computer restorers than they do about computers. >> >> Will somebody who knows these people explain what they have done and at >> least get an apology for Tony. > > None of us can speak for TNMoC or explain their (alleged) rudeness. > But, if they know nothing and don't care about the community of > collectors/restorers, then they wouldn't be hosting a VCF, nor would > Sellam allow them to do so. > > I'm going to speculate: perhaps Tony showed up, waltzed in, and > proclaimed that he knew better than all of them. In any group or > company, that sort of person would be treated rudely. He's doing the > same thing now: "The only reason to attend a VCF is to privilege > everyone else with MY presence, but those people aren't worthy MY time." Perhaps, he may have; but after being a member of this list for a few years now, I highly doubt that what is happened. I have never seen _any_ evidence on this list of Tony being an ego-maniac, as you seen to be trying to paint him as. > I see a trend here. Would that be the one of you not reading his messages correctly? > ------------------------------ Evan - I'm not picking at just you; it's only that this last digest got me to thinking that Tony is getting beat up over nothing, correction - misinterpretation. Enough is enough already. -- --- Dave Woyciesjes --- ICQ# 905818 --- AIM - woyciesjes --- CompTIA A+ Certified IT Tech - http://certification.comptia.org/ --- HDI Certified Support Center Analyst - http://www.ThinkHDI.com/ Registered Linux user number 464583 "From there to here, From here to there, Funny things are everywhere." --- Dr. Seuss

16 years, 3 months

3
2
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Hannspree 9.6 inch tv 4-in-1 cable pinout ( a little ot)

by redodd＠comcast.net

Hello all, I just got a nice Baseball shaped Hannspree 9.6 inch tv from ebay. My problem is that I want to use the svideo input but this is only available at their 10 pin mini-din connector. The 10 pin proprietary 4-in-1 cable that has to be used for svideo wasn't included in the auction. I found out that Hannspree support is useless for technical questions like this. I couldn't find any pinout info from google etc. so I'm wondering if anyone here has a link or has a cable that they could check with an ohmmeter and supply me with this info. The 4-in-1 cable has connections for svideo, composite video, and left & right audio. This info should be posted somewhere because these tv's make nice monitors (800 x 600) for projects and are easy to remove from the original shell. TIA. Ralph

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Anyone off to VCF-UK

by dm561＠torfree.net

Date: Tue, 25 May 2010 00:42:20 -0400 From: Evan Koblentz <evan at snarc.net> Subject: re: Anyone off to VCF-UK > I didn't read any of this thread until tonight, when I read the whole >thing ... and now I have a headache. :) -- Maybe from the mental effort of finding new ways to twist other peoples' words and reply as judgementally and rudely as possible? -- >>Tony wrote: >>> What benefit would there be to the rest of the classic >>computer community if I visited such an event >...VCF attendees (and most exhibitors) don't attend with the attitude, >"Everyone is there to see ME" -- they go with the attitude of, "I'm there >to see everyone else." ... Anyone non-celebrity who thinks their >personal attendance is for others' benefit -- well, such people won't >be missed. -- I don't think Tony said or suggested anything of the sort; apparently his reason for attending would not be to "see everyone else," but to see (and perhaps share some of his) interesting computer items. But you value only the knowledge, experience, etc. of "celebrities"? I suspect that if everyone who attends these affairs primarily in order to give others the possibility to see and/or learn about their interesting items or experience stayed away then they would be sorely missed. Apparently others on this list *would* have valued his attendance and were even prepared to pay his way, and I think Tony's just humbly asking why it's so important to these folks to persuade him to go. -- >Tony wrote, ... >> I do have sufficient reservations about ... who it appears to be >>aimed at that I will not be attending. >It's aimed at all the same kinds of people who attend every other VCF. >you're saying you won't attend because you don't like "those" kind of >nerds? -- He said nothing of the sort; he said that in his judgement it is not aimed at somone like him any more than a dog show or exhibition of the latest sex toys might be, and he is choosing not to spend his time and money (especially others' money) in order to attend. He might be wrong of course and if he had attended he might well have enjoyed it, but it is his choice after all; why does that offend and upset so many people? -- >>> I do hope the event is a success, though. >Gee ... thanks. -- Most ungracious, but hardly surprising considering the source... mike

16 years, 3 months

4
3
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EECO PTR tech info

by aek＠bitsavers.org

Does anyone have any tech info on EECO paper tape reader? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360166759118 Looked through my pile, and I don't seem to have anything on them. They're interesting because the tape guide can be set to 5/6/8 level

16 years, 3 months

2
2
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Anyone off to VCF-UK

by evan＠snarc.net

I didn't read any of this thread until tonight, when I read the whole thing ... and now I have a headache. :) Some thoughts: Tony wrote: >>> What benefit would there be to the rest of the classic computer community if I visited such an event Having attended five VCF events (four California, one Boston) and personally organized four more (East 3, 4, 5, and 6), I can say this with complete confidence: VCF attendees (and most exhibitors) don't attend with the attitude, "Everyone is there to see ME" -- they go with the attitude of, "I'm there to see everyone else." VCF is a * community * event. Even some of the most name-brand keynote and panel speakers at past VCFs were excited to see the rest of the show, despite them truly being brought in for others to meet. Anyone non-celebrity who thinks their personal attendance is for others' benefit -- well, such people won't be missed. Rod wrote: >>> it would appear that computer museums are groups of donation funded, unpaid volunteers That part is true. In the MARCH computer museum @ the InfoAge Science Center, here in New Jersey, we're all volunteers and our group is solely donation-funded. >>> who seek to aquire as many inanimate examples as possible. False. We're not out for quantity. We turn away quite a lot -- and so do professional well-funded museums like the CHM. Here in NJ, sometimes we do take in more examples of Computers Brand X than we really need, but usually that's because the alternative is the owner throwing it away. >>> Systems are made to work only to attract visitors and hence revenue. We make systems work for the art, education, fun, and history of it. * Of course * that also includes attracting visitors -- how is that a bad thing!? I can't speak for other museums, but we're a not-for-profit, so any "revenue" we make is solely for the purpose of operating the museum and hosting events like VCF, certainly not to line anyone's pockets. >>> The members of the groups would much rather the space was used to store even more non working equipment and keep it out of sight and accessible only to the select few. That's not only wrong, it is offensive. Small museums like ours, and big museums like CHM, have "visible storage" and frequently arrange behind-the-scenes tours -- expressly because we want to * show * people what we have in our collections. In our case here at MARCH, it's also because we hope the visitors will become members and help us restore ever-more systems to working condition. Pat wrote: >>> At all of the VCF/Midwest events I ran, I never had any problem with any of the public doing anything to harm exhibits, and the exhibitors have complete control (within reason anyhow) of their own exhibit. That is universally true at all U.S. VCFs, and it's true at Europe, from what Hans has told me. Sellam, not Patrick, nor myself has ever had a security problem at a VCF. Here in NJ, our security is extra-safe, because we host VCF at our own venue -- so we're the ones who lock the doors at the end of the day. Will wrote: >>> I would encourage all our UK and European members to give this show a chance. Go. You will have fun. Go to any VCF you can. Yes !!! >>> Go to the MARCH VCFEast, so you can pick a fight with me. But take it outside, please. :) No fighting in our buildings! >>> There seem to be some assholes ... but they can be ignored, and fun will be had by all attending. I wish I could be there +1 Tony wrote, in another reply: >>> from what I've heard from talking to people who've attended the VCF in the States or in Germany, it appears it will be a somewhat different sort of event. I haven't heard that. >>> I do have sufficient reservations about ... who it appears to be aimed at that I will not be attending. It's aimed at all the same kinds of people who attend every other VCF. you're saying you won't attend because you don't like "those" kind of nerds? >>> I do hope the event is a success, though. Gee ... thanks.

16 years, 3 months

2
2
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Free: Kaypro 2x near Toronto, ON

by devon＠stopps.ca

Free Kaypro 2x Working when last used a 3 years ago. Looks great. Believe there is a system disk with it. Can drop off between Toronto, ON and Kingston, ON, or come pick it up in Cobourg. Contact me off-list.

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Anyone off to VCF-UK

by dm561＠torfree.net

Oops, looks like in my previous post I attributed one of the quotes to Tony instead of Rod and although it doesn't really change anything, apologies anyway if either of them was offended; perhaps one or both might indeed have enjoyed a dog show or sex toy exhibition... ;-) mike

16 years, 3 months

1
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OT : RIP Martin Gardner

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

In case you've not already heard, I have just been told that Martin Gardner has passed away. He was, of course, responsible for many excellent books of mathematical puzzles. He had a defintie knack of being able to make something simple enough to understand but still keeping enough mathematics there to be worthwhile. The world is certainly a poorer place without him. He certainly inspered me to love mathemaitcs. Had I not read his books some years ago, my life would have been very different. I don't think I am exagerating if I say that without his books I would not have passed A-level mathematics... True story : Many years ago I was given a couple of his books as a Newtonsday presnet. Once contained a chapter on base -2 arithmeatic. I spent the next day or so designing a base -2 full-adder circuit and soldering it up. Never found any practical use for it, but... -tony

16 years, 3 months

9
12
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by pete＠dunnington.plus.com

On 24/05/2010 20:21, Rob Jarratt wrote: > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TouLD9EOnQ > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPioENtAHuY > More results here: > http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=national+museum+of+computing&aq= > f > I know they have created a new one recently demoing the PDP11 based system > used at the UK Air Traffic Control centre until a few years ago, but they do > not seem to have published it yet. They showed it at the DEC Legacy event, though not in final edited form. Pretty impressive, getting that system all running again. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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PLATO@50 at Computer History Museum

by legalize＠xmission.com

Anyone else going to this? -- "The Direct3D Graphics Pipeline" -- DirectX 9 draft available for download <http://legalizeadulthood.wordpress.com/the-direct3d-graphics-pipeline/> Legalize Adulthood! <http://legalizeadulthood.wordpress.com>

16 years, 3 months

3
2
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> I know they have created a new one recently demoing the PDP11 based system > used at the UK Air Traffic Control centre until a few years ago, but they do > not seem to have published it yet. FWIW, the write-up of the 'restoration' of that machine in Computer Resurraection was quickly retitled by some of my friends 'What not to do with a PDP11' And for all it was written up in 'Computer Resurraction; which seems to be related ot the CCS, and for all when I joined the CCS I listed the PDP11 as one of the mahcines I had knowledge of, no questions ever came my way. So I am wondering what the point of lisitng the machines i had knowledge of was... -tony

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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HP 64000 parts for sale

by ARFINK＠stthomas.edu

Some of you may recall that I had posted almost a year ago with an HP 64110A portable logic analyzer station. At the time I was only interested in selling the whole thing as a set, but now I am willing to part it out, since a buyer for the whole thing hasn't really surfaced. I have the following parts: HP 64110A- all stock parts present and fully functional, including CRT, dual disk drives, video RAM board, main processor board, keyboard, power supply. HP 64110A "backpack" vinyl pouch, in good condition. Some faded ink smudges on the front from wet dot matrix printer paper. HP 108338 networking cable, in excellent condition Some misc. floppy disks, including boot disk, disk utils., timing disks, and a few with no labels. I have 5x HP 64604A 8 channel timing probe pods, with a plethora of probes. I also have 3 connecting cables for said pods which can run to the timing analyzer boards inside of the station. I have tons of probes, including some special probes that come with a DIP chip clamp. All these are still in their original HP branded ziploc bags. I also have two timing analysis boards, and the main control board for them, along with all associated cables. So that's two 64602A's and one 64601A. I don't have any firm prices, since I don't know what these things are worth. I also haven't had the opportunity to fully test all this gear, since I am not versed in operating it. If you'd like anything tested I'd be happy to do so for you, provided you can walk me through it. I'm also happy to take pictures of anything you'd like, but I already have some uploaded to Picasa if you'd like a look: http://picasaweb.google.com/arf.at.sjv/HP64110APortableMainframe If you need any of these things, please feel free to email me at arfink at sdf.lonestar.org or to call me at 763-789-1285. Thanks very much, and have a nice day! -Tony Fink

16 years, 3 months

1
0
0 0

NCR 53C400 pinout?

by cclist＠sydex.com

Just wondering if anyone has the pinout for the NCR 53C400 SCSI controller (68 pin PLCC). FWIW, I have the "NCR 5380 53C80 SCSI Interface Chip Design Manual" as well as the NCR "SCSI Engineering Notebook", if anyone cares to form a collection of information for early NCR SCSI chips. --Chuck

16 years, 3 months

5
10
0 0

Spectravideo compumate

by brianlanning＠gmail.com

I didn't realize someone had made a computer/keyboard interface for the atari 2600. http://cgi.ebay.com/SPECTRAVIDEO-COMPUMATE-ATARI-2600-BRAND-NEW-RARE-/16043…

16 years, 3 months

3
4
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RD53 Restoration

by ajp166＠verizon.net

Rob Jarratt wrote: >> -----Original Message----- >> From: cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org [mailto:cctalk- >> bounces at classiccmp.org] On Behalf Of allison >> Sent: 20 May 2010 20:13 >> To: General Discussion: On-Topic Posts Only >> Subject: Re: RD53 Restoration >> >> Tony Duell wrote: >> >>>> Yes, this drive did have a sticky bumper. I resolved it by putting a >>>> >> very >> >>>> thin sliver of tape over the sticky bit. I did not loosen any bolts, >>>> >> but >> >>> I wonder if that bumper is no the wrong size, and that is what's >>> >> causing >> >>> the problems.Maybe the heads have to be able to find something o nthe >>> disk for hte drive to not find an error. >>> >>> -tony >>> >>> >>> >>> >> I've outright removed the bumper with no ill effect. Reason for that >> is unsticking it once didn't work as it would stick again. Only >> solution >> was remove the offending material. Result was a reliable working drive >> that when powered off emitted a noticeable "clunk". That has had no >> impact on reliability, least not for the last 10 years. >> >> > > After putting back the original boards the disk worked again for a bit. But > it is not working again now and I have determined that I have not completely > cured the sticky bumper because when I placed a very small screwdriver in > front of the bumper the heads moved again. > > I am curious about your solution of removing the sticky material entirely, I > can't see how to do that without what looks like some serious dismantling, > something which you recommended against on an earlier thread, maybe there is > an easy way I cannot see. If anyone can tell me how do this I would really > appreciate it (if anyone has a photo showing how this is done that would be > great). > > Thanks > > Rob > > > I did it by grabbing the offending material with a very fine and long pair of forceps and pulling it out. At the time I was quite annoyed and had other more pressing things on my todo list and that was, in the way, and I needed that drive working. No disassembly short of removing the cover. FYI: the head positioner has very low torque so any sticky will trap the head. Allison

16 years, 3 months

1
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Re Hughes HM-4118

by dave.thearchivist＠gmail.com

While I cannot answer the particular question another use case of the manx data popped out when I searched for Hughes http://manx.archivist.info/search.php?search=hughes&errlev=0&company=0 To look who supplied what to a company Dave Caroline

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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Any info on the Hughes HM-4118 computer?

by wfp1934＠bellsouth.net

i went to school in fullerton,ca with charlie marbury on the 4118 we were trained by the hughes engineers i helped install and maintain the 4118 at keesler i retired in 1973 my email address is wfp1934 at bellsouth.net my name is fred panter. we were trained in 1970

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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RD53 Restoration

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> Yes, this drive did have a sticky bumper. I resolved it by putting a very > thin sliver of tape over the sticky bit. I did not loosen any bolts, but I wonder if that bumper is no the wrong size, and that is what's causing the problems.Maybe the heads have to be able to find something o nthe disk for hte drive to not find an error. -tony

16 years, 3 months

3
2
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Tandy 102 Portable Computer

by silent700＠gmail.com

On Sat, May 22, 2010 at 6:06 PM, Zane H. Healy <healyzh at aracnet.com> wrote: > I just got the second load of Commodore gear (including a mint C16 and tape > recorder). ?In the load was some stuff for the Tandy, which reminded me I > got one in January with the other load. ?It works! :-) The 10x series have a hardcore following that appears to be going strong. I've heard this is the nexus of all info online re: Tandy 10x. Messy page, but dense with data: http://www.club100.org/

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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Early Byte Magazines

by bruce＠consultbcm.com

Earlier Byte magazines: 8/76, 11/76, 1/77 through 6/77, 2/80, 5/80 and 8/80. All in good condition. Best offer for all eleven will take them. Shipping additional. Contact me at bcmactuary at gmail.com. Bruce

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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(ebay) Wang VS100 mini

by legalize＠xmission.com

Item # 160437181052 opening bid is a reasonable $100. They say it was decommissioned in 2009, so maybe they have some of the peripherals too. -- "The Direct3D Graphics Pipeline" -- DirectX 9 draft available for download <http://legalizeadulthood.wordpress.com/the-direct3d-graphics-pipeline/> Legalize Adulthood! <http://legalizeadulthood.wordpress.com>

16 years, 3 months

3
4
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Original Commodore PET for sale

by bryan.pope＠comcast.net

I have decided to put my Commodore PET 2001 with blue bezel up for sale. It is in beautiful condition with both the computer and tape drive working very nicely. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190399121787 or Item #190399121787 Cheers, Bryan

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Tandy 102 Portable Computer

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

I just got the second load of Commodore gear (including a mint C16 and tape recorder). In the load was some stuff for the Tandy, which reminded me I got one in January with the other load. It works! :-) A couple questions. First any recommendation on cleaning the screen. It looks like it sat in its bag for too many years. Second, are there any good manuals for the BASIC implementation online? How does one save or load a BASIC program? I'm so excited, and I can't believe I forgot I had this for almost 4 months! I've wanted one of these for about 20 years. Zane -- | Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Administrator | | healyzh at aracnet.com | OpenVMS Enthusiast | | | Classic Computer Collector | +----------------------------------+----------------------------+ | Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, | | PDP-10 Emulation and Zane's Computer Museum. | | http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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more stuff FFS: 68K and classic Apple software

by spectre＠floodgap.com

They have been claimed. Thanks to all who inquired. -- ------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ -- Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com -- The world is a mess and I just need to rule it. -- Dr. Horrible ------------

16 years, 3 months

1
0
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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> I think you may be being a little too critical. I too raised an eyebrow at > the 64K memory thing, however I think is it not meant to be taken literally, 30-odd years of working with computers had made me take things literally.. And I would suspect a lot of other computer enthusiasts would feel the same way, particularly in the rules for an event so-say aimed at computer enthusiasts and related to said computers > but just intended to mean that recent-ish PCs do not count. Also regarding I realised what it was supposed to mean... However I feel it could imply one of the following They believe that no vintage computer ever had a memory module > 64K (again, what units?) They believer that while such machines existed, nobody has got them in their private collections > space, I quote (my emphasis) "*Typically* we will have 2m x 1m available for > those bringing systems, *although we will make more space for something > special*.". They also link to pictures of the US VCFs, indicating this is Yes, I read that. My point is that 2m*1m is too small IMHO for _any_ meaninful exhibit othter than posisbly a 1980's home micro. Again, it appears that's the sort of machine they are expecting. My view is that they should have asked people who wanted to exhibit what they were planning on brining, the size, the power requirements, and so on. There should also have been a web page for potential exhibitos giving details of power, access (could you get a vheicle near the exhibition room?) and so on. > what they want to replicate, and those *do* show working systems etc, so I I have learnt by bitter experience not to make assumptions like that. > don't think it is fair to say they want art pieces and they don't want them > to work. I have to agree that there is no info on power available, so that > would be a concern. I would imagine that the security of your collection > would have to be your responsibility though, and I think that is as it > should be. I also can't see why you think this is a non-technical event, I I would agree that security should be the exhibitors responsibiliy. Which essentially means a 1-man exhibit is impossible. And that exhibitoirs do not get to enjoy the rest of the VCF. > actually can't see anything that says it is either technical or > non-technical, I think people will make of it what they want, and I > certainly can't imagine anyone in my immediate family ever wanting to attend > such an event, so I am pretty sure most attendees will be enthusiasts. Hmmm.. Amoe years ago I volunteered at Bletchley park (I gave up for several reasons, mostly due to terminally clueless management). THe visitors on those days certainly included a large number of non-technical people (thei did not really suprise me). Since the VCF is going to be open to all of those who are attending BP on that day, I would guess there will be some non-technical people at the VCF too. -tony

16 years, 3 months

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Today's Google Doodle

by ploopster＠gmail.com

In honor of the 30th birthday of Pac Man, today's Google Doodle is a playable Pac Man game in the shape of the word "Google". http://www.google.com/ Peace... Sridhar

16 years, 3 months

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more stuff FFS: 68K and classic Apple software

by spectre＠floodgap.com

More stuff from my closet that's gotta go. These are offered as AN ITEM. I will not part them out. Actual shipping or pickup gets them. Pickup and USA requests have priority, but I will consider international requests. Pickup from Inland Empire, CA. Need to be out by the end of the month. I don't testify to their completeness or functionality, but they all appear to contain manuals and the full complement of disks. - Now Utilities 5.0. Includes Now Foldermenus + Now Menus (hierarchical file, utility and folder menu extension), Now Save (autosave tool), Now Startup Manager (Extensions Manager on roids), Now Super Boomerang (enhances the standard Save/Open dialogues without Nav Services), Now Scrapbook (image and media converter and archiver), Now Profile (spiritual ancestor to Apple System Profiler), Now Quickfiler (fast find) and Now WYSIWYG Menus (WYSIWYG font menu extension). System 7.0+, PPC enhanced, 68K compatible. - DataDesk by Odesta. Stats package, interactive graphs, ANOVA analysis, etc. Mac 68K. Used this tool a lot as an undergrad. - AppleShare 2.0.1 (supports AppleTalk Phase 2) for the PC. Requires PC ISA AppleTalk card (not included). - pcMACTERM II for the PC and Mac. Allows the Mac to take remote control of a DOS PC over an AppleTalk network, and file exchange. Includes both PC 5.25" and Mac 3.5" disks. Requires PC ISA AppleTalk card (not included). Also posted to 68KMLA. -- ------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ -- Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com -- Communism doesn't work because people like to own stuff. -- Frank Zappa ----

16 years, 3 months

1
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Assorted items in Canterbury, UK, part 1

by ats＠offog.org

Hi all, I'm going to be moving house next month, so I've been slimming down my collection a bit -- here's the first batch. If you'd like to give any of it a home, let me know; offers from 0p and up accepted. I'm mostly just after the space back, although if anyone'd like to swap me a Commodore 1541 or two... This is located in Canterbury, Kent, UK. I'd prefer local collection or delivery. I'm not going to be able to make it to VCF-UK (:(), but if you know someone else from the south-east who's going, I could deliver bits to them. A box of assorted PET-related items (but no PETs), including: - A few IEEE-488 cables, both 488-to-488 and PET-to-488 - Internal PET serial board that appears to piggyback on a ROM socket - Small Systems Engineering B200 488-to-serial interface (boxed) - Small Systems Engineering B300 488-to-serial interface (unboxed, dusty) - User-port-attached 2716 EPROM programmer - Mutek Sprinter 64K printer buffer - A stack of assorted manuals and other paperwork, including manuals for most of the bits above and PET schematics - Commodore "Anatomy of a Microcomputer" poster (PET quick reference) RM 480Z manuals: - Link 480Z User's Guide - Link 480Z Information File - Extended Basic v5 - Extended Basic v5/6 A Signetics Instructor 50, with manuals, PSU and training tape. This is a rather neat Signetics 2650 development kit. Original ACT Apricot PC, with keyboard, the world's cutest monitor, and some documentation. This is an 8086 non-PC-compatible MS-DOS machine, with early 3.5" drives. New-in-box Philips Z80 computer boards. The outer box is labelled 8213 170 26550 Type VM 5020 -- so is this half of a P5020? - 8213 170 25810 Type VM 5022 - motherboard with Z80 and Z80CTC (This has slots for various other boards to plug into, including the two below, and RAM and graphics boards which I don't have) - 8213 170 25840 Type VM 5023 - disk controller board with MMB8877A and Z80DMA - 8213 170 27160 Type VM 6500/C - modem - 8213 170 27601 Speaker Radio Shack "Science Fair Digital Computer Kit". This is really just a load of multiway switches and some creative manual-writing -- but aside from the box being tatty, it appears to be complete. I have separated the original batteries (which hadn't leaked!). The keyboard from a Tatung VT-4100 terminal. This has been rewired as a keyboard for a ZX Spectrum at some point, so it's cosmetically OK but there's no PCB inside, just the keyswitches. Compaq dual Pentium Pro desktop PC. I have more bits elsewhere (mostly newer Sun/SGI/PC stuff); I'll post another lot once it's sorted out... Thanks, -- Adam Sampson <ats at offog.org> <http://offog.org/>

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by wdonzelli＠gmail.com

> I think time will tell whether this is a worthwhile event or not, > ultimately, I think if technical people want to attend then it will be a > technical event, if they stay away it won't be. As this is the first such in > the UK I think we should give it a chance and take the opportunity to > influence the shape of future events. I would encourage all our UK and European members to give this show a chance. Go. You will have fun. Go to any VCF you can. Go to Sellam's original VCF, when he gets it going again. Go to the MARCH VCFEast, so you can pick a fight with me. Go to VCF Midwest ot VCF Europe. We, as a community, still need to work on PR. There seem to be some assholes that have/had...issues...with the Museum folk in question, and now have an axe to grind (really, who did not see this coming?), but they can be ignored, and fun will be had by all attending. I wish I could be there, but I have more machines to rescue. -- Will

16 years, 3 months

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Anti-glare filter material for old CRTs?

by derschjo＠mail.msu.edu

Hi all -- I have an Apple III green-screen monitor here which is pristine except for a big gash in the anti-glare material (some sort of fine mesh) covering the front of the CRT. I'd like to replace it, but I'm not entirely sure what it is that I'm looking for... anyone done this before? Thanks as always... Josh

16 years, 3 months

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Looking for DEC BA11-A chassis (PDP 11/44 or 11/24) rail sets

by paulp1＠gmail.com

If someone knows where to find these, I'd like to buy a couple. Thanks, Paul

16 years, 3 months

1
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Today's Google Doodle

by ploopster＠gmail.com

In honor of the 30th birthday of Pac Man, today's Google Doodle is a playable Pac Man game in the shape of the word "Google". http://www.google.com/ Peace... Sridhar

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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RD53 Restoration

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> > > Yes "blipping" the coil with a 9V battery moves the heads. When the > > drive > > > was powered on I also measured the voltage by attaching a probe to > > each end > > > of the coil cable, in that case I measured about 1.3V only. So I am > > guessing > > > the coil is OK. Next step is to swap the boards back again. > > > > And then fix the real fault :-) > > > Indeed, if only I knew what it was! As we all well know, funding the fault is often a lot harder than repairing it... Do the schematics for the RD53 exist on the web? I've not looked. Or am I going to have to take one of mine apart and work out how it should work.. This is going to sound silly, but do you have one of those DEC mounting skids fitted? I had problems with an RD53 that wouldn't work if the skid was on. Turns out some component leads were shorting to the ground plate on the skid. A piee of cardboard cured that :-) > The problem for me is how to diagnose this. I am pretty sure the motor is up > to speed. However one thing that does seem slightly odd is that it starts to > spin the disk down quite soon after power up. Previously with the old Is it possible it doesn;t think the motor is properly up to speed? I wonder how it senses that? if it thinks there's a problem with the motor, it will spin down fairly quickly. -tony

16 years, 3 months

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Straight 8 for sale

by root＠parse.com

I have (ironically) acquired a straight 8; much as I would like to keep it and restore it, I no longer have the equipment or spares to do so. The website "www.pdp12.org" contains the pictures and inventory. I will be accepting offers until the end of Friday, June 11th, 2010 (23:59 EDT). All pieces will go as one lot. Winner, if any, will be notified by the next Monday. This unit is partially disassembled (and will be shipped that way; boxed), but it looks like most of the parts are there. I have been told that it is missing cards; I have posted a best-efforts card inventory which should allow you to make a determination on how many (if any) cards are missing. I am available to answer any questions you may have. Shipping is to be arranged by you; location is Kanata, ON/Canada. I will have the two cabinets wrapped and protected with styrofoam, and all other components will be boxed and ready for the shipper to put in a palette and plastic wrap (there will only be three or so boxes, so this will take almost no time). CTS is recommended (www.moveit.com). Cheers, -RK -- Robert Krten

16 years, 3 months

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Usenet's home shuts down today • The Register

by woyciesjes＠sbcglobal.net

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/05/20/usenet_duke_server/ -- --- Dave Woyciesjes --- ICQ# 905818 --- AIM - woyciesjes --- CompTIA A+ Certified IT Tech - http://certification.comptia.org/ --- HDI Certified Support Center Analyst - http://www.ThinkHDI.com/ Registered Linux user number 464583 "From there to here, From here to there, Funny things are everywhere." --- Dr. Seuss

16 years, 3 months

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? testing Apple ProFile

by martin.kaeser＠auge.de

The ProFile (5 MB) spent the last years in storage. What should i do before starting the self test? The ProFile was used on either a LISA or an Apple III or an Apple II. I'd hate to test it on, say, a LISA and accidentally wipe out Apple II or III data. Is there a safe way to find out about the content? Martin K?ser

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by mtapley＠swri.edu

At 23:07 -0500 5/15/10, Fred wrote: >Could somebody please give Tony a ride to it? > >Tony, >GO! Seconded. Most useful post I've seen in weeks. Where do I send contributions? Assuming we can make this a zero-sum game (go vs. not go) for Tony's finances, I'd like to do that. -- - 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.

16 years, 3 months

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The Declassified History of NSA Computers

by wbblair3＠yahoo.com

PDF report, "History of NSA General-Purpose Electronic Digital Computers": http://www.governmentattic.org/3docs/NSA-HGPEDC_1964.pdf

16 years, 3 months

10
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Don't know if anyone cares, but...

by mdavidson1963＠gmail.com

I don't know if anyone on the list will care of not, but I just purchased a classic IBM PC (original model 5150) with a monochrome card and monitor for $45 on EBay. According to the seller, it was in storage at a museum for 18 years. They pulled it out, dusted it and it booted DOS right away. It's a dual-floppy model. I won't know more until it arrives, but it was sitting at zero bids until I bid on it with < 15 minutes left in the auction. The description the seller had used was a bit misleading and seemed to imply only the monitor was for sale, but I confirmed it was the entire system. I thought that was a pretty good deal, considering how much I paid for my first IBM PC back in 1983 or so. :) After that, I was at Weird Stuff Warehouse and they were asking $100 just for the monochrome monitor! But, while there, I did pick up some software bargains: A sealed copy of CA-CommonView (C++ GUI Library) for OS/2 for $3 and a copy of SCO Unixware 7 (appears complete) for $5. I love Weird Stuff! Feel free to ignore this if it's too off-topic for the list. :) Mark

16 years, 3 months

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RD53 Restoration

by robert.jarratt＠ntlworld.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org [mailto:cctalk- > bounces at classiccmp.org] On Behalf Of Rob Jarratt > Sent: 19 May 2010 21:59 > To: 'General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts' > Subject: RE: RD53 Restoration > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org [mailto:cctalk- > > bounces at classiccmp.org] On Behalf Of Tony Duell > > Sent: 19 May 2010 20:25 > > To: cctalk at classiccmp.org > > Subject: Re: RD53 Restoration > > > > > Could that be because the new boards are a different rev and > perhaps > > expect > > > > It's always possible. This is one reason why I really dislike > > board-swapping. It is much easier to repair a configuration that has > > worked once than one you don't know if it should work. > > > > I wonder if this drive depends on reading something from the platter > as > > ssonas the motor is up to speed (say a servo pattern). if so, then if > > the > > heads are moved to far in or out , it may fail > > > > Did this drive suffer from the well-known 'sticky bumper' problem? If > > so, > > what have you done about it? Is it possible that if you just removed > > the > > old bumper that the heads are outside the servo area sometimes? > > > > > Yes, this drive did have a sticky bumper. I resolved it by putting a > very > thin sliver of tape over the sticky bit. I did not loosen any bolts, > but > there is a bit of play in the heads when they are at rest and fully > retracted. > > > Regards > > Rob I have just put the original boards back in and powered up the drive twice. I powered it up twice and both times the heads moved briefly. I used a multimeter (it is all I have) to measure the voltage across the two leads to the coil. The first time I noticed that the voltage briefly went to about 1.3V, the second time it was always 0V although it looked like the multimeter may have noticed a change which was too fast for it. I then tried a few more times and these times the voltage went to 1.3 immediately. Then when the heads moved it went to about 4V and after that it went to 0V. So either I was measuring incorrectly the first two times, or there is still something not right even when the heads do move. Would be interested to know if anyone else sees these voltages. I have another RD53 which I can dig out at the weekend to compare. Thanks Rob

16 years, 3 months

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RD53 Restoration

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> Could that be because the new boards are a different rev and perhaps expect It's always possible. This is one reason why I really dislike board-swapping. It is much easier to repair a configuration that has worked once than one you don't know if it should work. I wonder if this drive depends on reading something from the platter as ssonas the motor is up to speed (say a servo pattern). if so, then if the heads are moved to far in or out , it may fail Did this drive suffer from the well-known 'sticky bumper' problem? If so, what have you done about it? Is it possible that if you just removed the old bumper that the heads are outside the servo area sometimes? > something different? The other thing I have just remembered is that the new > boards are missing the graphite pad under the spindle, but then again I have > run the original boards successfully with the bottom board lifted up so I > can probe voltages, so not sure that would have any effect. That should have no effect at all. -tony

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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Edge connector repair

by snhirsch＠gmail.com

There are many outfits offering repair kits for PCB edge connectors, but all of them are $2-300. That's complete overkill for the one or two repairs per year I might need to perform. If I purchase a "frame" of dry-adhesive backed traces from Circuit Medic, what are the chances of using a temperature-controlled bench iron to bond them? Anyone have experience with this? I can see making the $40 investment if it has even a chance of working. Alternately, what other approaches have folks used? Steve --

16 years, 3 months

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$8500 Tandy ad from 1989

by brianlanning＠gmail.com

It's fun to read this stuff. I didn't realize microchannel was available from anyone but IBM. And notice how it's MS(R) OS/2. :-) http://www.stephenbailey.com/technology/what-8499-bought-in-1989/

16 years, 3 months

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[OT] Space Shuttle and ISS (was Re: Amiga 1000 helps win againstpatent troll...)

by shoppa＠trailing-edge.com

> Originally the plan was to replace it with two systems: > * crew launched in an Orion capsule on an Ares I > * cargo (heavy lift) launched on an Ares V > Obama and the NASA administrator want to cancel Ares I, but Congress > might block that. > Ares I is an incredibly stupid design, but if we cancel it we will have > no capability of launching manned missions at all. I've seen this from at least 3 different sides: science, contractor, and government. >From a science perspective, everything being done in the 60's couldn't have been done without the government. Lots of science being done today can't be done without the government. But the scientists don't need any rockets more advanced than what we were doing in the 60's and 70's. They would appreciate simplificiation. But when your instrument is a one of a kind you would kind of prefer that it not blow up on the pad so there is conservatism at least at the expensive end of the project scale. At the low end of the project scale there are plenty of projects who wuold be glad to build five instruments (because they're cheap) with the hope that at least one makes it into space. >From a government perspective, everything has to be done in the "Ten Year Plan" style because there's never enough money to get it done in one year. But stretching it out over ten years in fact makes it more expensive. Things get real expensive for the government, especially a balkanized 40+ year old agency like NASA. Others might say that in a spiteful tone, but I honestly say it in sympathy because I know how people struggle to get good simple cheap science done in an agency that at many levels is thinking only about the ten-year zillion dollar programs. >From the contractor perspective, it's hard to compete against the Russians. You have to do more or better than the Russians, not the same, to compete. But more or better is always more expensive and longer to do... and it's often more than is actually needed too! The big ones try to be clever by buying the cheap startups but I wonder if the cheap startup simply gets stifled in the beauracracy. Tim.

16 years, 3 months

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Looking for CMD CQD-200/TM or CQD-200/M EPROM images

by glen.slick＠gmail.com

Does anyone have a CMD CQD-200/TM or CQD-200/M and an EPROM programmer or other means of reading the EPROM images that could send me a copy? I think I have mostly figured out the CSR decode PAL for a CQD-200/T and programmed a new one and now it responds to both the disk and tape CSRs, but only the tape CSR looks like it has normal values. Maybe I also need to replace the EPROMs with CQD-200/TM or CQD-200/M EPROM images to get it to respond normally to the disk CSR. I have had encouraging results so far doing the same to convert a CQD-220/M into a CQD-220/TM and got it working with both a disk and a tape at the same time. -Glen

16 years, 3 months

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RD53 Restoration

by rescue＠hawkmountain.net

I had one of these drives that behaved this way. As I figured I had nothing to lose, I opened it op and watched it operate.... The theory I came to was that the stopper material changed dimension with age and the drive could not get to track zero. I loosened the stopper and ever so slightly (2-3? thousandths of an inch ?) to let the heads further outward (as I recall). After doing that and reassembling.... it worked fine. I did not put a lot of 'miles' on the disk after that.... I had already put a different disk in service... but for the time I used/recovered data/tested it it powered up 100% every time after that 'repair'. I can't say if my theory is right.... and it could have been just dumb luck... but I thought I'd relay what I did... as if you don't get it to function any other way you don't stand much to lose by trying it. I believe I've read talk on here about homemade 'clean rooms' .... obviously the less dust/particulate matter you get in the drive the better the chances of longer term survival. -- Curt Rob Jarratt wrote: > I have posted before about an RD53 I am trying to get back to working order. > After unsticking the heads I thought I had a working disk as I have been > able to format it and do an image restore of the VMS installation media to > it. However, intermittently it has been failing. When this happens the heads > completely fail to move when I power on the disk, so the controller and > firmware cannot even determine its size. After a few moments the disk spins > down. As I said, this is intermittent, sometimes it will work OK. > > A friend has been helping me and he gave me a complete set of the three > boards in the RD53 from a known working disk (he can't give me the disk for > reasons not worth going into). I changed all three boards and the drive > still completely fails to move the heads, in fact now the fault seems > permanent. My friend suggested that the positioning coil may be faulty. He > measured the resistance of the coil on one of his working disks (at the plug > that goes to the coil from the motor control board), it came to 3 ohms, mine > also measured 3 ohms. I measured the voltage at the plug going to the coil, > one reads 2V the other 3V, but when it works they both go to about 5V. > > Can anyone suggest what might be the problem? > > Thanks > > Rob > >

16 years, 3 months

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[OT] Space Shuttle and ISS (was Re: Amiga 1000 helps)

by Gary＠realtimecomp.com

Scaled Composites was bought by Northrop Grumman in 2007. Doubtful it will compete with it's parent company in any meaningful way. ________________________________ From: cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org on behalf of Shoppa, Tim Sent: Mon 5/17/2010 10:15 AM To: Gary Subject: Re: [OT] Space Shuttle and ISS (was Re: Amiga 1000 helps) Al writes: > I've always wanted to give Burt Rutan a run at a Space Shuttle > replacement. I bet he'd do something really nice. > His White Knight/Spaceship One combo seems pretty innovative. But, > that's not intended to be a Shuttle replacement. I actually hope he doesn't do "a Space Shuttle replacement". The Space Shuttle is a classic example of scope creep. It had to do everything. In the end it did do most all of everything, and it did it each of them pretty well, but it was much more complicated than needed for any one task, and schedules and budgets were blown out of the water. But excepting schedules and budgets... it did surprisingly well. What Burt Rutan could do, is a family of replacements, each of which does one of the shuttle's tasks well. Some stages/assemblies/technologies would probably end up being shared and that's great. Tim.

16 years, 3 months

1
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looking for SGI granite mice

by jlobocki＠gmail.com

hello, I'm looking for about 5 (or any number I can get close to) granite SGI mice, the first edition "mouse systems" non-logitech version. I have seen them on ebay, but what they are trying to pull for them seems a bit ridiculous. Thanks! -Joe

16 years, 3 months

1
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Intel MCS-8 cards still available

by cclist＠sydex.com

Folks, Awhile back, I posted a message from someone with a few Intel MCS-8 cards available. He still hasn't received any tickles on them. They can't be all that common. Email me if you'd like and I'll pass the message along. AFAIK, the cards are in the USA. --Chuck

16 years, 3 months

1
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Semi-OT - Using optoisolators with composite video signals

by ian_primus＠yahoo.com

I have the need to optically isolate a composite video signal to compensate for the different ground reference between the devices. Digging through my stash of parts, I have some optos, but the ones I have are more suited to digital applications. Having not tried to pass an analog signal through one before, I'm not quite sure what sort of part I'm looking for... Anyone have any suggestions? -Ian

16 years, 3 months

6
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cctalk Digest, Vol 81, Issue 46

by mtapley＠swri.edu

At 3:41 -0500 5/18/10, Jeff wrote: >See, having me in your Spacecraft Design class all those years ago is >coming in useful after all. Count the caps and the markings, and email >me. I've got the replacements. Knew it at the time, never doubted it since. Thanks one and all - I'll contact Jeff for parts and more advice if I can't figure out the removal/replacement process. I *really* like being on this list - the on-list and off-list replies have been very gratifying! -- - 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.

16 years, 3 months

1
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questionably OT: AmigaOS 4 on Mac PPC

by spectre＠floodgap.com

I see notes around the underweb about people using a custom OpenFirmware loader to get AmigaOS 4 booting on the G4-based Mac mini. This sounds like a ready-made way to create an Amiga laptop -- just use an iBook G4, which is nearly identical technically. Has anyone tried using the Moana loader? I am intrigued by AmigaOS, but I don't really have the space to set up a new PPC Amiga to try it (thus a laptop form factor would be fabulous). -- ------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ -- Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com -- I think, therefore I'm dangerous. ------------------------------------------

16 years, 3 months

4
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PDP8/A for sale

by 1metalguru＠gmail.com

To those interested in my PDP8/A system: It contains: 1 - M8315 Hex Omnibus CPU 1 - H219B 16K Core Memory Module 1 - M8316 Option Board 1 with 1 - KC8AA Programming Panel 1 - M8317 Option Board 2 bootstrap 1 - M8342 Parallel Control 1 - M8357 RX8E Omnibus Interface 1 - M8326 Inter-processor Buffer 1 - PDP8/A Field Maintenance Print Set. 1 - PDP8 Internal Bus Options Maintenance Manual Vol 2 I am accepting offers to purchase this unit. I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. I have checked with UPS and Xpress Post and shipping to the continental United States would start at approximately $100, assuming a package 24x24x12 weighing 60 lbs. I also have a PDP8/I WO25 Core Memory Module mod 30-05256-2 made by Data-Ram Corp.: Darrell

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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video opto isolator single chip solution

by rdawson16＠hotmail.com

Ian, Here you go 8 pin DIP, and app note circuit in the datasheet: http://www.avagotech.com/pages/en/optocouplers_plastic/plastic_wideband_ana… Randyc _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy is not the too busy. Combine all your e-mail accounts with Hotmail. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?tile=multiaccount&ocid=PID28…

16 years, 3 months

2
1
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cctalk Digest, Vol 81, Issue 43

by ken＠seefried.com

On 5/17/2010 12:49 PM, Sridhar Ayengar<ploopster at gmail.com> wrote: > > Tandy wasn't the only other company making MCA machines. NCR made quite > a few different models. I believe Siemens made one or two as well. > The NCR Microchannel machines were quite well done. They spanned i486 and Pentium 1 desktop machines (the 3000 series?) through the WorldMark series with up 16 (or was it 32?) PPros running SVR4 to the Terradata-based boxes like the 3600 & 3700. I did some pretty interesting stuff on the later two at a large airline a long time ago. There was some definite teething pains with the SMP implimentation, but those were impressive boxes when things went well. Olivetti made some interesting Microchannel machines as well. KJ

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by ken＠seefried.com

On 5/17/2010 12:49 PM, "RodSmallwood"<rodsmallwood at btconnect.com> wrote: > > It seems to be a bit like the aircraft preservation people. One of > everything but nothing flies. I just hate that. If something was built to > run and can run again with out damage it should. > To be fair, when a classic computer fails in use, it's pretty uncommon for anyone to die, and somewhat less uncommon for the entire device to be destroyed in the process. Exactly the opposite is true in the case of an aircraft. I can assure you that flyers want to fly, especially something interesting and/or unique, but sometimes the risk assessment doesn't make that smart. KJ

16 years, 3 months

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Mac Classic problems

by trag＠io.com

> > Date: Mon, 17 May 2010 11:02:56 -0500 > From: Mark Tapley <mtapley at swri.edu> > First pass, no sound out. Not speaker, not headphone > connector. Wait, if you hold your ear right up against it, you hear a > *little* bit. Hm. This is a (uhm) classic symptom of leaking caps on the Classic, and Classic II, and SE/30, and IIci, etc. We regularly discuss this issue (these days we usually just reference old threads) over on 68kmla.net. A search on "tantalum" is probably best, as the typical replacements we use are tantalums of the proper size and values. > gunge, and they were centered on the three groups of what look like > my favorite nemesis .... capacitors! > > <gnashing of teeth> > > Many q-tips and much isopropanol later, it boots, but it's > still quiet - too quiet - and I have a bad feeling about how long > it'll keep running before I have to clean it again. There's a bit of > corrosion on one lead of the sound chip, but I can still hear a very > very faint edition of the sound it's supposed to make. > > 2) If (sigh. When) I have to pull those things off, I will need a > hot-air soldering station, correct? My thought is, cut up an aluminum > can to make an air dam isolating the cap. from the rest of the board, > then blast it with hot air until it flies off or vaporizes. Is that > close to right? Use two pencils simultaneously. Radio Shack sells a 15 watt grounded pencil with a fine tip for less than $10. If you use two pencils you're much less likely to lift a pad by prying on a cap while heating one side, and after the other side has already cooled. If you were to use hot air, I find that modeling clay works conveniently and well to protect other components on the board. The simple procedure is: 1) Remove the old caps and remove the solder on the pads. 2) Clean the board thoroughly. 3) Replace the capacitors. To replace the caps, tin one pad. Place the cap carefully and hold it down with something like a small flat screwdriver. Heat the tinned pad until the caps sinks down to the pad. Remove the heat. Wait a few moments. Remove the pressing tool. Now solder the other pad/terminal. > 3) How do I get replacements, and how do I slap those back down on > the board? Is the code on the top all I need to order more? See, having me in your Spacecraft Design class all those years ago is coming in useful after all. Count the caps and the markings, and email me. I've got the replacements. Jeff Walther

16 years, 3 months

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RD53 Restoration

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

> > Yes "blipping" the coil with a 9V battery moves the heads. When the drive > was powered on I also measured the voltage by attaching a probe to each end > of the coil cable, in that case I measured about 1.3V only. So I am guessing > the coil is OK. Next step is to swap the boards back again. And then fix the real fault :-) More seriously, it sounds like the positioner coil is not being driven hard enoguh to move the heads -- and if the coil was open-circuit I would ecpect the servo sysem to try to drive it very hard to attempt to get some movement. Normally there are various conditions which have to be satified (motor up to speed, no write current unless write gate is asserted, only one head selected, etc) before the heads will move. It's entirely possible the problem is in one of those areas. -tony

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

On 16 May 2010, at 05:07, cctalk-request at classiccmp.org wrote: > > Message: 3 > Date: Sat, 15 May 2010 20:12:58 +0100 > From: Roger Pugh <rogpugh at mac.com> > Subject: Re: Anyone off to VCF-UK? > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" > <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > Message-ID: <4BEEF23A.8050204 at mac.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > > On 05/15/2010 01:00, Philip Pemberton wrote: >> Hi guys, >> >> Just out of curiosity, is anyone planning to attend the UK Vintage >> Computer Festival this year? The one that's running on the 19th and >> 20th of June at Bletchley Park? > > I intend to go for one of the days, but not sure which. > > Is anyone interested in a car share from the South East? > Possibly, I am roughly equidistant from M20 J8 and J9. Where are you? If I arrange to share a car I won't let apathy reign on the day. My best MPG car is about 23 so maybe not one of mine though my supercharged Daimler V8 is very luxurious, it only does 17 mpg! Roger Holmes.

16 years, 3 months

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Mac Classic problems

by mtapley＠swri.edu

All, Got a Mac Classic, swapped non-functional hard drive, installed RAM, nearly got it working for my 10-year-old. But.... First pass, no sound out. Not speaker, not headphone connector. Wait, if you hold your ear right up against it, you hear a *little* bit. Hm. Second pass, a week or so later, won't boot. Hmm. Opened it back up, looked over everything ... what's this? There's some stuff on the digital board. Wonder what could leave an oily stain, and how it got there in the first place without leaving tracks on the inside of the case, the CRT, the disk drives, etc. etc.? Well, won't hurt to clean it off, I thought ... then the penny dropped and I realized that there were *three* little islands of gunge, and they were centered on the three groups of what look like my favorite nemesis .... capacitors! <gnashing of teeth> Many q-tips and much isopropanol later, it boots, but it's still quiet - too quiet - and I have a bad feeling about how long it'll keep running before I have to clean it again. There's a bit of corrosion on one lead of the sound chip, but I can still hear a very very faint edition of the sound it's supposed to make. The Classic has a surface-mount digital board. The components I suspect are metal can devices, lots of them with the same marking (which I neglected to write down) and one different. Each has a tiny flat plastic-looking isolator or something between it and the logic board. 1) Is there a preferred solvent I can squirt under those things and the sound chip that'll pick up capacitor gunge (or whatever it is) better than Isopropanol? Is the old standby dihydrogen monoxide a good bet? (I have plenty of that.) 2) If (sigh. When) I have to pull those things off, I will need a hot-air soldering station, correct? My thought is, cut up an aluminum can to make an air dam isolating the cap. from the rest of the board, then blast it with hot air until it flies off or vaporizes. Is that close to right? 3) How do I get replacements, and how do I slap those back down on the board? Is the code on the top all I need to order more? Hints appreciated. Hm. Come to think, maybe I better double-check that the swapped-out hard drive was really dead. The SCSI port might have been the first casualty of the capacitor scourge. -- - 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.

16 years, 3 months

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i8355 from SDK-85 flakey

by tech＠pluscomputers.com

Chris, I have the monitor listing (v 2.1) for the SDK-85 in digital form if it will help. I've modified it to compile with Pseudo Sam by removing the macros. I've added line drivers (75188 and 75189) to my SDK-85 to support RS-232C and changed the code so it runs at 9600 baud. If you can rustle up an 8755 you could burn the monitor to it. Regards, Carl -- Carl Allen Plus! Computers, Inc. (336) 659-8549 tech at pluscomputers.com www.pluscomputers.com --

16 years, 3 months

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radio shack 28-249 manual

by holland＠pacbell.net

Hi, Sorry about my first email. It was late and my back was killing me. I would appreciate very much if I could some how get a copy of the manual for my 200 in one project kit. I am 60 yrs of age and disabled and have time on my hands.? I graduated in electronics, head of the class, but I still like basic things... like this kit. ? ??? Sincerely, ????????????????? Bruce Holland

16 years, 3 months

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[OT] Space Shuttle and ISS (was Re: Amiga 1000 helps)

by tshoppa＠wmata.com

Al writes: > I've always wanted to give Burt Rutan a run at a Space Shuttle > replacement. I bet he'd do something really nice. > His White Knight/Spaceship One combo seems pretty innovative. But, > that's not intended to be a Shuttle replacement. I actually hope he doesn't do "a Space Shuttle replacement". The Space Shuttle is a classic example of scope creep. It had to do everything. In the end it did do most all of everything, and it did it each of them pretty well, but it was much more complicated than needed for any one task, and schedules and budgets were blown out of the water. But excepting schedules and budgets... it did surprisingly well. What Burt Rutan could do, is a family of replacements, each of which does one of the shuttle's tasks well. Some stages/assemblies/technologies would probably end up being shared and that's great. Tim.

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone off to VCF-UK?

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

On 17 May 2010, at 04:49, cctalk-request at classiccmp.org wrote: > > Message: 15 > Date: Mon, 17 May 2010 00:00:19 +0100 > From: Roger Pugh <rogpugh at mac.com> > Subject: > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" > <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > Message-ID: <4BF07903.2000805 at mac.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > > >> Possibly, I am roughly equidistant from M20 J8 and J9. Where are you? >> >> If I arrange to share a car I won't let apathy reign on the day. >> >> My best MPG car is about 23 so maybe not one of mine though my supercharged Daimler V8 is very luxurious, it only does 17 mpg! >> >> Roger Holmes. >> >> > Roger > I'm a few miles south of Gatwick on the M23 > > Transport options are > > 55MPG SAAB 9-3 > 30MPG Citroen Berlingo > 19MPG Bristol > > So forgetting the gas guzzler classic its a SAAB 4dr or a Van with seats > for more load capacity. > > > roger Hi Roger, I'll mull that over, Gatwick is over an hour away. I guess it depends if you go clockwise or anti-clockwise around the M25 (or through the middle of London). My main classic computer is too big to take (Needs a couple of tail lift lorries and 3 months to re-assemble). Roger.

16 years, 3 months

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IBM System 360 Model 91 operator console from 1969

by alexeyt＠freeshell.org

On Wed, 12 May 2010, dh wrote: > Sorry I forgot . here is a picture. > > http://www.thegalleryofoldiron.com/36091CART.JPG Holy crap, that is a lot of lights. I think that may be more lights than on all the machines I have put together... Does it display every register in the machine? How big is the cable that carries all those signals??? Alexey

16 years, 3 months

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Anyone want a Creed teleprinter or got an Elliott paper tape reader head ?

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

I am still after an Elliott paper tape reader head, preferably 1000cps but the 300cps would be acceptable. I have a Creed 7E which is a 5 bit teleprinter. The covers are missing and I have not tried powering it up yet. Someone has attached a DIN audio type plug to it, and a friend suggested maybe it had been connected up to a BBC micro. Anyone want to do a trade, either barter or for cash on either of these. I expect to be going to VCF England or whatever its called. I am in the UK, in the Low Weald of Kent to be more specific. Roger Holmes

16 years, 3 months

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Microcornucopia Magazine

by elazzerini＠interfree.it

Hi at all, today i begun to scan my issues. At this moment i done MICRO CORNUCOPIA No.14 Oct 1983 http://web.tiscali.it/enrico.lazzerini/MICRO_CORNUCOPIA_No.14_Oct_1983.pdf and MICRO CORNUCOPIA No.16 Feb 1984 http://web.tiscali.it/enrico.lazzerini/MICRO_CORNUCOPIA_No.14_Oct_1983.pdf Is out there who has issues from 1 to 11 and would scan some his issues??? I think this would be the only change we have to : - gain issues we not have - save this wonderful past and defunt magazine Regards Enrico

16 years, 3 months

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