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

Moving heavy hardware - or why not to put big CDC drives into a Chevy Venture

by ian_primus＠yahoo.com

Well, I managed to accquire more hardware... This time in the form of a couple CDC hard drives - one 9775 (Fixed media, 650mb) and one 9766 (300mb removeable). I also wound up with an 11/84 and a couple RL02's and one and a half RA80's. (my first Unibus 11, and my first removable pack drives - yay!) I'm very excited - this hardware is all new to me, and very different >from what I already have. The 11/84 is much "beefier" physically than my wimpy little 11/73, and I've never owned freestanding hard drives. But - I digress. I had to drive about 950 miles round trip to pick these up. Truck rental is very expensive. I drive a Toyota Camry. So, I borrowed my father's minivan, a Chevy Venture. I've moved all manner of heavy hardware, racks, printers, etc in it, and figured that it would be fine for the task. Getting the stuff in was pretty easy. The CDC drives were slightly bigger than I had envisioned, but they fit. We loaded it with a ramp and a loading dock, and I had two people helping me, so I didn't fully appreciate just how heavy the CDC drives were. The PDP-11 rack was a 5 foot rack that was a simple "tip and slide", and some loose rack mountable stuffs stacked easily next to it. At this point, I had the van completely crammed - the passenger seat was pushed forward and angled forward as far as it would go, with the two CDC drives behind the seats, then the PDP rack on the passsenger side in the back, and stuff stacked behind the other drive on the drivers side. Some disk packs were seat belted into the passenger seat. The van rode really low, but was still driveable, albiet more "sluggish", and I had to top up one of the tires before driving back. I drove the route back in one shot - no stops for anything. I didn't get home until late, and only brought in the disk packs. It took me the better part of a week to figure out how to get the CDC drives *out* of the van. I was able to get the PDP-11 out with little difficulty. It's just a rack and some loose stuff. No problems there. But those CDC drives were so heavy that I couldn't even tilt them much in the van, and they's sunken into the carpet and weren't able to roll, not to mention the holes in the floor where the seats normally latch into. I found the operators manual for the CDC 9775 (BZ7Ex) on bitsavers - it lists the specs for the drive - weight 639 pounds! Oh, good. At least I think the 9766 is lighter. A little. It took a few days to get friends with time to help me, but we managed to get the drives out of the van yesterday night. I'll spare you the gory details, but I removed the power supplies from both drives first, as well as the doors and panels. When moving these, heavy is an understatement. Now I just need to get them into the basement. So... now does anyone have a scan of the service or installation manual for a 9775? I'm sure others have stories about loading hardware in and out of vehicles... I'll post pictures later... -Ian

19 years, 4 months

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Can disks be copied using only one RL02 drive?

by charlesmorris＠hughes.net

I've got a PDP-11/23+ with 4 Mb RAM, but only one RL02 and no software except an XXDP pack. Henk Gooijen helpfully made for me a (RT-11) bootable pack that is on the way (if the post offices between Europe and the US don't lose or destroy it). So I definitely want to make a backup copy. Is this possible to do with only one drive? Apparently you can't swap disks back and forth like the old DOS or CP/M systems. Henk thinks creating a RAM disk would work, and copy files but I don't know anything about RT-11. The alternative is to take the RL02 from my PDP-8/A and connect it, but then I don't have a "1" key, they are both unit "0". Any thoughts? thanks Charles

19 years, 4 months

9
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Surely someone here knows what became of GRI Computer Corporation?

by aek＠bitsavers.org

Looooooooooooooooooong gone. One of the founders was Saul Denman, creator of the PDP8/S John Bordynuik contacted him years ago while researching the history of the 8/S great.. I see he has let pdp8.com croak. Info may be saved at archive.org

19 years, 4 months

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What became of GRI Computer Corporation?

by paul＠frixxon.co.uk

I have an email address at the bottom of every page of Manx, my catalogue of computer manuals, and an invitation to people to send me questions or comments. I expect people to ask questions about the catalogue, but instead I usually receive requests from far-flung countries to quote for supplying spare parts for their ancient hardware. Ho hum. But today I received a question from someone who believes that my humble catalogue is the online presence of the mighty Manx Corporation. The email is reproduced below. Google has been no assistance in providing any answers. Surely someone here knows what became of GRI Computer Corporation? I'll pass on any responses. --quote-- I have some stocks (100 shares) that were purchased in 1972 for G.R.I. Computer Corp. When searching for information regarding this company and whether or not it still exists - I end up being redirected to this page for the Manx Corporation. Do you happen to know if G.R.I was purchased by Manx or how I might go about researching the value for these stocks? Any help is appreciated. --endquote-- -- Paul for the mighty Manx Corporation

19 years, 4 months

2
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Unix disk copy using dd

by dm561＠torfree.net

Date: Thu, 03 May 2007 15:28:01 -0500 From: Doc Shipley <doc at mdrconsult.com> Subject: Re: Unix disk copy using dd Sridhar Ayengar wrote: > M H Stein wrote: > >> Assuming you have a third disk or a spare partition on the larger drive, >> can't you tar the small disk > to a file there and then untar to the >> final >> disk/partition? > > > You're assuming that the small disk the data is coming from contains a > file system. > And, if it does, it's more efficient to use a pipe instead of a tarfile. >Peace... Sridhar -------------- Mike: I did indeed assume a filesystem; under what circumstances would a Unix hard disk not have a file system? And what do you mean specifically by "use a pipe"? Example? If you don't need an archive copy couldn't you just copy the boot file and cp the root? My experience with Unix is pretty limited, but this is how I archive and copy systems with Cromix; the tar file is copied to a PC and zipped, and unzipped and restored if/when needed. If there's a more efficient way, I'm definitely interested. ========= Doc wrote: > Enering pedant mode, even if the source disk has a filesystem, tar can't grab boot blocks, partition tables, extended attributes, etc. And various tar implementations have other nasty little warts. ------------- Mike: Granted, you'd have to create the boot block on the new drive, but I thought the whole point was to _not_ copy the partition table since you're moving to a larger drive? In my Cromix experience at least, which attributes are retained seems to be a function of the version of tar (or ftar) and the options selected. ======= > dd is about the dumbest** command on the planet, which is why I love it. > > Doc ------------- Mike: Ditto, but how would you use it in this case? m

19 years, 4 months

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Unix disk copy using dd ?

by andy.piercy＠gmail.com

More disk copy questions.. Can you copy an entire disk using the UNIX dd command from a smaller disc to a larger one and retain the capacity of the larger drive? i.e. maybe create a partition on the larger drive which matches the smaller drive? Thanks, Andy.

19 years, 4 months

6
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MacOS 6 on BasiliskII

by trag＠io.com

>Date: Thu, 3 May 2007 16:58:11 -0700 (PDT) >From: Cameron Kaiser <spectre at floodgap.com> >> I have BasiliskII installed via apt on Ubuntu. I've sucessfully read and >> installed the 6.0.8 system disks as downloaded from Apple's archive. The >> rom images I have and have tried are for a Quadra650 and a Performa. >> BasiliskII doesn't like the Mac Plus rom. On boot, I get a complaint that >> this Mac is set for 32-bit addressing and that I should switch to 24-bit >> addressing (since os6 doesn't do 32-bitness). Clicking "24-bit" doesn't >> work. Does anyone here know how to get this working? > >Which Performa? Those ROMs may be too new for System 6. To elaborate a bit on Cameron's point... System 6 requires 24 bit addressing on the host machine. The first Macs were based on the 68000 which only has 24 address bits. When they added the Mac II and SE/30 to the line-up they switched to the 68020 and 68030 which have 32 address bits, but the OS was still operating in a 24 bit address space. So, in order to run System 6 you need hardware which can translate to 24 bit addresses. Apple included the feature of a choice of 24 bit or 32 bit addressing modes in early Macs, but abandoned it somewhere in the middle of the Quadra (68040) line-up. So, for example, the Quadra 605 can do both 24 bit and 32 bit addressing, but the Quadra 63x family cannot. My guess is that the Quadra 650 does not include support for 24 bit addressing and neither does the performa you used. This would definitely be true of any Performa 63x, or later PowerPC Performas. So, you most likely need a ROM image from an older machine. Also, even if 24 bit addressing is supported in the emulated, ROM imaged machine, Apple dropped support for OS 6 somewhere along the way in their hardware/firmware. I suspect that regardless of the 24 bit/32 bit issue, the Q650 will not run anything earlier than some flavor of OS 7. I may be misremembering, but that's how I would bet. You may want to check a website such as everymac.com, because I believe it lists the OS's supported by each Mac model. Jeff Walther

19 years, 4 months

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cctalk Digest, Vol 45, Issue 7

by dm561＠torfree.net

----------Original Message: Date: Fri, 4 May 2007 09:39:48 +0100 From: "Andy Piercy" <andy.piercy at gmail.com> Subject: Re: Unix disk copy using dd ? So basically you can only use dd to copy to a disk of the same size. OK so here is the real issue: I have a faulty Unis system disk that is 142 Mb, it had the sticky bumpers issue, now repaired but I want to copy the OS and apps to a second replacement disk, this is a 442 Mb drive. ----------Reply: Perhaps I misunderstood the problem earlier; when you say faulty but repaired, do you mean that you can read the disk but the file system is corrupted, or is the disk in fact bootable & runnable? mike

19 years, 4 months

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Mentec

by tshoppa＠wmata.com

Al Kossow wrote: > It sounds like Zane (maybe Tim Shoppa) have been in > contact with them recently, so there is no need for yet > another set of people to be involved. If "Recently" is "2000", then yes, I worked extensively with Mentec to make three sets of hobbyist CD's (RT-11, RSX-11, RSTS/E) using my archives and their archives to get bootable kits for emulators. > As I understand it, they have no interest in offering a > low cost license no matter how many people ask about it. Internally, there was interest, and I discussed it with several at Mentec in the 1996-2001 timeframe as I worked with them on other projects, and it got as far as them having a web page with pictures of the CD's I made for them. But no, not all the legal barriers were jumped, so it never really happened. I don't think anyone truly understands the legal barriers that Mentec faces. They do not own all the stuff free and clear to do with as they wish. In the late 90's, they could not sell a copy of any PDP-11 OS unless they also sold DEC's printed manuals with it, and they were having extreme troubles getting DEC's printed manuals from DEC's print shop. The folks in Mentec who were most enthusiastic about it were really nice, energetic people. I don't have any sore feelings about the work I did back then (I had a blast) but I don't have as much interest in the subject as I did ten years ago. Being out at the CHM last year rekindled it a little... but there's no shortage of truly redistributable and very-few-condition other stuff that I'm worrying about now. Tim.

19 years, 4 months

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Mentec

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> But if you want to give a try, why not a formal > letter bringing the stuff up to the knowledge of mentec's owners/directors Read the discussions on this subject in alt.sys.pdp11 It sounds like Zane (maybe Tim Shoppa) have been in contact with them recently, so there is no need for yet another set of people to be involved. As I understand it, they have no interest in offering a low cost license no matter how many people ask about it.

19 years, 4 months

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IMI HDs (was Micropolis Disk Drives)

by dm561＠torfree.net

Date: Thu, 3 May 2007 21:33:54 -0700 From: "Rick Bensene" <rickb at bensene.com> Subject: Re: Micropolis Disk Drives (Was TNIX) >Tony wrote: >> There are 2 possible interfaces for the Micropolis 1203. >> The bare drive has a 50 pin connector, which is somewhat similar in >> concept to the SMD interface. There's an 8 bit parallel data bus with >> strobe lines, etc, to do things like head postiioning, and a raw data >> stream. ----------- Speaking of unusual HD I/Fs, did anyone other than IMI ever use their 34-pin interface? mike

19 years, 4 months

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WTD: Catweasel raw track dumps

by classiccmp＠philpem.me.uk

Hi, A few of you have probably heard about my little project - the portable floppy disc raw-reader/writer. Through a bit of spare-time coding I've got all the basic elements of the reading side of the interface done. That is to say, according to the simulator, my hardware design can detect MFM sync markers, index pulses and track index sequences on hard-sectored floppies. Unfortunately I'm not going to have time to do the PCB layouts and such for another few weeks at the least, which leads me to my next problem... Rather than halt all development due to lack of time, I'd like to take a look at some of the software side of things. What I need are some raw data dumps i.e. if you're using a Catweasel, the data in the CW's RAM after the track read command completed. The 'testhist' utility from Tim Mann's CW2DMK pack can do this, with the command: testhist port drive track side clock [file] The documentation for testhist explains how to use it - port is the I/O port for ISA Catweasels or card ID number (starting at 0) for PCI Catweasels. Drive is the drive number (starting at 0), track and side are equally obvious, clock is the clock rate (0 for SD/DD, 1 for HD). The 'file' parameter is the name of the output file that What I'm after are the raw files (and testhist output if possible) for: - FM encoding, IBM format (PC or similar) - MFM encoding, uPD765 (PC format), 3.5" DD - MFM encoding, uPD765 (PC format), 3.5" HD - MFM encoding, Amiga format, 3.5" What I'm wanting to do is try out a neat little read-compensation algorithm I found that seems to make it easier to decode discs where the FM/MFM timing thresholds are a little ambiguous (the histogram shows a lot of bleed/smear along the bottom). An image of the whole disc would be useful, else a few random tracks would be just as good (and probably easier to FTP/email). Are there any kind souls out there with a Catweasel card and CW2DMK (or a similar tool) that can provide this data? Thanks, -- Phil. | (\_/) This is Bunny. Copy and paste Bunny classiccmp at philpem.me.uk | (='.'=) into your signature to help him gain http://www.philpem.me.uk/ | (")_(") world domination.

19 years, 4 months

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Magnolia memories was Re: Micropolis Disk Drives (Was TNIX)

by innfoclassics＠gmail.com

> The 8" Micropolis drive was also used in the Tektronix Magnolia...a very > early prototype workstation-class machine that used a bitmap display, > and was based on Smalltalk as the native operating system. Tek (to my > knowledge) never sold any of these machines, but quite a few of them > were built as prototypes, and used in various areas of Tek as > engineering workstations. The Magnolia was way ahead of its time. Had > Tek had the marketing and sales skills to sell this thing as a computer, > they could have grabbed the engineering computing workstation market > before it even really existed. This was long before Sun or PERQ. It > was more in the timeframe of the early Xerox PARC machines. In fact, > some of the software engineers that developed the working environment > for the Magnolia came from Xerox PARC. I had my hands on a Tek Magnolia once and even recognized it for what it was. Unfortunitely long before I knew of the list. And long before I realized that you wanted to save the very first models. I didn't get to play with it very long. We got it in with a mother load of Intel (from Intel) about 1992 at 911 NW Hoyt in PDX. the Magnolia looked like an engineering prototype, ugly box with no covers, cables all over.... A little squater than the Xerox 8010s it came in with. What I didn't recognise was the Alto that came in with the group. It was several years later that I saw a picture. It was such a funny Xerox. >From Intel were many of every early development systems, 800, 8000, II, III, & IV. What I would give for that mother load now...... > ago, I had occasion to run into the 6130 while unpacking stuff from a > storage unit, and I brought it home, hooked it up to a trusty Heathkit > H19 terminal, and powered it up. It booted up right away. Not even a > fsck required. I even remembered the root password! Did a full "dd" of > the disk to /dev/null, and no read errors at all. I think I still have > a couple of these drives stored away. One of the few Tek computers I never got my hands on, the 6130. Is there a museum or timeline of Tektronix Computers / test equiipment / video equipment in physical space or on the Web? I don't think Paul Pierce is collecting much Tektronix? Paxton -- Paxton Hoag Astoria, OR USA

19 years, 4 months

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Computer floor tiles available in beautiful and exciting Bakersfield, Californa

by sellam＠vintagetech.com

Bakersfield, the armpit of California! Also, the location where about 1000 square feet of computer floor tiles are available from this guy: Greg Williams Barry Petroleum ggw at bry.com Concrete filled(!) tiles and support structure. If anyone's interested, contact him directly. -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org [ Old computing resources for business || Buy/Sell/Trade Vintage Computers ] [ and academia at www.VintageTech.com || at http://marketplace.vintage.org ]

19 years, 4 months

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Can disks be copied using only one RL02 drive?

by oldcpu＠rogerwilco.org

[excuse this second copy of my reply; worried that my first went into the Great Bit Bucket In The Sky] Charles said: >I've got a PDP-11/23+ with 4 Mb RAM, but only one RL02 and no software >except an XXDP pack. Henk Gooijen helpfully made for me a (RT-11) >bootable pack that is on the way (if the post offices between Europe >and the US don't lose or destroy it). So I definitely want to make a >backup copy. > >Is this possible to do with only one drive? Apparently you can't swap >disks back and forth like the old DOS or CP/M systems. Henk thinks >creating a RAM disk would work, and copy files but I don't know >anything about RT-11. > You will have very good success using Will Kranz' TU58 emulation on a PC as an intermediate store: http://www.fpns.net/willy/pdp11/tu58-emu.htm He has a MSDOS flavor and a Linux flavor. I've used the MSDOS flavor as a way to image RL01s and RL02s for archival on other media (CDROM). Be sure to read his documentation about patching the DD.SYS driver (renaming it to DW.SYS) to allow the emulated TU58 to have the same capacity as your RL02 cartridge. Don't worry, it's not difficult and when I first did this myself I had sub-zero DEC / PDP-11 / RT-11 experience. While fairly slow (it is RS-232 serial, after all), the extra benefit your will enjoy using this method, is that you automatically will have a backup of the installation that Henk made for you and that you no doubt suffered some small expense to get. If you have any more questions about using Will's TU58 emulator, feel free to contact me directly. - Jared

19 years, 4 months

1
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Unix disk copy using dd

by dm561＠torfree.net

--------Original Messages: From: Doc Shipley <doc at mdrconsult.com> Subject: Re: Unix disk copy using dd ? To: General at mdrconsult.com, "Discussion at mdrconsult.com":On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> Message-ID: <463A0C40.6020707 at mdrconsult.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Andy Piercy wrote: > More disk copy questions.. > > Can you copy an entire disk using the UNIX dd command from a smaller > disc to > a larger one and retain the capacity of the larger drive? > > i.e. maybe create a partition on the larger drive which matches the smaller > drive? Not without other tools, at least on any OS I work with. dd overwrites the filesystem's index, superblock, etc, so even if the partition is bigger than the filesystem, you can't use it. Doc ------------Reply: Assuming you have a third disk or a spare partition on the larger drive, can't you tar the small disk > to a file there and then untar to the final disk/partition? m

19 years, 4 months

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Talking of floor tiles...

by julesrichardsonuk＠yahoo.co.uk

We could use such a floor in the UK at Bletchley should anyone have a line on one [1] that might become available. The ICL mainframe's going to have to sit on *something* and we're not quite sure what yet! [1] needs to be vaguely around 4m by 12m, but there's a bit of flexibility either way. I think 30cm high is about the max we can cope with though as we'd like to leave the suspended ceiling in place (and the ICL's I/O cabinets are full height racks) Have asked over on uk.comp.vintage, but I'm not sure how much readership overlap there is between there and here... cheers Jules

19 years, 4 months

1
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Hawthorne 68000 SBC

by paulrsm＠buckeye-express.com

Rich, nice job with the Hawthorne SBC page. I have one request: please provide not just disk images, but a ZIP archive containing the files from the disks. I also encourage you to scan and post any Hawthorne articles from The Computer Journal. In return, I have an issue (or issues) of the 68-KNEWS newsletter. I won't be back home for a few weeks, but when I find them they are yours. -- Paul Santa-Maria

19 years, 4 months

2
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Texas Instruments 960B

by aek＠bitsavers.org

I just checked the CHM archives, and we have a pretty complete set of 960B hardware docs. I'll see about getting it scanned.

19 years, 4 months

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Texas Instruments 960B

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> So we need at least the programmer's > guides for the TT and DI I thought they were the same boards as used in the 980B I'll check to see if I've put scans for the 980 versions on line. At least some of the 980 documentation refers to 960/980

19 years, 4 months

2
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RSX-11

by compoobah＠valleyimplants.com

> Yes, check the licensing info for SIMh and a few others. While PDP-11 > OSs (RT, RSX and RSTS [it may not include all of those]) are made > available > for SIMs it is not for commercial use or operation on real hardware. > The > copyrights are still valid and some of the products are active. > > > Allison > One of my concerns was that the SIMH license seems a bit ambiguous as to whether or not it covers SIMH (and there was no authoritative or semi-authoritative opinions on the SIMH or Mentec websites). I've been e-mailing with someone and they have clarified that, yes, Mentec's correspondance/actions indicate that SIMH is still covered by the "Supnik license" even though it isn't a DEC product). Pity that there isn't an explanation on the SIMH website, but I suppose that Mentec doesn't want to throw money at explanations, and nobody else wants to pontificate in an "official" manner given the current state of the USA. Scott

19 years, 4 months

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Help to identify a Selectric based terminal.

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Al Kossow wrote: > <http://www.dvq.com/oldcomp/photos2/1k/selectric_term1.jpg> Found one in the CHM collection today. It is a "Datel 30". There are a few mentions of it on the web, mostly saying it was a light-duty device that broke a lot. ------------------------------- Billy asks: Wasn't Datel one of the first to offer timeshare services? Sort of a precursor to the Internet? I remember Datel advertising on TV about making stock market transactions in your office. The model 33 was not the most popular device for that environment. Billy

19 years, 4 months

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RSX-11

by compoobah＠valleyimplants.com

> It's still commercial software, and it's still possible to buy > licenses. > > I assume you're looking at mentec.com, that hasn't been the place to > look for several years. > > Zane mentec-inc used to be the place for the commercial stuff, but it seems to be no longer around. My question, however, was regarding the non-commercial PDP-11 stuff. At this point, I'm not interested in the commercial stuff- it just isn't worth it. (before you grab the torches and pitchforks I don't find Windows "worth it" enough to walk across campus and pick up the all-but-free disks either). I was looking into emulators (never touched the VAX's little brother or O/S SW yet), and came across some disk images with the following licensing: "Whereas, MENTEC owns the rights to the following PDP-11 Operating Systems and associated layered products (RT-11 V5.3 or prior, RSTS/E V9.6 or prior, RSX-11M V4.3 or prior, RSX-11M PLUS V3.0 or prior) (SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY) and is prepared to grant a non-exclusive license to use such SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY for personal, non-commercial purposes;" and "SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY shall mean the binary versions of the PDP-11 Operating Systems (RT-11 V5.3 or prior, RSTS/E V9.6 or prior, RSX-11M V4.3 or prior, RSX-11M PLUS V3.0 or prior), and associated utilities and layered products that run on PDP-11 computers. " but somewhat cryptically also "EMULATOR shall mean software owned by Digital Equipment Corporation that emulates the operation of a PDP-11 processor and allows PDP-11 programs and operating systems to run on non-PDP-11 systems. 2 LICENSE GRANT MENTEC grants to CUSTOMER a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license under MENTEC's INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS to use and copy the SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY solely for personal, non-commercial uses in conjunction with the EMULATOR." So, in short, is this only valid for emulators in which DEC or it's successors in interest (HP?) own the copyright, or is it only valid for systems where DEC or (...) hold RTU licenses for a PDP-11 emulator on? If the prior, what is the connection to SIMH? If it is valid for currently obtainable emulators and (as it seems to at face value) include RSX-11, why no RSX-11 images? I suppose RSTS/E is the easy way out, (provided licensing is good), but RSX-11 has the advantages of some commonality with VMS (DCL).

19 years, 4 months

3
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PDP8/E schematics

by djg＠pdp8.net

>> I am looking for docs about my PDP8/E CPU. >> I found a maintainance manual ("volume 1" of ???) on bitsavers. >> But no schematic. >> >> So, who knows what documents I need and where to get them? > http://www.pdp8.net/query_docs/query.shtml Either browse the list or search on the card # >Try: > >http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/pdp8/pdp8e/ Actually this directory is probably the right one http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/pdp8/omnibus/ >http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/pdp8/

19 years, 4 months

1
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Press request (South Florida) from my inbox

by classiccmp＠vintage-computer.com

I got the following email earlier today: --- Hi, I'm a writer from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel working on a story about people who collect vintage computers. I'm looking to interview people from the South Florida area (Broward County especially, which includes Fort Lauderdale) and was wondering if you had any such people are your members and if you could ask them to contact me ASAP. [...] Thanks, Jamie Malernee Staff Writer South Florida Sun-Sentinel 954-356-4849 --- Jamie is looking specifically for collectors in the South Florida area to "localize" the story. Others have already been interviewed. Please give a call if you're interested! Erik Klein www.vintage-computer.com www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum The Vintage Computer Forums

19 years, 4 months

1
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PDP8/E schematics

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> So, who knows what documents I need and where to get them? Clean copies of 8/E schematics are difficult to find. I'll go through the scans that I have to try to find a good set. Most of the omnibus interface schems are on line under http://bitsavers.org/pdf/dec/pdp8/omnibus

19 years, 4 months

2
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Big pile of VAX documentation to be disposed

by jzg22＠drexel.edu

There is a large pile of VAX and other documentation waiting for disposal on the 7th floor of Disque Hall at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Disque hall is located on the former 32nd street between market and chestnut streets, its the tall(~10 floors)) brick building. Pretty much everything paper, and a working Phaser 370? printer (missing its paper tray and missing the centronics->microcentronics adapter but otherwise working) is free for the taking. This documentation originally went along with the VAX machine which someone from the list rescued from there about 2 years ago when it was being disposed. Jonathan Gevaryahu jzg22 at drexel.edu

19 years, 4 months

2
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Help to identify a Selectric based terminal.

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> http://www.dvq.com/oldcomp/photos2/1k/selectric_term1.jpg Found one in the CHM collection today. It is a "Datel 30". There are a few mentions of it on the web, mostly saying it was a light-duty device that broke a lot.

19 years, 4 months

1
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Heathkit ET3400

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Can somone point me to scans of the manuals and schematics for the Heathkit trainer ET3400A? Thanks, Billy

19 years, 4 months

4
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Minor Earthquake in Kent5

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

> > I hope everyone came through alright. Is anyone on the list from > Folkestone? Not Folkestone but I felt it just West of Ashford. The joints in the timber framed upper floor made a lot of noise, but nobody downstairs (which is brick built) noticed anything. I had to turn the TV on to confirm it was an earthquake. I'd felt one or two when I was in Cupertino years ago but never expected to feel one in Kent. I think the same 'quake in California would not even get a mention in the news, but our buildings are not designed for them here.

19 years, 4 months

7
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Nice ad

by grant＠stockly.com

190107136286 Told him about the timeline of CP/M and DOS and he gave me a very rude response. So he got a "Inappropriate or excessive use of terms not relevant to the item " from me. Maybe otheres should point out the facts. : ) It really ticks me off when people try to take advantage of others... Grant

19 years, 4 months

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Offer: old Linpack manual

by silent700＠gmail.com

Need to start paring down my book collection/pile! Will send this to whoever wants it for the cost of shipping. "Linpack Users' Guide" from 1979. ISBN 0-89871-172-X. Authors Dongarra, Bunch, Moler, Stewart. It's in good shape but has some writing on the first page. Appears to be a second printing. Preface contains a nice list of Linpack test sites and the machines in use, including the CDC Cyber 175 at NASA, and a Honeywell 6080 at Bell Labs. I'm in 60074 zip, will send book rate or whatever you like. -- jht

19 years, 4 months

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TNIX

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> There are quite a number of versions of Utek (@&^!&^ Outlook won't let > me capitalize the "t"). The first versions were for the National 320xx > CPUs. This ran on the 6205's, 6130, and 4132. Later, a Motorola > 68000-based verson was released. FWIW, there was a V7 based system called TNIX which shipped on the 8560 development systems (11/23 and 11/73 based). Would be nice to find the 8" diag and release floppies for this (I have a couple of them).

19 years, 4 months

2
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Lack of 8-bit threads (was Re: Linux question)

by classiccmp＠memory-alpha.org.uk

Hi, > I 'only' have the HP150-II. It's in a larger case, with a 12" >CRT, an optional touchscreen (which is fitted on mine).... I have one of these too, though without the touchscreen or any expansion cards (it's even missing the rear plastic cover). Seems like an interesting machine, one of these days I must get it set up; I've only had it 9 years, LOL! How difficult are HP/IB hard drives to come by for them (I've got the dual floppy drive unit)? Always hankered after an original 150 though, it's a really cool shape! :-) TTFN - Pete.

19 years, 4 months

7
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Texas Instruments 960B

by cc＠corti-net.de

Hi, we've cleaned and powered up our TI 960B at our museum, it seems to be working fine. I've entered a small test program to test the basic parts: 1000 7007 0000 NOP 1002 7007 0000 NOP 1004 7082 1000 B @1000 Both single step and run mode work. But that's all we are able to do at the moment because there is no documentation available for the 960B. The machine (from 1975) has 8k of MOS memory, and only few CRU interfaces, one TT/EIA (TT), one data interface (DI) (I think it's a digital I/O board) and one timer interface (TI). So we need at least the programmer's guides for the TT and DI, maybe the service manuals for the entire machine. Is there a chance to find them somewhere? Christian

19 years, 4 months

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PDP8/E schematics

by hachti＠hachti.de

Hi folks, I am looking for docs about my PDP8/E CPU. I found a maintainance manual ("volume 1" of ???) on bitsavers. But no schematic. So, who knows what documents I need and where to get them? Best wishes, Philipp :-)

19 years, 4 months

2
1
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Bandai Pippin aka Atmark

by wayne.smith＠charter.net

Does anyone on the list own a Bandai Pippin - marketed in the UK and Japan as the "Atmark"? As owners of this Apple Power PC-powered box are well aware, software (mostly games and edutainment stuff) is difficult to come by, and when it appears on Ebay, often goes for stratospheric prices. For example: http://cgi.ebay.com/Bungie-Super-Marathon-for-Pippin-world-mark_W0QQitem Z150114489326QQihZ005QQcategoryZ62053QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem So, I am looking for Pippin owners who might have software to exchange. Here is a list of what I have: @World TV Works @World Basics @World Registration @World Browser Compton's Encyclopedia Racing Days Mr. Potato Head ("award winning") Home Improvement 1-2-3 (Home Depot) Ugoku Burotsuku (Japanese - "moving blocks") Fortullia (Japanese - "fortune teller") Victorian Park (Japanese) -W

19 years, 4 months

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test - ignore

by evan＠snarc.net

Just a test.

19 years, 4 months

1
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Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Chuck Guzis wrote: On 1 May 2007 at 9:09, Billy Pettit wrote: > The Cricket was the first 1.6 inch hard drive. Never made it to market > though a few samples exist. It was 20 years before the 1.8 inch which did > get to market. Didn't HP roll out a very small hard drive before that? I seem to recall that there was something about the head suspension that would enable it to withstand very high G-forces. Cheers, Chuck --------------------- Billy wrote: HP rolled out the Kittyhawk in the mid-'80s. It had reasonable success in some printers and copiers, as well as a few other applications. They are fun little drives to play with. The Cricket was about 8 years earlier and had no success - the technology wasn't there. There were many other experiments in small factor over the last 30 years. I remember a Comdex in the late '80s where IBM showed off a 7/8" drive. They were going to mount 32 of them on both sides of PC card and have a plug in RAID system. Like all multiple drive applications, the vibration from drive working gave errors to the rest. Conner made a 1.3 inch drive in the early '90s. I see them on eBay a few times a year. I have one that is still operational. There have been numerous attempts at the small form factor. The iPod was the first practical application so it drove the 1.8" development and production. It also drove the 1" development. That turned out to be a disaster for everyone involved when the Price War on NAND Flash destroyed the 1" market. It didn't help the Flash people either. (So far this year, NAND prices have dropped 65%!) There must have been other small drives. It's an idea that looks great until you try to do execute. I've only mentioned the ones that I worked on or have samples to study. Billy

19 years, 4 months

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Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Alexandre Souza asked: >The Cricket was the first 1.6 inch hard drive. Never made it to market >though a few samples exist. It was 20 years before the 1.8 inch which did >get to market. Billy, wasn't that drive that fitted a Polaroid PDC-2000 camera? I had one of these with a VERY SMALL hard drive inside! Greetings from Brazil Alexandre Souza <http://www.tabajara-labs.com.br> ---------------------- Billy answers: To my knowledge, no Crickets were ever sold. But an awful lot of samples went out. It was designed and built in the Normandale plant of Magnetic Peripherals. I know nothing about the Poloroid camera. But I'm not surprised. The small drive idea is one that seems to come to every engineer in the industry. There have to be more attempts. It's a geek thing. Keeps coming around; sort of like the 3.5" CD, or the vertical IC. Billy

19 years, 4 months

1
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Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Chuck Guzis asked: What was the smallest fixed-head drum memory ever constructed? Cheers, Chuck ----------------- Billy: The smallest I ever worked on was a little less than 1" in diameter and 3" long. It used fluid bearings and spun at a high RPM - I want to say 10K but think it might be a little less. The heads fit on a bar that rotated to bring them close to the drum once it was up to speed. The bar was spring loaded so it could unload the heads automatically in case of a power failure. The whole assembly was heavily shielded and shock protected. It was to fit in a fire control computer used by the Navy and Air Force. It's purpose was to reload the main computer memories in case of an EMP from a nuclear device. It really sticks in my mind because I later found out that the purchase price was in excess of $100K. Billy

19 years, 4 months

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Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

* Alexandre Souza wrote: >continued to play with floppy media for years. A wonderful example is their >Cricket drive - every PC collection should have one. Maybe Click? :o) That was nice, a drive inside a pcmcia card :oD ---------------- You're right. My bad. Too much crosstalk between my synapses. The IOmega drive was the Click. The Cricket was the first 1.6 inch hard drive. Never made it to market though a few samples exist. It was 20 years before the 1.8 inch which did get to market. Billy

19 years, 4 months

4
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RSX-11

by compoobah＠valleyimplants.com

Probably an extremely frequently asked question, but searching didn't seem to bring anything up. What is the current status of PDP-11 O/S software? USENET seems to indicate that there is no non-commercial license, yet the simh website has some of them available for download, with the license file having a clause that states that it is valid for emulators owned by DEC (??), and also seems to indicate that RSX-11 is covered, yet RSX-11 isn't available. Mentec's site isn't very helpful, all they talk about are Windows programs and it is so full of features as to be practically unusable on dialup. Any quick rundowns on the status anywhere? Scott Quinn

19 years, 4 months

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Amstrad PCW 8256/8512

by chrism3667＠yahoo.com

I obtained one of these at a computer show yesterday. I was told that the 3" disks are still available in the UK. Is this so? This page: http://www.seasip.demon.co.uk/Unix/Joyce/ states that there is a "hideous hybrid" of an upgrade that effectively turns it into an PEECEE/AT. I demand to know where I can find one. And I was aware that Mallard as in Mallard BASIC was a reference to a steam engine, cuz I'm shmott. I almost got my fingers on a "TT scale" version in kit form, but I decided not to because it wasn't after all real TT scale, but rather a decadent hideous hybrid. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

19 years, 4 months

7
16
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Good DOS binary file viewer?

by julesrichardsonuk＠yahoo.co.uk

Seeking recommendations for a good MSDOS/FreeDOS-compatible binary file viewer (hex / ASCII modes) to stick on my Imagedisk machine... Technically I don't actually need any editing facilities - just the viewer side would do. I think PCTools came with a reasonable one at one point, but there's probably something better out there that's downloadable... cheers Jules

19 years, 4 months

10
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DC-600/300XL tape cart observation

by dm561＠torfree.net

---------------Original Messages: Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2007 09:45:08 -0700 From: "Chuck Guzis" <cclist at sydex.com> Subject: Re: DC-600/300XL tape cart observation On 26 Apr 2007 at 12:16, M H Stein wrote: >> Aside from the issue of archiving them, is it better to leave them > until needed, or should I run them through a retension occasionally > to prevent some of the problems mentioned recently? Any special > conditions for storage? >Well, obviously, a lot depends on the tape formulation itself. The job immediately before this one was a DC-6250 written in 1992. Went without a hitch. The problem tapes are "Scotch" and were written in 1986-87 and are nothing but problems. >To me "archiving" is the key. Copy the things off to another storage medium (say, CD-R) and regenerate copies every few years. It's just plain foolish to leave things to the mercy of Father Time. Cheers, Chuck ---------------Reply: I'm still curious; assuming any useful data has been archived and I just want to reuse the tapes some day, what would maximize the chances of their still being useable? Is heating them a last-ditch recovery procedure or could it be considered preventive maintenance? I assume that the 2120s, Travans etc. are prone to some of the same problems? Next question: The DC600s & 615s are Cromemco Cromix+ and UNIX system and backup tapes; those I have hardware for and they're no great loss even if they have problems. However, the 300s are for an Arete/Arix system and I no longer have any hardware that could read them nor do I know of anyone with an Arix; also, there's the usual problem that they may have confidential client data on them along with the system files, so what do I do with them? I wouldn't mind reusing the tapes but hate to erase them. Format aside, can a drive meant for DC600s read the lower coercivity DC300s? mike

19 years, 4 months

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IBM 540MB old hard drive

by feldman.r＠comcast.net

Hi Jim, I'm going to the City of Chicago recycling center on Goose Island this weekend to dump some old monitors. I'll let you know if there is anything interesting there. Otherwise, as you say, the thrift stores in Chicago are worthless. I had much better luck with the dumpster out behind a local computer repair place near Northeastern Illinois University (5600 N, 3500W) until they moved. From the junk discarded, it looked like they had contracts to service copy machines and some document scanning systems, as well as PC's. You might want to leave word with places like that about what you are interested in. Bob P.S. Jim, my email to trixter at oldskool.org was bounced with the following message: The following addresses had fatal errors: trixter at oldskool.org: 550 [PERMFAIL] destination not valid within DNS Message: 7 Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 16:33:59 -0500 From: Jim Leonard <trixter at oldskool.org> Subject: Re: IBM 540MB old hard drive To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> Message-ID: <463660C7.4090209 at oldskool.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed Paxton Hoag wrote: > In Portland Oregon I would try the Free Geeks Thrift Store on 10th St > east side 2 blocks south of Hawthorn. > > In Eugene Oregon I would look at NextStep Recycling thrift store. They > often have 2 inch hard drives but I haven't looked at them. Are there any of these kinds of stores in the Chicagoland area? The only one I know of is Software Re-Runs, but that's more of a repair shop than a recycler/thrift. I have had *zero* out of at least 20 goodwill store successes (99% of the computer stuff is old VGA monitors) so that's out in this area. -- Jim Leonard (trixter at oldskool.org)

19 years, 4 months

1
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Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Chris M wrote: Just curious how, or even if, old design drawings and such were preserved in the old days. I could barely venture a guess as to when the first optical recording drives became "useful", all I remember is a friend obtaining one of the first (locally) cd players for his auto in ~the summer of '87. I was in contact with a few of the people who were involved w/the Mindset computer, and had hoped I would obtain info on the custom vlsi chips it used, in any form of course. This just lead me to ponder when this stuff started *appearing* on cd's and such. Can anyone name the different optical CD formats that modern readers can't work with? I know there must be a few... ------------- Billy answers: There are two parts to your question. The first is how old design drawings were preserved. In all the companies I have worked for in the last 45 years, the drawings were destroyed. Some individual copies survived. And patent applications remain. But all design drawings were destroyed as a matter of policy. That way there was no way support obligation coming up long after it was cost effective. And it makes patent challenges difficult, especially prior art arguments. Even today, most of the design archives where I work have a very limited life time. The second question is a little more logical. Early on, CDs were not well accepted. One reason was that they were rigidly defined by a document called the "Red Book" which precisely described the format, the media, the recording method and so on. To get access to the Red Book, you have to sign a conformity and privacy agreement. The technology is much more complex than that used on magnetic recording. The huge base of vendors building according to the spec has very much limited the variation of formats. And this rigidity has been kept up on the DVDs. I have seen modern readers demostrate this compatibility by modern devices reading some of the very first CDs made in the labs at Philips. While there may be some odd formats, I'm not familiar with any of them. The start up costs to create the media and OPUs prevent any but the most brave of souls >from going this way. Whereas a unique floppy or hard drive format was easy to do. Any engineer with a "better idea" could throw together a circuit and be shipping in a few months. His costs often were only one small media formatter. You can see this effect if you try to list all the different floppy formats for 8" and 5.25". There were dozens of different formats. At MPI, I remember a wall chart showing the relationship of more than 50 formats that we were shipping. Things settled down a little with the 3.5" floppies, but there were still variations floating around. And a few odd ball experiments like the 3 inch drive. MPI had a 1.6" floppy in the lab, but fortunately it died. IOmega continued to play with floppy media for years. A wonderful example is their Cricket drive - every PC collection should have one. An optimist would say the CD people learned from the floppy fiasco. A cynic would say nobody could afford to be an indiviualist. Billy

19 years, 4 months

3
2
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The Univac III (in trailer) is back

by ssj152＠charter.net

Well, the Univac III is back: UNIVAC III Computer (In Storage since 1975), eBay auction Item # 2733726990. This time the starting price is $7,500 and the buy-it-now is $11,000. The URL is: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2733726990&category=1247 OK, somebody, jump right on it! :-) (Not me, I'm into LITTLE computers like PDP-11's and VAXen, with an occasional side dish of 6502 or 8085) Stuart Johnson

19 years, 4 months

5
4
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Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Goofy question about "industrial" archiving > From: "Billy Pettit" <Billy.Pettit at wdc.com> > Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 17:37:19 -0700 > To: <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > > >Chris M wrote: > Just curious how, or even if, old design drawings and >such were preserved in the old days. I could barely >venture a guess as to when the first optical recording >drives became "useful", all I remember is a friend >obtaining one of the first (locally) cd players for >his auto in ~the summer of '87. I was in contact with >a few of the people who were involved w/the Mindset >computer, and had hoped I would obtain info on the >custom vlsi chips it used, in any form of course. This >just lead me to ponder when this stuff started >*appearing* on cd's and such. > Can anyone name the different optical CD formats that >modern readers can't work with? I know there must be a few... > >------------- > >Billy answers: > >There are two parts to your question. The first is how old design drawings >were preserved. In all the companies I have worked for in the last 45 >years, the drawings were destroyed. Some individual copies survived. And >patent applications remain. But all design drawings were destroyed as a >matter of policy. That way there was no way support obligation coming up >long after it was cost effective. And it makes patent challenges difficult, >especially prior art arguments. > >Even today, most of the design archives where I work have a very limited >life time. Industrial archives are varied depending on product and lifetime of the product. Most places I've been 7 years seems to be the upper limit. There are exceptions, Military and aerospace in particular. Those guys have to by contract maintain complete archive and production sets for the operating life of the program. For example the Shuttle program is 30 years old and still going and the contractors are required to keep everything until 10 years after the last flight. Thats a lot of paper, blue line, Vellum, Mylar, tapes, floppies and even CDs. If the program requires ongoing material sourcing as in spares or parts to make a new airframe those drawings must be useable as well as production methods may be described in those documents. I will not address the second question on CDs. Allison

19 years, 4 months

1
0
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IMS 5000 system password filed cracked

by frustum＠pacbell.net

I've had an IMS 5000 system for about a year; I got it off ebay for a song ($35), but as I didn't know any login name and corresponding password, it has been a brick. I've thought of a couple ways to break the security, which isn't all that secure, but didn't due to lack of time. Finally I made time last night. The machine specifically is an IMS 5000 IS. It is a very well built late model S-100 system, aimed at professional applications. This one came from a dentists office. The main unit contains a 12" CRT, an intelligent terminal control board (8085 based) which is connected via an internal serial port to a Z80 CPU card in the main S-100 chassis. This is a turbodos system, meaning it is a multiprocessing Z80 system. Serial ports on the back of the machine can connect to remote terminals; I have one other remote head, also made by IMS. The machine has a 10MB Rodime hard drive, still working, a single DSDD floppy (although there is room for another), a master Z80 CPU, a 64KB parity checked DRAM card, and two MPUs. An MPU is a card containing a slave Z80 processor with its own 64KB parity checked DRAM and serial ports, etc. Although I have the docs showing the gross functionality, I have no schematics for any of this. First I rebuilt disk images from Fritz Chwolka's webpage for the IMS 5000, but for whatever reason I couldn't boot these disks. IMS made more than one configuration of this machine, so it wasn't entirely unexpected. Next I tried a hardware approach. The hard disk controller has a 1KB SRAM buffer for holding an inbound or outbound sector. Programmed IN/OUT transfers fill or drain the buffer, not DMA. First I verified that the address lines on the RAM were wired in conventional order by seeing what pins they were wired to on the 74LS193s forming the address counter. The data pin order was more of a question, but I assumed since the address lines were connected in consecutive order, so the data pins would be too. I hooked up a logic analyzer to the RAMs, booted the system, and waited for the password prompt. I typed some gibberish and hit return, and the logic analyzer captured the writes to the RAM. I realized the first read or maybe first few would be reading directory entries to find the USERID.SYS file, which is a plain text file containing the login names, passwords, cp/m user area, and privilege level. However, no matter what I did, the data didn't make sense. I thought perhaps I messed up the order of the data pins, so I buzzed out which chip drove the DOn (data out) S100 pins. Again, I did the login thing, assuming that any time this sector buffer ram was being read that the data would be appearing on the S100 bus. Apparently not so. So I switched gears. I shuffled cards around to make space and connected the logic analyzer to the Z80 and set a trigger for I/O port operations, triggering on the first IN from the port corresponding to the sector buffer. Pay dirt. I quickly got the list of users and passwords, and tried them and they worked. After disconnecting the logic analyzer, I captured the contents of the various EPROMs, then called it a night. Bitsavers and Fritz Chwolka both have interesting web pages, so I won't attempt to duplicate any of that, but I will be taking some pictures, posting the HEX files for the EPROMS and making links to the other IMS 5000 resources on the web.

19 years, 4 months

26
46
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Housecleaning - PC Parts

by feldman.r＠comcast.net

Hi, I'm doing some housecleaning and have some PC odds and ends, free for postage or pickup in Chicago (ZIP 60659). As I get the list in digest, reply directly to me at r_a_feldman at hotmail.com. If I don't hear by Friday, these items age going to the recycling center. Bob HP Colorado T1000 Internal tape drive. Irwin Accutrak Tape drive, Compaq 64041 (Compaq Spare 197490-001). Lapine Titan LT200 20MB Drive (Dead) w/National Computer Ltd. NDC5127-60 Controller. Oak 8/16 Bit CGA/VGA card. DTK ISA Multifunction card (FDC/Serial/Parallel/Clock/Game) P11-117 (needs battery). MCT Turbo XT motherboard w/8088/8087. Chinon FR-506 5.25" 1.2MB. TEAC FD-505 (Dual 5.25"/3.5" Half height). Epson SD-700/SD-800 (Dual 5.25"/3.5" Half height) (Condition unknown). Citizen U1DA-49F (3.5?). IBM 5151 Mono monitor (prefer pick-up). HP J2341A Jet Direct Internal for LJ 4 w/software and docs. HP J2382B JetDirect EX External Parallel/Ethernet w/software and docs, boxed.

19 years, 4 months

1
0
0 0

SymbOS

by chrism3667＠yahoo.com

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/symbos8bit/ "SymbOS (SYmbiosis Multitasking Based Operating System) is a new OS for Z80 based systems and is currently available for the Amstrad CPC and the MSX2 computers and compatible systems. SymbOS is based on a micro-kernel-architecture. It provides real preemptive multitasking, a dynamic memory-management for up to 576KB Ram, a totaly Windows-like GUI and support of hard discs with up to 128GB. This group is dedicated to the SymbOS operating system. You will get actual information about the development-progress and can freely discuss about SymbOS and the supported Z80 computers." __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

19 years, 4 months

1
0
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Sinclair "design" board? available (UK)

by chrism3667＠yahoo.com

http://www.old-computers.com/forum/ forum_posts.asp?TID=1880&TPN=1 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

19 years, 4 months

3
3
0 0

Goofy question about "industrial" archiving

by chrism3667＠yahoo.com

Just curious how, or even if, old design drawings and such were preserved in the old days. I could barely venture a guess as to when the first optical recording drives became "useful", all I remember is a friend obtaining one of the first (locally) cd players for his auto in ~the summer of '87. I was in contact with a few of the people who were involved w/the Mindset computer, and had hoped I would obtain info on the custom vlsi chips it used, in any form of course. This just lead me to ponder when this stuff started *appearing* on cd's and such. Can anyone name the different optical CD formats that modern readers can't work with? I know there must be a few... __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

19 years, 4 months

1
0
0 0

disassembling STacy with a SLEDGEHAMMER.

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: disassembling STacy with a SLEDGEHAMMER. > From: Cameron Kaiser <spectre at floodgap.com> > Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:22:36 -0700 (PDT) > To: cctalk at classiccmp.org > >> > Unless anyone has any other bright ideas, it's going in the trash. It's my >> > bloody money and I'll get my money's worth out of this piece of crap the >> > Gallagher way. No wonder Atari burned out. >> >> Golly, Cameron--doesn't it say right there on the unit "No user- >> serviceable components inside"? ;-) > >No, it just doesn't say much of anything. > >I have never met a machine more impossible to get into for its size. > Five gets you 10 there is a hidden screw under a foot or behind a label. Allison

19 years, 4 months

3
2
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RSX-11

by classiccmp＠memory-alpha.org.uk

Hi, > What is the current status of PDP-11 O/S software? USENET >seems to indicate that there is no non-commercial license, >yet the simh website has some of them available for download.... The answers to your question can be found in "comp.sys.dec" and/or "comp.sys.dec.micro". There was a rather long, heated discussion about this in one of those newsgroups sometime last year. Beware of asking your question in those groups though, you'll be opening a major can of worms.... TTFN - Pete.

19 years, 4 months

1
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Autonetics Recomp (circa. 1960) rescue

by Billy.Pettit＠wdc.com

Al Kossow wrote: History San Jose was selling off some of the Perham collection today, mostly old VTRs and some radio stuff. Got a call that there were two KSR 35s, one of which we identified as the console from the SDS 930, and an ASR 33 out there, so I drove down to retrieve them. When I got there, the RECOMP was on the pallet next to one of the 35s. I'm going to try to set up a time to go through the computer stuff to try to find the rest, but I'm not hopeful, since I don't recall seeing the desk or typewriter. ---------------- Billy writes: Al, Congratulations! That is a hell of a find, my friend. I'm immensely pleased to see at least one of these survived. In the last box of stuff I loaned you is a thick white binder from Autonetics. It is the Theory of Operations and Maintenance manual for several models of the Recomp. One of the early chapters has some details on the differences between the different models. So you even have some documentation! The ones I worked on in the Army all used a Flexowriter for the I/O typewriter. I'd be surprised if a Model 35 ever worked on a Recomp - too many years in between them. There are some details in the book describing early computers that Ed Thelen scanned and put up on his site. (Some where in the garage is another copy of that plus an earlier edition, both in great shape.) Because there is a flat disk for main memory, in the Army we called this the "Jukebox". There were at least a dozen of these at Redstone Arsenal. They were used to program the "stable table" of the Redstone missile. I believe they were also used on some of the early NASA shots that used the Redstone as a first stage booster. I'm pleased for you - the Recomp is one of the rarest computers to find in our hobby. Billy

19 years, 4 months

3
2
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Two Apollo DN-3xxx's available for pickup [UK only]

by classiccmp＠memory-alpha.org.uk

OK, I've got a pair of Apollo DN-35xx machines available to anyone who wants them for the price of coming and taking them away. One is a "DN-3550" and the other is, I *THINK* (it's a bit buried under rather a lot of other stuff right now) a "DN-3000". Both come with monitor and keyboard but little else. There's a few manuals with the 3000 and some manuals and tapes with the 3550. Both systems need some TLC to get them functioning. The 3550 worked until it was moved, obviously something has come loose inside, but I haven't had time to sort it out since it was passed on to me (I probably even haven't had the top off it). The 3000 arrived with no memory, again, although I managed to get some RAM cards for it, I haven't had time to fit them or do any work other work on the machine. Located in Birmingham. TTFN - Pete.

19 years, 4 months

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Autonetics Recomp (circa. 1960) rescue

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> In the last box of stuff I loaned you is a thick white binder from > Autonetics. It is the Theory of Operations and Maintenance manual for > several models of the Recomp. Great! I went through the CHM archives, and we have the user program library listings, but no maint docs. I was going to check if John Bohner might have them.

19 years, 4 months

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Minor Earthquake in Kent

by ploopster＠gmail.com

I hope everyone came through alright. Is anyone on the list from Folkestone? Peace... Sridhar

19 years, 4 months

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TRS-80s in Cleveland, OH

by jba＠sdf.lonestar.org

I'm not particularly interested in TRS-80 equipment, so I thought i'd post this for everyone else. Cleveland State University's current surplus auction contains quite a collection of TRS-80 equipment. Here's a link to the auction info: http://wapps.csuohio.edu/campusmailbag/forum_posts.asp?TID=2101 Post if you bid on it; I'd be interested to know who's taking it. Jeff Armstrong jba at sdf.lonestar.org SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org

19 years, 4 months

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disassembling STacy with a SLEDGEHAMMER.

by spectre＠floodgap.com

I am about ready to take my #10 sledgehammer to this benighted piece of junk. How in all that is holy do you get it apart? I've got all the screws out, got all the snaps up on the lower part and the top half seems to float off except for something in the middle of the board I can't see that's holding it on. I think it's the cabling to the LCD, but I can't get the display apart either! Most of the snaps are off, but I can't undo the root. Any suggestions, before I disassemble the unit using the fragmentation method instead? -- ------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ -- Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com -- The moon may be smaller than the Earth, but it's farther away. -------------

19 years, 4 months

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RSX-11

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: RSX-11 > From: Scott Quinn <compoobah at valleyimplants.com> > Date: Sun, 29 Apr 2007 20:49:01 -0700 > To: cctalk at classiccmp.org > >Probably an extremely frequently asked question, but searching didn't >seem to bring anything up. > >What is the current status of PDP-11 O/S software? USENET seems to >indicate that there is no non-commercial license, yet the simh website >has some of them available for download, with the license file having a >clause that states that it is valid for emulators owned by DEC (??), >and also seems to indicate that RSX-11 is covered, yet RSX-11 isn't >available. > >Mentec's site isn't very helpful, all they talk about are Windows >programs and it is so full of features as to be practically unusable on >dialup. > >Any quick rundowns on the status anywhere? Yes, check the licensing info for SIMh and a few others. While PDP-11 OSs (RT, RSX and RSTS [it may not include all of those]) are made available for SIMs it is not for commercial use or operation on real hardware. The copyrights are still valid and some of the products are active. Allison >Scott Quinn >

19 years, 4 months

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Facit printer late 70's early 80's and early microprocessor uses

by dave.thearchivist＠gmail.com

I am thinking of compiling a list of objects or instruments or whatever from the early days that included a microprocessor, eg An arcade biorythm machine I had for a while it had an Intel 4004 in it A Facit printer we used at work it had 4 intel 4040 in it (I cant remember the model number) I have a card from an HP item that has an 8008 on it An HP 3562A has 68K and a 2900 bitslice (I have a working one) A R&S RF test set with a 4004 (I kept the CPU board) It annoys me now that I did not take full notes at the time Dave Caroline

19 years, 4 months

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Silly BSD questions

by cclist＠sydex.com

For the life of me, I can't figure this one out and I feel so stupid... Maybe a kindly BSD expert can clear my poor addled brain. 1. How does one LIST the contents (i.e. the files) on a volume create by 4.2BSD backup? I don't want to restore them, just list them. Lengths and dates would be nice, but not absolutely necessary. 2. How does one restore the contents of the said level 0 backup volume a local directory? That is, the original was almost certainly backup up starting with /, but I don't want to overwrite my own file system with restored data. Sorry for being so dense this morning, but I can't make heads or tails out of how one might do this using restore. Tar and cpio are easy, but backup/restore has me in a high state of confusion. Thanks, Chuck

19 years, 4 months

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Apple Personal Laserwriter LS

by grant＠stockly.com

I got an old printer for free. It works, but its printing grey stuff all over the page like there is something wrong with the drum. I ran a few pages through it and it didn't get better. Is there any reasonable way to fix it or should I throw it away? Anyone need any parts if I do have to throw it away? Grant

19 years, 4 months

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Compaq Deskpro 386 Maintenance guide missing pages

by bear＠typewritten.org

Hey; I don't suppose anybody out there has a copy of the Compaq Deskpro 386 Maintenance and Service Guide (mine includes "Addendum 108431-001 (11-88) to manual no. 108033-003")? I'm converting my copy to PDF and I am missing pages 5-1/5-2 and 5-5/5-6. Can somebody send me a copy of these two pages (four sides)? Any quality good enough to read the text is fine, as the pages are being re-typeset before the PDF conversion. Paper photocopies by mail, JPG, whatever. Thanks! ok bear

19 years, 4 months

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Anyone near Lexington,KY? Rescue these CP/M systems!

by legalize＠xmission.com

I'd much rather see this go into the hands of a collector in the area than end up in the hands of the high price reseller "compuermkt". The terminal looks interesting, although the one pictured has a bit of "screen rot". It looks like it might be an OEM'ed Beehive terminal, but its hard to tell without seeing it in person. "Vector" systems are pretty hard to come by as far as CP/M S-100 bus based systems go, but I did have a chance to play with one in 1979/1980. ======== Ebay item # 290109142460 Current bid $50, 1 bidder Lot contains: You are bidding on our years of classic computers. The photos only show 1 Vector MZ, one Vector 4, the NEC printer, and NEC 386 system. The total inventory is listed below. This computer equipment has been used and retired and has been in storage for years. The equipment worked when stored, but current working order is unknown. The keyboard of one of the MZ systems is slightly damaged (broken pieces from the frame around the keyboard. SOLD AS IS! Here is the inventory: 2 - Vector MZ systems with Arabrite software and keyboard (bilingual) 2 - Vector 4 systems 1 - NEC wide carriage impact printer that can do bilingual printing 1 - NEC 386 system with small impact printer 2 - Epson impact printers We are in and out of Lexington, KY where this equipment is stored, so pickup and/or delivery of this lot will need to be arranged, and I cannot garuntee it will be immediately after auction end. If you are interested, please email me so we can arrange a pickup or ship time. ======== -- "The Direct3D Graphics Pipeline" -- DirectX 9 draft available for download <http://www.xmission.com/~legalize/book/download/index.html> Legalize Adulthood! <http://blogs.xmission.com/legalize/>

19 years, 4 months

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MPX-16 stuff found

by rcini＠optonline.net

All: While moving things around in the shop, I came across an envelope containing some floppy disks for the Micromint MPX-16. These disks include the source code for the ROM BIOS and an apparently unreleased copy of MS-DOS 1.25. I posted copies of these on the My Documents page of my Highgate site. Rich -- Rich Cini Collector of Classic Computers Build Master and lead engineer, Altair32 Emulator http://www.altair32.com http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp

19 years, 4 months

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Shugart 460VR / SA460 docs?

by glen.slick＠gmail.com

Anyone have Shugart 460VR / SA460 docs? Is a 460VR the same thing as a SA460? The drive in my Intel iPDS says Model No. 460VR. Could it be functionally replaced by an original IBM PC full height 5.25 drive? The drive from the iPDS has jumpers on both DS1 and DS4 installed. I wonder why that is?

19 years, 4 months

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Tandon TM100-2A drives

by julesrichardsonuk＠yahoo.co.uk

Does anyone know if these are 40 or 80 cylinder? Google seems to suggest that they're 40 (which is what I need). The drives all have little stickers on saying "Quad density" though (which always implies to me 80-track, but maybe to Tandon it means 40 track but you have the luxury of two sides :) cheers J.

19 years, 4 months

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IBM 3420 drives

by wmaddox＠pacbell.net

Remember the pair of IBM 3420s that showed up on eBay a few weeks ago? The fellow that bought them sent me an email offering to sell them. If anyone here is suffering from "non-bidders remorse" for passing them up, please let me know ASAP and I'll put you in touch with him. --Bill

19 years, 4 months

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Autonetics Recomp (circa. 1960) rescue

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> Any signs of the console typewriter or other peripherals? no. will do some more digging but they may have been accidentally discarded about 10 years ago. > What's the story behind the rescue? History San Jose was selling off some of the Perham collection today, mostly old VTRs and some radio stuff. Got a call that there were two KSR 35s, one of which we identified as the console from the SDS 930, and an ASR 33 out there, so I drove down to retrieve them. When I got there, the RECOMP was on the pallet next to one of the 35s. I'm going to try to set up a time to go through the computer stuff to try to find the rest, but I'm not hopeful, since I don't recall seeing the desk or typewriter.

19 years, 4 months

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Autonetics Recomp (circa. 1960) rescue

by aek＠bitsavers.org

http://bitsavers.org/pdf/autonetics/recomp/pics

19 years, 4 months

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Lack of 8-bit threads (was Re: Linux question)

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Lack of 8-bit threads (was Re: Linux question) > From: "Zane H. Healy" <healyzh at aracnet.com> > Date: Fri, 20 Apr 2007 15:34:08 -0700 (PDT) > To: cctalk at classiccmp.org > >Tony wrote: >> If this is true, and it certainly seems to be, then the 'cure' for no >> real 80bit micro discussiosn is to start some. >> >> However, I've noticed that some 8-bit home computer threads don't seem to >> go anywhere. A couple of weeks back somebody posted about that > >I think that it is safe to say that while the list is for "Classic >Computers", it has a *VERY* strong DEC orientation. There is also a very >large number of messages on "generic" hardware issues and "generic" data >archival issues. I'm stong DEC person but 75% of my collection is 8bitters. I have a lot of experience with 8bitters in the single chip and multichip realm. But 8bitters is a large space, runs the gamut from intel/zilog to 1802. >Perhaps part of the problem is that there are better places to go for >things such as C64's, Apple ]['s, Amiga's and the like. I honestly don't >know. I do know that I typically do not ask VMS questions here, rather I go >to comp.os.vms. there is that also the Commies are a special breed as are the Apple]['s and a generic forum would miss the sublties that are implementation specific. >I do know that in my case I have almost no room at home for Classic Computer >stuff, as a result the classic systems that I have at home right now that >aren't hopelessy buried are a couple VAXen, a pair of PDP-11's, and a C-64. >I also have almost no free time, so the main system that sees *any* use is >the VAXstation 4000/vlc (it is my DECnet Area Router). ;) I've pretty much cubed out here too. However I have them arranged so a large number of them are accessable and even operable. Nothing like a 9way VMS LAVC to perk up a day. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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Junkbox CP/M system?

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Junkbox CP/M system? > From: Allison <ajp166 at bellatlantic.net> > Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2007 20:04:03 -0400 > To: cctech at classiccmp.org > >> >>Subject: Junkbox CP/M system? >> From: Jos Dreesen <jos.dreesen at bluewin.ch> >> Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2007 22:13:35 +0200 >> To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> >> >> >> >>Anyone knows of websites discussing true junkbox CP/M systems ? >> >>The P112 might be nice, but my junkbox contains only the standard Z80... >> >> Jos Dreessen > >Lookup ALPACA on Yahoo groups.com. There are several Z80 systems on the net. > > >Allison It was late wne I posted so here is something more useful and certainly there has to be something for everyone. If all else fails, I've made more than a few "one off" z80 systems using "junkbox" parts. To run CP/M you don't need a lot but the minimal and useful complete system are not far apart. Z80: Whatever you have! RAM: 48-64k of ram 48k will be enough to run a lot of software, but 64k is only 2 61256s (a 32kx8 SRAM). CP/M will run in 32k but limited application software will fit. The only requirement is ram starts at 0000h and be contigious for at least 20K(minimum) after boot. ROM: anything from 2k up, needed to "boot" the system. desireable to be able to disable it from the memory map. Serial port for a terminal (can be bitbash software to a single bit port) Some mass storage IDE, CF, Rom as a READonly DISK, Also ram can be made to look like disk and if all else a floppy controller and drive. Of all those IDE is the easiest and floppy is likely the more complex. Several desirable things but not required: Serial at least two serial ports (one SIO or DART has two). Conter timer either z80 CTC or common 8253 to provide both a baud clock for serial and a free counter timer for whatever. Parallel interface (IBM/centronics compatable) simple but allows for printers like Epson or HP4L. Parallel port using 8255 PPI, 24 IO lines software configurable, great for programmer or other projects that must be controlled. A video chip like 6845 for a self contained display system Keyboard interface that can accept XT or PS2 keyboard. Paged ram or rom for extra workspace. SITES----------------> Several items at this site worth looking at. http://www.retroleum.co.uk/z80-ideinterface.html Definate go to site for Z80 info: http://www.z80.info/ There are other sites from that link worth a trip, many are in German and have english translation, some don't, I've found them useful. The list would not be complete without Gaby's fine work: http://www.gaby.de/ecpmlink.htm Allison

19 years, 4 months

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disassembling STacy with a SLEDGEHAMMER.

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: disassembling STacy with a SLEDGEHAMMER. > From: Andrew Back <andy at smokebelch.org> > Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 09:02:22 +0100 (BST) > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >On Fri, 27 Apr 2007, Cameron Kaiser wrote: > >>>> Unless anyone has any other bright ideas, it's going in the trash. It's my >>>> bloody money and I'll get my money's worth out of this piece of crap the >>>> Gallagher way. No wonder Atari burned out. >>> >>> Golly, Cameron--doesn't it say right there on the unit "No user- >>> serviceable components inside"? ;-) >> >> No, it just doesn't say much of anything. >> >> I have never met a machine more impossible to get into for its size. > >For your next torture, I mean task, try getting the lid back on a >VAXstation 2000. > >Andrew I dont know I have two and also two of the same box with TK50 in them. Once you know the incantation it's easy. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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Hand-rolling a CP/M machine

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Hand-rolling a CP/M machine > From: Jim Battle <frustum at pacbell.net> > Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 20:46:08 -0500 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >woodelf wrote: >> Allison wrote: >> >>> You have to be kidding me. All you need is a 2764 and a programmer. >>> It's a ROM and the pattern is in the manual, what could be easier? >>> Actually if someone were building I'd suggest using a 2764 over the >>> part used on the VDM1 as that was a two or three voltage part and >>> 27C64(or even a 27C256) is common as flies plus lower power. >> >> Well if I still had the manual let alone the the VDM ... :( > >The ROM images are available as C character stucts in my Solace >emulator. According to the manual, the Sol was sold with two different >characters sets (I don't know if that is true or not). Both are >available at: > > http://www.sol20.org/solace.html > >Download the source. Look in charset_6574.c and charset_6575.c The answer is true. the difference in the charsets is what the non-ascii mapped chars look like. (symboles and arrows and other neat glyphs.). Allison

19 years, 4 months

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Good news: The MSCP SCSI 1.2 board booted VMS6.1 CD!

by vax9000＠gmail.com

Good news! Minutes ago the MSCP SCSI 1.2 board booted VMS6.1 CD. It booted to a $ prompt and I did not know what to do next. It is a pity that I left my camera in my office and could not record this moment. :) vax, 9000

19 years, 4 months

2
1
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HP54615B powersupply?

by jimmi＠satlantic.com

hello. did you ever fix this scope? james

19 years, 4 months

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Good news: The MSCP SCSI 1.2 board booted VMS6.1 CD!

by cheri-post＠web.de

> Good news! > Minutes ago the MSCP SCSI 1.2 board booted VMS6.1 CD. > It booted to a $ prompt and I did not know what to do next. Easy, just sit there and enjoy the upcome of the prompt-sign :-) Good work !!! Pierre _______________________________________________________________ SMS schreiben mit WEB.DE FreeMail - einfach, schnell und kostenguenstig. Jetzt gleich testen! http://f.web.de/?mc=021192

19 years, 4 months

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disassembling STacy with a SLEDGEHAMMER.

by aliensrcooluk＠yahoo.co.uk

If you do take a hammer to it (hope you dont) perhaps you can video it so that we can learn from it. I know i learnt a little about harddrives from one on YouTube, even if the guy messing with it damaged it. - Andrew B (via mobile phone) --- cctalk-bounces at classiccmp.org <spectre at floodgap.com> wrote: > I am about ready to take my #10 sledgehammer to this benighted piece of junk. > How in all that is holy do you get it apart? I've got all the screws out, > got all the snaps up on the lower part and the top half seems to float off > except for something in the middle of the board I can't see that's holding it > on. I think it's the cabling to the LCD, but I can't get the display apart > either! Most of the snaps are off, but I can't undo the root. > > Any suggestions, before I disassemble the unit using the fragmentation > method instead? > > -- > ------------------------------------ personal: http://www.cameronkaiser.com/ -- > Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com > -- The moon may be smaller than the Earth, but it's farther away. -------------

19 years, 4 months

1
0
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Junkbox CP/M system?

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Junkbox CP/M system? > From: "Ensor" <classiccmp at memory-alpha.org.uk> > Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 05:16:45 +0100 > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >Hi, > > > > > CF IDE is easy--it's 8 bit. HD IDE uses a 16-bit data path for > >sector data transfer.... > >The original IDE drives used 8-bit transfers (I had one in my first XT), >even to this day there is still be a signal on the IDE interface to force >the use of 8-bit mode. It's rarely implemented and its not a "line" it was part of the command set. The line IO16 is an output that goes high when sector transfers happen. I have a few XT IDE and of the 4 only one drive (20mb) does 8bit the rest depend on the ISA bus card to do translation (8-16). > >At least one of the IDE interfaces available for 8-bit Atari machines uses >the drive in this mode. > > > TTFN - Pete. What drive? YOu can of course use CF that has 8bit mode or just ignore the high 8bits (loose half the space) for a simpler interface. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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Acorn Second Processors (was: Re: Quick survey on equipment)

by classiccmp＠memory-alpha.org.uk

Hi, >> Think I'll just get a Z80 Second Processor for my Beeb >>instead (far less hassle). > > I didn't think those were _that_ common... Ooer, don't say that....there used to be *lots* of them at radio rallies, but I haven't been to one for a couple of years (planning on doing Elvaston Castle this year though). I suppose I could always make one, assuming the necessary ROM images are available somewhere? I don't recall there being any custom logic in the 6502 Second Processor and my memory of the Torch Z80 2nd processor is waaay to hazy. Which brings me onto a second point. I actually have at least one BBC "Master" too, I have a vague recollection that these have a connector for an internal, as well as an external, second processor? Do you know of any websites where I could get more info? TTFN - Pete.

19 years, 4 months

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Hawthorne 68000 SBC page

by rcini＠optonline.net

All: For those who might be interested, I started an information page on the 68k SBC that I received last week. http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/ht68k.htm I have all of the manuals copied but I haven?t started scanning it yet. I will probably try to do some tomorrow., and I?ll try to take a picture or two. Rich -- Rich Cini Collector of Classic Computers Build Master and lead engineer, Altair32 Emulator http://www.altair32.com http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp

19 years, 4 months

1
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ET-3400 ROM adapter

by whipaway＠yahoo.com

Someone was looking for the ET-3400 ROM adapter, See http://www.swtpc.com/mholley/ROM_Emulator/UsersGuide.pdf Be careful, it looks like pin 11 (CS1) has been masked to be active low, so use the spare gate on the 7420 as an inverter. --------------------------------- Ahhh...imagining that irresistible "new car" smell? Check outnew cars at Yahoo! Autos.

19 years, 4 months

1
0
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Hand-rolling a CP/M machine

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Hand-rolling a CP/M machine > From: woodelf <bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca> > Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 13:24:17 -0600 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >>> You can copy the screen logic for TRS80 as that is a basic 64x16 as well. >> Good thing to keep in mind. > >Well if anybody is doing VDM-1's the big problem is that you can't find >the Character ROM any more. I like the idea of TTL display like VDM-1 >but since this is not the late 70's a 80x24 screen is reasonable >and the data out is a simple VGA format, since the monitors are easy to >come by. You have to be kidding me. All you need is a 2764 and a programmer. It's a ROM and the pattern is in the manual, what could be easier? Actually if someone were building I'd suggest using a 2764 over the part used on the VDM1 as that was a two or three voltage part and 27C64(or even a 27C256) is common as flies plus lower power. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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cctalk Digest, Vol 44, Issue 54

by mtapley＠swri.edu

Sometimes brevity is the soul of confusion.... At 20:42 -0500 4/18/07, Allison wrote: >Not true as the rainbow also ran CP/M-80/88 as it was a dual CPU (has a z80). At 20:42 -0500 4/18/07, Pat wrote: >I'd imagine that Mark meant that the amount of memory (832k) was >irrelevant to CP/M-80. At 20:42 -0500 4/18/07, Chris wrote: > Could it access more then 64k under CP/M-80? Don't >you mean CP/M-86? Not to nit pick... > I don't know about specific Rainbow revisions, but I >was under the impression the 'bow could go up to 896k. >Maybe I'm thinking of the Tandy 2000 via an 3rd party upgrade. Pat's right, I meant the 8080/Z-80 form of CP/M would (I think) not access anything above 64k for the Z-80. I remember thinking it would be a neat hack to make the other 768k into a RAMdisk for CP/M on the Z-80, using the 8088 to serve it. Allison's right too, CP/M-80/86 would access the full 832k (or 896k in a B model) for the 8088 processor to run (and I think that's the original OS supplied with the machine, though MS-DOS was also available). Rainbow PC-100A could not be (I know, and I don't mean that as a challenge - I'm just talking about factory-supplied options...) expanded beyond 832k RAM, and the 8087 coprocessor card mine uses was one of the few ways to expand that far. PC-100B and PC-100+ (The latter with a hard drive and controller and a different badge, but otherwise identical to a B) both could be expanded up to 896k RAM. In any case, thanks for the clarification(s)! -- - 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.

19 years, 4 months

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XT IDE (was Re: Junkbox CP/M system?)

by zmerch-cctalk＠30below.com

Rumor has it that Ethan Dicks may have mentioned these words: >On 4/26/07, Jules Richardson <julesrichardsonuk at yahoo.co.uk> wrote: > >>[1] I don't buy new stuff, not for PCs - not when the price drops so much for >>"previous generation". Unfortunately SCSI drives of 36GB and up don't seem to >>be readily available. Well, a) this might be "wrong side of the pond" for you, and b) I'm not sure what you consider "cheap" but this place only has 633 in stock and ready to sell: http://www.pacificgeek.com/product.asp?ID=39962&C=202&S=1005 Hitachi 36.9GB Ultra 320 SCSI 10000RPM HDD --- $56.99 each. IMHO, not a *horrible* price, and with some froogling (oops, I guess that's gone now) you might be able to find 'em cheaper... >I got a few in 2003, cheap, but I'm not seeing server drives as >abundantly as I used to. The ones behind me are loaded with "SAS" >(Serial-attached-SCSI, AFAIK), so perhaps the days of SCA-connector >UltraWIDE SCSI drives are waning at last. Doubtful... at least not just yet, IMHO. I'd think there's still a lot of installations with 68/80 pin SCSI hardware - but with supply-n-demand, I doubt new drives will get cheaper - we're prolly at the point where they're going to start getting more expensive than the SAS & whatnot. Laterz, Roger "Merch" Merchberger -- Roger "Merch" Merchberger | Anarchy doesn't scale well. -- Me zmerch at 30below.com. | SysAdmin, Iceberg Computers

19 years, 4 months

2
2
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Junkbox parts...

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Junkbox parts... > From: "Alexandre Souza" <alexandre-listas at e-secure.com.br> > Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 00:14:20 -0300 > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic Posts Only" <cctech at classiccmp.org> > >> I've seen that and personally I'd like to isolate the system from the >> nasty scancode output from the keyboard so that the result looks like >> simple ASCII 7bit. I'd have to reprogram the 8742s to do that as the >> extracted parts only serve as a serial IO and buffer. > > Although this is a cannon to kill a microbe, it can be done. >www.mcselec.com has a nice basic compiler with incluided PS2 keyboard >decoding. Write a small basic program to translate the scancodes to >whatever-you-want and you're in! Not only the heavyest solution I've seen to date also one of the more costly. The "nice" basic compiler is 79Euros. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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DC-600/300XL tape cart observation

by cclist＠sydex.com

I've been cursing my way through a load of DC300XL/DC600A carts written a bit over 20 years ago. They're mixed "Scotch" brand (blue logo) and "3M" (red logo). The "Scotch" ones have been an unmitigated nightmare. Binder bleed visible between wraps on each reel (white gloppy deposits), flaking of the binder (the tension band has great chunks of oxide firmly laminated to it). Really awful news and prety much a total loss. The "3M" brand are largely recoverable, with a few missing block errors. Does this match everyone else's experience with these two brands? Cheers, Chuck

19 years, 4 months

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Junkbox parts...

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Junkbox parts... > From: Holger Veit <holger.veit at iais.fraunhofer.de> > Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 09:37:48 +0200 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic Posts Only <cctech at classiccmp.org> > >Allison schrieb: >> The question on junkbox z80 systems made me remember that >> old 386 and 486 system besides providing a raft of 32kx8 SRAMS >> also had a keyboard interface chip.. >> >> I have a few salvaged 8742(smae as 8242) from PC hardware >> of the AT class 80386-486 level. >> >> Without resorting to eraseing the Eproms (8742) and reprogramming >> them I've wondered if.. >> >> Can these parts (PC AT keyboard interface) can they be used for >> small system as a interface from AT or PS2 keyboard to a 8bit micro. >> Right off I suspect yes. However is there any information on how >> to "talk" software wise to them as to what kind of results and >> commands they take? >> >> >See http://www.arne.si/~mauricio/kbdfaq.html for abundant information on >the keyboard, >and programming the controller. Basically, you connect it to a z80 the >same way as it is done >in the PeeCee - wire it to i/o port 60/64h and use the same logic to >program raw commands. >Normally, in homwbrew systems, people tend not to use a 8042 pulled from >a scrap board but talk >to the keyboard directly, through the serial protocol described above. >The keyboard itself typically >contained some 8048 controller to scan the kbd matrix. I've seen that and personally I'd like to isolate the system from the nasty scancode output from the keyboard so that the result looks like simple ASCII 7bit. I'd have to reprogram the 8742s to do that as the extracted parts only serve as a serial IO and buffer. >I don't have the exact circuitry for the 8042 UPI at hand right now, but >the schematic can be >found in the IBM AT Technical Reference Manual. I have more than enough info on the 8742 itself, I use them for other applications. The PC AT circuit is trivial and I have that as well. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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Floppy drive enclosures

by rcini＠optonline.net

All: Does anyone have a consistent source for dual 5.25? half-height external floppy drive enclosures? I?m looking for an external case for my 68k SBC. Thanks in advance for any pointers. Rich -- Rich Cini Collector of Classic Computers Build Master and lead engineer, Altair32 Emulator http://www.altair32.com http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp

19 years, 4 months

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Hand-rolling a CP/M machine

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Hand-rolling a CP/M machine > From: woodelf <bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca> > Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 22:22:11 -0600 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >Allison wrote: > >> You have to be kidding me. All you need is a 2764 and a programmer. >> It's a ROM and the pattern is in the manual, what could be easier? >> Actually if someone were building I'd suggest using a 2764 over the >> part used on the VDM1 as that was a two or three voltage part and >> 27C64(or even a 27C256) is common as flies plus lower power. > >Well if I still had the manual let alone the the VDM ... :( > Manual is on line I think at both Dave and bitsavers. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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Hand-rolling a CP/M machine

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: Hand-rolling a CP/M machine > From: woodelf <bfranchuk at jetnet.ab.ca> > Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2007 16:20:17 -0600 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >Allison wrote: > >>>> You have to be kidding me. All you need is a 2764 and a programmer. >>>> It's a ROM and the pattern is in the manual, what could be easier? >>>> Actually if someone were building I'd suggest using a 2764 over the >>>> part used on the VDM1 as that was a two or three voltage part and >>>> 27C64(or even a 27C256) is common as flies plus lower power. >>> Well if I still had the manual let alone the the VDM ... :( >>> >> >> Manual is on line I think at both Dave and bitsavers. > >Off hand I don't see it at bitsavers. > the stufffs out here. Here's Dave's site and page. http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/s100c/index.htm Scroll down the page to Processor tech it's a 6mb PDF but that manual has sources for the Driver program, listing of the pattern for the character rom and operating theory. Else where on the same page are several other S100 boards that do video some are 64x16 and at least one is 80x24. Dave happens to have a well organized site for old computer history. Allison

19 years, 4 months

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What monitor is this?

by trixter＠oldskool.org

Here's a picture: http://www.oldskool.org/misc/unknown_monitor.jpg I'm pretty sure this is the monitor that came bundled with the IBM PS/1 series, but if anyone can get a lock on this before Wednesday night I'd be most appreciative. -- Jim Leonard (trixter at oldskool.org) http://www.oldskool.org/ Help our electronic games project: http://www.mobygames.com/ Or check out some trippy MindCandy at http://www.mindcandydvd.com/ A child borne of the home computer wars: http://trixter.wordpress.com/

19 years, 4 months

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Anyone want a free (plus shipping) Sun Ultra 10?

by alanp＠snowmoose.com

I am getting a new SPARC box for work. My manager says that the old Ultra 10 is not worth shipping back. Anyone want it for the cost of shipping? alan

19 years, 4 months

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*nix on "classic" systems

by jvdg＠sparcpark.net

Chuck Guzis wrote: >On 11 Apr 2007 at 23:07, Joost van de Griek wrote: > >> On 4/11/07 9:35 PM, Chris M wrote: >> >>> I really don't think it's realistic to operate a modern computer w/a >>> non-windowed environment these days. Many will disagree, and that's their >>> prerogative, someone said something about eye-candy, but I think it comes down >>> to cheating yourself of functionality. >> >> You give up some functionality, gain other functionality. Like almost >> everything, a GUI is a trade-off. > > Excuse me, but we're talking about two different things, aren't we? > Or is my age showing again? Maybe we are, but I hardly think that's relevant. > Unless I've got my wires crossed (again), "windowing" and "GUI" have > very little to do with another. That is, you can have text-mode > winodws and windowless graphics, no? A windowed environment is a GUI, yes? > So what's meant here? What's meant here is that the Chris M has a point: you *do* cheat yourself of some functionality when using a non-windowed environment "these days". However, you also cheat yourself of functionality exactly by using a windows environment. There are things that are much more efficient if you don't have to wrestle the point-and-click interface. Look at *real* power users, even on windowed systems. They hardly touch the mouse. It's all keyboard shortcuts, and it's *way* faster. The downside is having to master all those cryptic gestures and key combinations. ,xtG tsooJ

19 years, 4 months

18
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DC-600/300XL tape cart observation

by dm561＠torfree.net

I've got a bunch of DC-600/615A & 300XLP tapes that, although I haven't tried to read them lately, look OK, i.e. they move freely and nothing seems to be sticking. Aside from the issue of archiving them, is it better to leave them until needed, or should I run them through a retension occasionally to prevent some of the problems mentioned recently? Any special conditions for storage? Opinions? Experience? mike

19 years, 4 months

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