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

by rschaefe＠gcfn.org

Hi! I'm looking for info on the SUN-3 floating point accelerators like the FPA, and FPA+. Programming info, header files, maybe even the libraries if they're avaliable. Also, before I pop in to motorols.com, does anyone have a quick little snippet of code to excersize a 68882? I just upgraded my SUN-3/280 to a '882, and I want to verify that everything's working right before I solder in some sockets and start playing with the clock. Thanks! Bob

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by vcf＠vintage.org

Ok, I scored quite a few drives for my data conversion machine project yesterday: Iomega Ditto Easy3200 (floppy interface) Colorado T4000 (SCSI) Exabyte EXB-8200 (SCSI) Bernoulli Box 20+20 (DC-37 proprietary?) WORM Drive of some type (SCSI) QIC-150 tape drive (SCSI) Iomega 150 MultiDisk (SCSI) Iomega 90 Pro (SCSI) DAT of some type (SCSI) Iomega Jaz (SCSI) Iomega ZIP (IDE) Conner 420 (floppy interface) Colorado 250 (floppy interface) Archive 4320NT DAT (SCSI) Conner 700 (floppy interface) Colorado T1000 (floppy) SyQuest EZ135 (SCSI) The trick now is to figure out what is downward compatible with what and eliminate those drives. The Conner 700 is obviously compatible with the 420, the Colorado T4000 is probably downward compatible with the T1000, the Iomega 150 is downward compatible with the 90, I think the Ditto drive is basically the same as the Colorado Jumbo drives and the Conners, so I would want to choose the one that is most downward compatible in terms of maximum storage. I have no idea what various DAT formats there are so I'll have to research that. Ditto for the WORM drives (I have one more somewhere in my collection). Did the Bernoulli Box have a proprietary interface? If so, does anyone have one they want to get rid of? I would imagine I can hook as many of the floppy interface drives as I need to a single cable, providing I can crimp on the proper connectors. Will there be any issues with conflicts or power? I imagine as long as I'm not using two drives on the same cable at a time then I should be fine. I think I have QIC-40/80 covered. My Tecmar QT-125e does QIC-2 up to 125MB, but from what I can tell from research that standard goes up to at least 500MB. I'm still trying to figure out what QIC-1000 is. Tecmar is still around (www.tecmar.com) but they only do Travan and DAT. Their older products (QIC and 8MM) are obsolete and they don't have drivers available. I guess what I really want to know is if the various tape drives from different manufacturers for a certain specification, say QIC-40/80, read and write the same low- or high-level format. So for instance, if I create a tape on a Colorado drive and stick it into a Conner drive, will the Conner be able to read it? -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 10 months

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Drive inventory

by PasserM＠umkc.edu

That, and they _never_ significantly lower the price of their media. A Zip disk still costs $15.00 in quantity 1 in this era of 19 cent CDRs; Jaz 1GB are still $100.00 per, and may heaven help you if you need a Bernoulli 90MB cartridge! In 1991, they were about $90.00-- today, they're about $90.00. >It's just another IOMEGA boondoggle, though. I avoid any contact with IOMEGA anymore, as >not one of their products, and I have dozens, has ever lived up to their widely publicized >claims. They clearly lie about their device characteristics, and freely admit it if >pressed.

23 years, 10 months

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nice find - now I have a PDP-11/93 question

by GOOI＠oce.nl

The 11/93 is hardly "classic", but to my DIGITAL collection it is still a nice addition and I would like to get it running. I agree with Jerome that the M9047 grant continuity card could be removed and move all other boards one position 'up', but the system had the M8047 when I got it, so I left it there. Perhaps the cooling of the cpu board is better ... > What do the DL interface connections consist of? I have a set > from an 11/94 system, but they really don't seem to fit from a > hardware point of view into a Qbus system, in particular, in a > BA23 box. That is exactly what I have. It is an 11/93 in a BA23 box. I read somewhere that the 11/94 uses a KTJ11 (?) board to bridge to UNIBUS, and that the 11/94 system comsumes more power. The rear panel that connects to the M8981 in my BA23 box has the following parts on it: + 8 9-pin D-shape (DE-9) connectors for 8 extra terminals + 1 25-pin D-shape (DB25) connector with "CONSOLE" text next to it + 2 7-segment displays + 1 DIP switch block with 8 switches The M8981 board has on the front side a 40-pin male header, next to it are the 8 LEDs followed by a 50-pin male header. Behind the LEDs is an other DIP switch module. The 40- and 50-pin headers are connected to the rear panel with 2 flatcables. I am still looking for the DIP switch positions. I will gather all info on the 11/93 and put it on my website. Of course with several pictures of the system. Several Google searches did not produce much technical detail info. TIA, - Henk.

23 years, 10 months

2
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festivals, flea markets, and surplus dealers

by jon＠slurpee.org

I'm rather new to the mailing list, and I poked through some of the previous messages on the site, but didnt see this one directly answered. I live in texas, and know of a few here haaug meet, first saturday, san antonio's 2nd sat, but is there a place where I can find out more of them located in this area (texas, oklahoma, arkansas, lousiana)? I figure here would be the best place to ask, because I'm really not interested in buying pc stuff, but love old unix equipment, and misc electronics. Any huge festivals that I should be going too every year that I'm not? (I go to trenton nj)... what about surplus places (I love to find junk at places that take computers to scrap them for metal... I get some awesome deals there)? Any help would be nice :) Thanks, jon

23 years, 10 months

6
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card punch

by lemay＠cs.umn.edu

Well, my latest acquisition finally arrived from England (why are all the good things in Europe...). Anyways, I finally have a Hollerith Manual Card Punch. You can see a picture of one at the Computer Museum of America web site: http://www.computer-museum.org/collections/hollerith.html Mine was made in england, by International Computers and Tabulators Limited. Does anyone know if that company was a part of what became IBM, or did they just make an unauthorized copy of the machine? My punch is slightly different that the one at that web site, in that it never had a nameplate below the keys, and the uppermost button on the picture isnt a part of my card punch. Basically, you have the 12 keys that punch the 12 hole positions and advance the card one row, with a button to inhibit the advance so you can multi-punch the same row (or allows skipping a row), and a second button that releases the remainer of the card. The button that is missing in the design of the punch I have must not have been very useful, as I cant imagine what else a person would need to do. There is an adjustable card stop, so that you can set the punch to allow you to skip any number of initial columns on each card automatically. The chad just drops to the ground underneath the punch. If I can find some information about this punch, i'll make a nice web page about it. -Lawrence LeMay

23 years, 10 months

4
3
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FA: Intel MDS-800

by rigdonj＠cfl.rr.com

<http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2002926621>. He has no docs, drives or software with it. Damm! and I just threw out a drive chassis that went with this one! FWIW it uses CDC drives like these <http://www.classiccmp.org/hp/mds-800/cdc-dr-f.jpg>. I don't know if Shugart drives can be made to work with his controller cards or not But Intel uses a different connecting cable and a different set of controller cards for the Shugart drives. One the MDS-800s, the Shugart drives uses M2MFM encoding that's not capable with any other system that I know of but the CDC drives use MFM encoding and the "standard" CPM disk format aka IBM 3470 format. Joe

23 years, 10 months

2
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RS/6000 E30

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On February 14, Richard.Sandwell(a)roebry.co.uk wrote: > Hey, Doc - off list to save everyone's bandwidth... What do you think to an > RS/6000 E30? I'm going to have a look at one tomorrow for not_much_money. I > have 2 questions - is it MCA or PCI? > And is the memory proprietary - or just standardish stuff? > > Thanks in anticipation of your wise word :) Dontcha just hate Reply-To: headers? I have my mailer filter them out. ;) -Dave -- Dave McGuire St. Petersburg, FL "Less talk. More synthohol." --Lt. Worf

23 years, 10 months

2
1
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Drive inventory

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Clint Wolff (VAX collector) [mailto:vaxman@earthlink.net] > Actually, there are FIVE formats: DAT, DDS, DDS-2, DDS-3, and DDS-4. > I don't know the exact differences between DAT and DDS, but most > drives won't accept a DAT tape... I thought DAT was the audio format (48Khz, 16[?}bit, up to 4 channels), and the tapes are pretty identical to DDS? I do have a DDS (DDS2, I think) drive that will read/write audio DAT in my Indigo2. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

2
1
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Drive inventory

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Tothwolf [mailto:tothwolf@concentric.net] > That would work well if all the tape drives that use the > floppy interface > followed the rules, but not all do. I guess it would be > possible to build > a board with some logic chips that could isolate individual > drives from > the bus, but I think it would be much easier for now to only > connect one > drive at a time. Do you mean to say there are floppy-tape systems that ignore DS? How do they work? Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

4
4
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Drive inventory

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Sellam Ismail [mailto:foo@siconic.com] > On Thu, 14 Feb 2002, Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) wrote: > > A write-only device. > What's the purpose of a write-only backup device??? Um... he means that it's not very reliable. A polite way of saying that you'd be better off backing up to a _real_ write-only device, like a terminal, or your system's "null device." :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

2
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Old manuals

by dtwright＠uiuc.edu

A couple weeks ago, I was given the following manuals and thought I'd see if anyone wanted them, otherwise they're getting dumped. - 3 Teletype corporation binders labeled "Technical Manual" -- there's more on the labels, but I don't want to type it all out. If you're intested I'll write it all down and post it. These are from ~1974. - IBM Customer Engineering Manual of Instruction for "24 card punch" and "26 printing card punch" (appears to be from ~1962) - IBM Personal Computer Professional Graphics Display Technical Reference (includes specs, logic diagrams, etc) (1984) I don't own, nor do I plan to own, any of this equipment, so I thought I'd pass these on to anyone interested... you'd need to pay shipping but that's it. Though, if you have anything interesting in the old-UNIX-computer-parts realm, I wouldn't mind trading either :) - Dan Wright (dtwright(a)uiuc.edu) (http://www.uiuc.edu/~dtwright) -] ------------------------------ [-] -------------------------------- [- ``Weave a circle round him thrice, / And close your eyes with holy dread, For he on honeydew hath fed, / and drunk the milk of Paradise.'' Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Kubla Khan

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Feb 14, 6:53, Doc wrote: > On Thu, 14 Feb 2002, Zane H. Healy wrote: > > > >There are currently 5 DAT formats (DDS, DDS-1, DDS-2, DDS-3, and DDS-4) > > >and all are backward compatible. > > > > But, can a drive from manufacturer "A" read a DDS-1 tape written on > > manufacturer "B's" drive? It's been my understanding that sometimes even > > different model drives from the same manufacturer can't read the same tape. > > I've never seen that with either 4mm DDS-x or with 8mm DAT formats. > We do classroom loads of RS/6000s from tape quite often, making > tapes on, and installing from, a very wide assortment of drives. I've > never seen a load fail if the drive was rated for the tape format. Nitpick alert: DDS = DDS-1 (ie, it's the same thing -- originally called DDS but now sometimes called DDS-1 so that it's clearly not one of the later versions). So there are only 4 formats, not 5. Nitpick 2: 8mm is not DDS or DAT. It's Exabyte videotape. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 10 months

3
2
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YAAA

by cstonecipher＠bluewin.ch

Hi -- I have no idea if this link is still active, but if it is, I am interested in knowing if you still have any USS Altair stuff -- such as the data plate mentioned. My email address is: stonecipherca(a)state.gov Any info would be appreciated. Thanks -- Charlie

23 years, 10 months

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RS/6000 E30

by Richard.Sandwell＠roebry.co.uk

On February 14, Richard.Sandwell(a)roebry.co.uk wrote: >> Hey, Doc - off list to save everyone's bandwidth... >> Thanks in anticipation of your wise word :) > Dontcha just hate Reply-To: headers? I have my mailer filter them >out. ;) <Giggles like a kid ....> Ooops...don't take offence anyone - and thanks for *all* your wise words and links.. Fingers crossed, this time tomorrow.....and its got the key, and its got the installation media. I think the word was "chuffed" - that'd describe it... //Rich

23 years, 10 months

1
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SGI Indigo

by Richard.Sandwell＠roebry.co.uk

Has anyone got a keyboard/mouse combo for the R3000 Indigo they want to sell or trade? In fact I'd be happy to talk about any R3000/R4000 bits? Its for a good cause, I want to help out with the linux port.... Mail me off-list if you can help, TIA //Rich

23 years, 10 months

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FW: FW: Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

Okay guys, this is from my wife, who works for Hubbell Wiring Devices... :-) --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash > ---------- > From: Theresa Woyciesjes > The green dot is the marking that UL allows manufacturers to use on Hospital Grade devices only after the product has been tested and performs to the UL specs for Hospital grade. > The Isolated Ground triangle is a designation that is required by UL and > C.S.A. (Canadian Standards Ass.) to mark Isolated Ground outlets. Orange > may be the most popular color for the receptacle, but it is not considered > to be a clear enough marking for UL & C.S.A. The outline of the triangle > does not have to be any specific color, only easily recognizable. The > interior of the Triangle must be orange. > Hospital Grade IG receptacles will have both the green dot and the > triangle. > BTW - The reason someone may want IG receptacles in their home is to protect the ground - you know that computers use the zero ground as the reference for binary code - well, if you are running your computer and your wife turns on the vacuum or the blender, the motor load can throw noise onto the ground - causing your computer to read a 0 as a 1. If you have your computer plugged into a IG receptacle that is properly installed with it's own ground wire, the interference caused by the motor load will go out on the house grounding system with out effecting your PC. > > > > Theresa - Ann Woyciesjes > Hubbell Wiring Device - Kellems > National & Strategic Accounts > > > >>> David Woyciesjes <DAW(a)yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu> 02/14/02 10:56AM > >>> > > Do you have a minute? > > > ---------- > > From: Robert Schaefer > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > > From: "Tothwolf" > > > > > On Wed, 13 Feb 2002, Robert Schaefer wrote: > > > > > > > s/almost// The green dot is part of what makes it `Hospital Grade' > > > > (The Code now specifies a Hospital Grade MC cable too-- can you > guess > > > > the difference between it and `regular' MC?) Red means a circuit on > > > > the Legally Required Stand-by System (read `on the generator'). > > > > > > I would hope that they would be on some sort of system that keeps the > > > voltage constant during the transfer from utility to generator power > > too. > > > > I don't know. I do know that the IV pumps are battery units, and only > the > > charger plugs in. I've spent too much time in Hospitals lately, I > guess! > > > > > > > > > Isolated ground recpts will have a green triangle on them, but are > not > > > > necessarily orange in color, all the ones in the upstairs of my > house > > > > are white. If I tried to install orange recpts anywhere but the > > > > basement/garage, my wife would have killed me! > > > > > > I thought they had an orange triangle on them? Many of the ones I've > > seen > > > are that way. Maybe hospital grade isolated ground receptacles have a > > > green triangle on them instead of an orange one? > > > > I'm 99% sure it has to have a green dot to be hospital grade, and I'm > 90% > > sure it has to be a green triangle on it to meet Code requirements. > That > > said, I've seen and installed more than one with an orange triangle on > it. > > Kinda like calling it a Centronics port, I guess. ;) > > > > > > > > Why did you install isolated ground receptacles in your home? The only > > > real application for them is when you have a metallic raceway > (conduit) > > > and want the ground return wire independent of that raceway. I haven't > > > seen conduit in too many homes yet ;) > > > > You haven't seen my house yet. FWIW, I'm in the middle of negotiations > > with > > my boss about a 15KW nat. gas fired 480V 3P generator. I'm also > thinking > > about pricing a Technical Power transformer, to run some of my machines > > on. > > > > What can I say? At least I'm not a burden on Society! ^_- > > > > > > > > -Toth > > > > Bob

23 years, 10 months

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Aviable: Wyse-60 terminals (Netherlands The Hague)

by sipke＠wxs.nl

For pick-up: I've got 10 surplus Wyse60 terminals (kinda complete and in working order but the screens are a bit burned-in) I'll propably keep two of them so 8 are aviable Also got one surplus Computone rs232 concentrator plus some cabling. I have to check for the ISA-PC card that comes with it ............. Pickup in The Netherlands, The Hague I will not be shipping the stuff. Don't have the experience nor the time.......... Contact me off-list Sipke de Wal ------------------------------------------------- http://xgistor.ath.cx -------------------------------------------------

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On February 13, Jim Arnott wrote: > the Bernoullis that I have are both straight SCSI 1. (90 & 230) The early Bernoulli Boxes use a dc37 connector that, if memory serves, is a stripped-down SCSI interface..but I could be wrong about that. The later ones are standard SCSI on standard connectors. -Dave -- Dave McGuire St. Petersburg, FL "Less talk. More synthohol." --Lt. Worf

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On February 13, Vintage Computer Festival wrote: > Did the Bernoulli Box have a proprietary interface? If so, does anyone > have one they want to get rid of? I believe I have a bernoulli interface or two...send me your shipping address. -Dave -- Dave McGuire St. Petersburg, FL "Less talk. More synthohol." --Lt. Worf

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by cdl＠proxima.ucsd.edu

> From: Douglas Quebbeman <dhquebbeman(a)theestopinalgroup.com> > To: "'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org'" <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> > Subject: RE: Drive inventory > Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 12:02:42 -0500 > Sender: owner-classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Reply-To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > > > > > In other words, if your tape has hardware compression, you may be out > > of luck without the exact drive that wrote it. > > > > So far, we're able to read DDS3 tapes from a Sony drive where > we used hardware compression in a Sony DDS4 drive, so at least > Sony is designing some continuity in *their* product line... It has been my experience over several years that the only problems with incompatible hardware compression on DDS drives was with the original generation of DDS and DDS-DC drives, before DDS2. The type of drive that was retro-named DDS1. carl -- carl lowenstein marine physical lab u.c. san diego clowenstein(a)ucsd.edu

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by cdl＠proxima.ucsd.edu

> From: David Woyciesjes <DAW(a)yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu> > To: "'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org'" <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> > Subject: RE: Drive inventory > Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 10:53:21 -0500 > Sender: owner-classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Reply-To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org David Woyciesjes wrote: > > ---------- > > From: Doc > > > > On Wed, 13 Feb 2002, Sellam Ismail wrote: > > > > > DDS-2 and DDS-3 use physically different media. I don't know how this > > > figures if the standards are all supposed to be backward compatible. . . . > > A DDS2 drive will read DDS1 archives, and write a DDS1 tape in DDS1 > > format. I dunno about DDS3. Every shop I've worked with who used DDS3 > > drives used DDS3 tapes exclusively. > > > > Doc > > > --- > DDS3 is 125m. Have one right here :) DDS3 drives work fine with DDS2 > tapes, under NT4 and VMS. That's the size combination we're using here at > work. Note that DDS3 drives write DDS2 format when loaded with DDS2 media. Likewise, DDS2 drives write DDS1 format when loaded with DDS1 media. carl -- carl lowenstein marine physical lab u.c. san diego clowenstein(a)ucsd.edu

23 years, 10 months

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STAPLES STORES WILL TAKE OLD COMPUTERS

by avickers＠solutionengineers.com

At 15:21 14/02/2002, Christopher Smith wrote: > > Computers that are unable to be rebuilt "will be recycled > > responsibly to generate reusable materials," according to the > > press release. > >... and translated, this probably means: "Anything that we don't know >what to do with will be turned into bicycle spokes and sent to China." "Anything that we don't know what to do with will be sent to China to be turned into bicycle spokes", shurely? :) -- Cheers, Ade. Be where it's at, B-Racing! http://b-racing.co.uk

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Richard Erlacher [mailto:edick@idcomm.com] > Careful, now ... EXABYTE drives are 8mm helical-scan drives, > while the DDS > types are not. I have a number of Exabyte drives and I've > found that, after > the EXB8200, few of them will use tapes that aren't of the > "DATA" type. I've > tried standard handycam tapes, and the %$#@! things > immediately spit them out! Yep, that's my experience with the Eliant 820. All things considered, OTOH, it makes a great backup device anyway, holds 7G native on a 160M cartridge, and came for free in a haul of on topic VAX accessories. :) > Likewise, the cleaning tapes, which puzzles me a great deal. > I've had no such > trouble with SONY cleaning tapes, however, probably because > EXABYTE buys SONY > transports. That's good to know. I should find a cleaner for it. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

1
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Drive inventory

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> > In other words, if your tape has hardware compression, you may be out > of luck without the exact drive that wrote it. > So far, we're able to read DDS3 tapes from a Sony drive where we used hardware compression in a Sony DDS4 drive, so at least Sony is designing some continuity in *their* product line... -dq

23 years, 10 months

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THE best find of the weekend!

by rigdonj＠cfl.rr.com

I just got back from spending 2 1/2 days at the Orlando hamfest. I made quite a haul but here is my best find by far! <http://www.classiccmp.org/hp/RCA/rca.jpg> As you can see it does work! In case you don't recognize it, look here <http://www.classiccmp.org/hp/RCA/rca2.jpg>. Right now it's in the hands of a certain nameless CC Lister in Southern Georgia. I'm just hoping I'll get to see it again! Besides that nice trinket I also got two Gould logic analyzers, a MicroMint Std-bus computer, some Multibus card cages, some good data books, a Data I/O 19 EPROM programmer with a GangPak plug in and the PAL programmig plug-ins, an Intel iUP 201 EPROM programmer, a 5 Mb Bernoulli box for the MacIntosh (in it's original box with three new sealed cartridges), an Alphapro 101 daisy wheel printer that's also in it's original box, and finally a 16 Mb Matrox G4+ AGP video card for $20. joe

23 years, 10 months

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Drive inventory

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Vintage Computer Festival [mailto:vcf@vintage.org] > I have no idea what various DAT formats there are so I'll > have to research > that. Ditto for the WORM drives (I have one more somewhere in my > collection). Basically, there are DDS-1 through DDS-4. A DDS-4 drive should read and write any of the previous if I'm not mistaken. The problem is that compression is brand-specific, generally, and possibly model- specific (though I haven't heard of it being done...) In other words, if your tape has hardware compression, you may be out of luck without the exact drive that wrote it. I have no idea about D-8, on the other hand. :) What I do know is that my Eliant 820 will use 160 meter tapes, but only (I think) if they're data tapes (meaning they have the MRS stuff in them...) Some other Exabyte drives will supposedly use 160 meter tapes without MRS, but will write only so much data to them, and won't read or write data on any 160 meter cart at quite the density of the Eliant 820. Anyway, you may need more than 1 8mm drive. > Did the Bernoulli Box have a proprietary interface? If so, > does anyone > have one they want to get rid of? I think they were SCSI, but don't take my word for it... > least 500MB. I'm still trying to figure out what QIC-1000 is. 1.2G variant of the same technology used in QIC-120, I believe. They're pretty large, klunky cartridges. Around the size of VHS, but thinner, and not quite as wide (I think). :) I also think the drives are downward compatible with QIC-120. > I guess what I really want to know is if the various tape drives from > different manufacturers for a certain specification, say > QIC-40/80, read > and write the same low- or high-level format. So for instance, if I > create a tape on a Colorado drive and stick it into a Conner > drive, will > the Conner be able to read it? I think so, ignoring the above issue with hardware compression, which may have also been a problem on these drives if they had it. :) Again, don't take my word for it. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

2
1
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Drive inventory

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

> ---------- > From: Doc > > On Wed, 13 Feb 2002, Sellam Ismail wrote: > > > DDS-2 and DDS-3 use physically different media. I don't know how this > > figures if the standards are all supposed to be backward compatible. > > Actually, DDS and DDS2 different media, but not as in > different form factors. IIRC, DDS1 is 90m, DDS2 is 120m, and DDS3 is > also 120m. They have and identifier embedded in the media that tells > the drive which DDS the tape is. I know for sure that a DDS1 drive will > simply spit out a DDS2 or DDS3 tape, and I think that holds true up the > line. > A DDS2 drive will read DDS1 archives, and write a DDS1 tape in DDS1 > format. I dunno about DDS3. Every shop I've worked with who used DDS3 > drives used DDS3 tapes exclusively. > > Doc > --- DDS3 is 125m. Have one right here :) DDS3 drives work fine with DDS2 tapes, under NT4 and VMS. That's the size combination we're using here at work. --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

23 years, 10 months

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Drive inventory

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> >There are currently 5 DAT formats (DDS, DDS-1, DDS-2, DDS-3, > and DDS-4) > >and all are backward compatible. > > But, can a drive from manufacturer "A" read a DDS-1 tape written on > manufacturer "B's" drive? It's been my understanding that sometimes even > different model drives from the same manufacturer can't read the same tape. You're supposed to be OK if you didn't used compression, or also OK if you used software compression (assuming you can find a program on the target platform that understands the compression). It's when you use hardware compression that you may be screwed. -dq

23 years, 10 months

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SGI build quality (was RE: great site)

by timwa＠snowgoons.fsnet.co.uk

Christopher Smith wrote: [re. broken SGI Indy] > He was able to find the faulty part. Honestly, I wish I'd been > able to do that, myself, but I don't have the stack of SGI pieces > to do it :) On an only slightly related note, IMHO the build quality and general longevity of Silicon Graphics hardware really isn't what you'd hope of kit that cost so much new... I've seen Sun boxes that have been through the mill several times by the look of things, but flick the switch and you're up and running (possibility of needing to solder a battery onto the PROM notwithstanding.) Personal (limited, I grant you ;-) experience of Indys on the other hand suggest you need at least 3 candidates handy if you want to put together a working combination of power supply, processor and mobo/PROM. And the chassis is horribly weak - the way the power supply clips into place is very neat, but also makes it structurally very poor at the join (L-shaped computer, anyone?) I also don't think I've yet forgiven SGI for making the power supply (simple slide-in/slide-out with two thumbscrews) on the O2000 a non user replaceable part - i.e. they won't sell you one without a service contract and an engineer round to plug it in. And trying to get an SGI Challenge to actually see all the devices on its SCSI bus without trying them in 100 different permutations can keep you occupied for at least an afternoon... Which isn't to say I don't love 'em, an Indy is my main workstation at home & the sight of SGI rapidly going down the tubes is deeply sad... Cheers, Tim. -- Tim Walls at home in Croydon - Reply to tim(a)snowgoons.fsnet.co.uk

23 years, 10 months

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Drive inventory

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) [mailto:cisin@xenosoft.com] > > Iomega ZIP (IDE) > available internal and external, also in parallel, SCSI, and the "Zip > PLUS" is BOTH parallel and SCSI. I took his use of IDE there to mean that he got the internal ATA type drive. I suppose given the proper definition of IDE, both the parallel and USB versions could be called IDE. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

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Taking control of your collection (small-shop management)

by mythtech＠Mac.com

>If you use Mac OS 7-9 on a used Mac and go with a used copy of Filemaker >instead of Paradox, they are *far* more likely to be able to maintain the >program themselves, ... >Disclaimer: I don't run a business, so I may not know what I'm talking >about. Anybody knowledgable here, please chime in. I think this is a >*vital* topic for classic-computers, BTW, as keeping the machines >productive is far and away the best way to keep them alive and known. The >upgrade path availability is admittedly slightly off-topic, but relevant to >the discussion. FileMaker Pro was designed with the office Secretary in mind. It was meant for the average boss to hand the program to the average word processor literate secretary and tell them to create a database. It is VERY user friendly, and VERY quick and easy to create solutions. It has also grown significantly over the years into a rather powerful database system. It is NOT as powerful as some other applications out there (I know Access is more powerful due to its VB abilities)... but for a good chunk of database needs you can use FMP to do your complete solution. I have been making some rather complex solutions in FMP for years, and once in a while hit roadblocks with it, but usually can get to a work around (sometimes kludgy, but usually doable). But I will take the development speed vs loss of the super high end abilities any day. FMP is also ODBC complient (I don't know to what extent, I keep all my work right in FMP, so I have never used the ODBC interface). And FMP can publish to the web instantly, or you can develop full web abilities with FMP as the backend. It is fully cross platform (Mac and Win32)... I mean fully... there are really only two minor issues with moving back and forth. You need to make sure you use standard fonts that are available on both platforms (stick to Ariel, Times New Roman, and Courier New and you should be fine)... and when laying out items on the screen, it is best to use the T-Bars or Windows will sometimes shift where something is slightly. But the database works on both platforms unchanged. I generally do all my FMP development on the Mac, and the move it to a WinNT hosted FMP server where winNT clients log into it to do their work... and I still log in using my Mac for admin stuff... same database, transparent access. All in all... if your users aren't likely to know how to work with a database system... and you want them to be able to manage it in the future... I highely recommend FMP... or if you just want to get the job done in half the time of other systems. -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 10 months

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VMS help file

by alan.pearson＠cramer.com

On Wed, 13 Feb 2002, Doc wrote: > Congratulations. What does "chuffed" mean? "Happy"... well, in this case "really happy", as I've been after a VAX for yonks (a long time) :-) Thanks to those who answered, and those who didn't but silently cursed "RTFM" :-) I came across the OpenVMS online docs yesterday... Cheers Al. [late reply because I get the daily digest]

23 years, 10 months

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@@Rare@@Look@@ you can't pass this up!!!! :-)

by CAA007216＠mail.ono.es

?????????? :-))) Greetings ----- Mensaje Original ----- Remitente: Chad Fernandez <fernande(a)internet1.net> Fecha: Jueves, Febrero 14, 2002 9:38 am Asunto: @@Rare@@Look@@ you can't pass this up!!!! :-) > Silly isn't it :-) >

23 years, 10 months

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SOL-20 keyboard (fwd)

by donm＠cts.com

As you will note, Barry authorized this posting. - don ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2002 17:24:45 -0500 From: Barry A. Watzman <Watzman(a)neo.rr.com> To: 'Don Maslin' <donm(a)cts.com> Subject: RE: SOL-20 keyboard I won't but you may if you want to. Barry -----Original Message----- From: Don Maslin [mailto:donm@cts.com] Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2002 1:05 AM To: Barry A. Watzman Subject: Re: SOL-20 keyboard On Tue, 12 Feb 2002, Barry A. Watzman wrote: > By the way, in 1977 I made and sold a SOL-20 keyboard modification kit > that included a new ROM for the keyboard and new keytops. The new ROM > made the high order bit of the numeric keypad keys a "1" instead of a > "0". This made it possible to distinguish between the keys in the > numeric keypad and the numeric keys in the top row of the normal > keyboard (in the stock keyboard, these different keys produced exactly > the same output). This was transparent to normal applications because > they normally did an "ANI 7FH" anyway, stripping this bit, but it > could be used by an application if the application wanted to do so. > The new keytops had word processing legends instead of numbers, and > really was made for the "Electric Pencil" and "Wordstar" word > processors. The keytops were actually made by Keytronic (I had to pay > tooling charges, about $1,000 (those were 1977 dollars, it was about > one-fourth the price of a new car)) and and matched the SOL keyboard > exactly. > > I have a few of these kits left in a box in the basement. If anyone > wants them, they are $25. What I'm not sure of is if I have the > installation instructions anywhere. > > [If anyone takes me up on this, I'm actually going to have to FIND that > box, which may be easier said than done.]

23 years, 10 months

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nice find - now I have a PDP-11/93 question

by GOOI＠oce.nl

Hi all. Many times I read with envy those phantastic finds in the US. Now it is my time to get lucky: - several 8- and 16-line serial MUXen with distr. panels - Q-Bus Centronics printer interface with connector - SC-08 Q-Bus (dual) SCSI controller (MSCP/TMSCP compatible) with the Emulex doc and the rear connector panel - KDJ11-A manual (0.5 inch thick) - LA120 (with flaky electronics and both pin-feeds bands broken) - PDP-11/73 with TK50, RD54 (Maxtor) disk and 2 M7551 memory boards (but when powered up produced the smell of burning paper ...) - PDP-11/93 (M8981-BA) but without documentation. AFAIK, the 11/93 was the fastest DIGITAL PDP-11, so I consider this a nice addition to my collection. Since the chassis only contained in slot 1 A-B: M8981 PDP-11/93 in slot 2 A-B: M8047 grant continuity in slot 3 A-B: M7546 TK50 controller and the PSU of course, I moved the TK50 and the RD54 from the 11/73 into the 11/93 and added in slot 4, position A-B, the RQDX3 (M7555). On the M8981 are 8 diagnostic LEDs, from top to bottom a yellow, 3 red LEDs, a green and 3 red ones again. I call them yellow, red 1-2-3, green, red 4-5-6. When the system is turned on (with HALT button in) the display on the backpanel reads "7.7." and all LEDs on the CPU module are on. When I push the HALT button out and press the RESTART button, the display reads "0.4." and the LEDs are as follows: yellow - on red 1 - off red 2 - off red 3 - off green - on red 4 - on red 5 - off red 6 - off. What does this mean? BTW I connected a VT set at 9600 Bd to the console DB-25 connector. Nothing appears on the screen. The DIP switches on the backpanel are set as follows: (left) (right) +-----------------+ | # # | | # # # # # # | +-----------------+ Last piece of information I can think of is the backplane. It is an H9278-A. Reading what I have written, I come to think that I forgot to check jumpers/DIP switches on the M8981 board itself .... If necessary I can tell that tomorrow. TIA - Henk. http://home.hetnet.nl/~tshaj

23 years, 10 months

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Working with useful computers (was: What's your specialty?)

by mtapley＠swri.edu

Sellam touched off a firestorm of responses: >Ok, now's your chance to discuss your specialty and get the attention of >other folks who have stuff that you may want. Sellam, you *are* keeping a list of these answers, right? If anyone is brave enough to declare themselves a specialist, they ought to get questions about their "specialty" directed to them. Mine (am I really that brave? Sigh): --------- Dec Rainbow (see also Jeff Armstrong, or Tony Duell) Own a 100A with 8087 board, VR201 and VR240 monitors, tech doc set, some software NeXT (I'm *definitely* not the only or best one of these on the list) Own an 040 cube, OD often works, floppy, Laserprinter, NS3.0 and 3.3 and a 1.0 OD, Mathematica 2.2 and 3.0, WriteNow, various other SW R. D. Davis asked: >How many here still work, for an >income, with the types of vintage systems they collect? > > ..Out > of curiosity, how many others here absolutely refuse to work for an > employer requiring one to work with those confounded annoyances called > Micro$oft products? The NeXT does most of my analysis and coding, a Mac PB3400 does most of the rest, various Unix Boxen and Macs do what's left. A hand-me-down Power Mac 8500 with Oriffice 2000 translates to sylk or .pdf when I recieve tainted files from co-workers. I work pretty hard at not using Micro$oft (and advocating abstinence) but I admit to bending at times. - Mark

23 years, 10 months

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SyQuest drive compatibility

by vcf＠vintage.org

Here's a good FAQ on SyQuest drives that answered my question regarding whether or not a 44MB drive was compatible with an 88MB drive was compatible with a 200MB drive. The bottom line is that the original 88MB drive could only read a 44, not write to it. People got pissed, so SyQuest came out with an 88c ('c' for "combination") that could both read and write 44MB disks. The 200MB drive can read/write/initialize 44/88/200MB disks. -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 10 months

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Compaq portable to good home

by vcf＠vintage.org

Contact Peter directly if you are interested. Reply-to: <banjoman9(a)hotmail.com> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2002 12:15:38 From: Peter Finucane <banjoman9(a)hotmail.com> Subject: computers I have several bits and pieces including a working Compaq portable from about late sixties early seventies. Although "portable" it is heavy and about the weight(and looks like) a portable sewing machine. It has a built in 5 inch screen,integral keyboard and operates on two 5 1/4 floppy discs. I live in Southern England and would be prepared to donate this if someone was willing to collect it. I also have a working IBM 286 with monitor from about 1988, again I will donate. Please advise if you are interested or can put me in touch with someone who is. Pete Finucane (banjoman) -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 10 months

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Need docs & drivers for old tape drives

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Sellam Ismail [mailto:foo@siconic.com] > to be able to read just about anything, but writing isn't as critical. > Usually when someone wants data converted these days, they > want it on CD > or 3.5" floppy. Do you plan to read tk50, QIC-1000, 9-track? What about the SyQuest removables that were so common on Macintosh systems? Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

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Need docs & drivers for old tape drives

by mythtech＠Mac.com

>I'm looking for PC docs & drivers for old tape drives. I already have >everything I need for Colorado tape drives, so I'm looking for older, more >obscure stuff from the 80s. If anyone's got ANYTHING like this, for any >type of tape drive (QIC, digital cassette, whatever) please let me know. I have a Conner Tape-Store 800 with docs and drivers (drivers disks appear to be BackUp Exec for windows) I also have an Iomege Tape250 Insider with docs and drivers. What exactly are you looking for? (ie: did you want them, or just copies, or just wanted to know something about them). They are both in use right now, so I don't know if I am apt to just give them away. -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 10 months

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Is this a IBM RT mouse?

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On January 28, Doc wrote: > > Yup, that's it! Anyone claimed it yet? I'd like it for my RT. > > I think, therefore I am dangerous > > Well, I fired off an email asking for it Saturday, and haven't heard > back. So, I hope *I* got first dibs.... Me too. We could all meet somewhere and fight for it. :) -Dave, grunt grunt -- Dave McGuire St. Petersburg, FL "Less talk. More synthohol." --Lt. Worf

23 years, 10 months

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4.4BSD-Lite binaries for SPARC and PMAX

by jkunz＠unixag-kl.fh-kl.de

Hi. I plan to do a BSD exhibition at the VCFE. Main focus is 4.3BSD{,-Tahoe,-Reno} on VAXen. But I want to show 4.4BSD-Lite on HP300, SPARC and PMAX too. I have the 4.4BSD-Lite HP300 binaries, but nothing for SPARC and PMAX. Are there any binaries still around? I don't want to struggle with a SPARC and PMAX bootstrap... Ahh, and 4.2BSD-Reno for HP300 is missing too... -- tsch??, Jochen Homepage: http://www.unixag-kl.fh-kl.de/~jkunz/

23 years, 10 months

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VMS help file

by alan.pearson＠cramer.com

Last night I finally got a cable sorted (thanks Pete!) to connect the VS3100 to a "VT52" (Atari ST running the emulator!), and was chuffed to find it's a healthy 16Mb Model 30 with two hard disks and VMS 5.5-2 installed. Unfortunately my old mate "HELP" doesn't want to play with me any more: $ HELP %HELP-F-OPENIN, error opening SYS$COMMON:[SYSHLP]HELPLIB.HLB as input Rats. I was pretty much counting on HELP working to help dust off the cobwebs :-) I'm guessing it's not installed because the machine was configured to boot >from the network (ESA0). A SHOW DEV revealed a couple of disks ("DKA200" and "DKA300") and luckily it boots VMS from DKA300 no trouble. I reset the SYSTEM password OK, so now I've got a system to play with but no HELP to make life easier :-) So, a few questions to help me on my way: - are there VMS equivalents of 'find' and 'grep' to set loose on the disks to look for this file? - if the help file isn't on either disk, would somebody be able to send me a copy? - I'd like to find out more about how VMS boots, can someone point me at a good website? Finally, at the moment I don't have a suitable CD drive to be able to install the Hobbyist OpenVMS. When VMS boots it displays: %LICENSE-I-EXCEEDED, attempted usage exceeds active license limits Is there a limit to the number of logins allowed after expiry? Am I going to get locked out? :-} Cheers, Al.

23 years, 10 months

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Oh, Happy Day!

by zmerch＠30below.com

Rumor has it that Tothwolf may have mentioned these words: >On Tue, 12 Feb 2002, Roger Merchberger wrote: > >> So, to make sure this stays on-topic (as 90+% of what I'm using this >> for is programming stuff for classic computers) if anyone has (or >> knows where to find) the datafile to program a fresh GAL to fix a gray >> Tandy Multi-Pak adapter (26-3024, IIRC) for CoCo3 usage, I'd be happy >> to burn new GALs for anyone needing them for cost of GAL & shipping. I >> have a Multi-Pak that needs updating, and I dunno if anyone else has >> this ability (or cares) anymore... > >I've got a white 4 cart multipack adapter. What is the difference between >the gray and white ones? The color??? ;-) Just kidding. IIRC, the white paks are 26-3124, and have a soldered-on ASIC which can't be upgraded without external circuitry - someone somewhere on the 'net had a howto on adding a dead-bug 74LS10 to the newer packs to make them CoCo3 compatible. The older packs used a (socketted?) PAL for address decoding, and with the datafile to program a new PAL/GAL it's a drop-in replacement. >> Just one thing left to find... an SMD rework station for around the >> same ($200) mark... (again, so I can make boards for my CoCos...) > >I just found a flux/epoxy dispensing system this last weekend (no >handpiece yet), so I'm just about ready to find a SMT rework station >myself. Maybe I'll find one of those for $0.50 too...well, I can dream >can't I? ;P Like I always say... if you're gonna dream, dream *big*!!! :-) HTH, Roger "Merch" Merchberger -- Roger "Merch" Merchberger --- sysadmin, Iceberg Computers Recycling is good, right??? Ok, so I'll recycle an old .sig. If at first you don't succeed, nuclear warhead disarmament should *not* be your first career choice.

23 years, 10 months

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Motorola Mainframe????

by xds_sigma7＠hotmail.com

There's multiple varieties of what you describe, it uses stackable modules. Was also a rackmount version too. It ran a motorola version of Sys/V, at least the ones I know about did... Also was VME, at least the CPU etc was... for sure existed as both 88k and 68k, I can borrow my friend's motorola product catalog for more info if desired... Will J _________________________________________________________________ Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com

23 years, 10 months

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Londinium

by brian＠quarterbyte.com

> Is there anything noteworthy to see in the London (England) area on > the 23rd ? Ohhhhhhh nooooo. I was writing to say that you have to go see the Cabaret Mechanical Theatre -- Museum of Automata (http://www.cabaret.co.uk) but the "About" page says it's now closed for restoration for a year. Never mind. brian =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- _| _| _| Brian Knittel / Quarterbyte Systems, Inc. _| _| _| Tel: 1-510-559-7930 Fax: 1-510-525-6889 _| _| _| Email: brian(a)quarterbyte.com _| _| _| http://www.quarterbyte.com

23 years, 10 months

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HP 9000/710 docs

by rumi_ml＠rtfm.hu

does anyone have the Owner's Manual or some other docs for the HP 9000 Model 710 Workstation in some electronic form? Thanks, Rumi

23 years, 10 months

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Motorola Mainframe????

by jeff.kaneko＠juno.com

Does it look like the one on this web page? http://www.openbsd.org/mvme88k.html On Wed, 13 Feb 2002 12:25:02 -0500 "Curt Vendel" <curt(a)atari-history.com> writes: > I saw one of these last year, I was I had bought it, kinda look like > a stack > of Micopolis HD cases in dark grey. > > Anyone know anything about those units??? History, OS, h/w and > such. > > > > Curt > > ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/.

23 years, 10 months

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DCA controller

by rschaefe＠gcfn.org

Hey, I've got a DCA controller here in front of me. It's a full-length 8-bit ISA/MCA flippy card, with 1 BNC & 1 RJ-11 (4P4C) ports on it. One sticker says `*LA 0006E1*' and one says `003581 REV.A' A little googling indicates this might be some sort of 3270 controller, but I couldn't find anything to confirm this. Anyone know what it is/want it? Bob

23 years, 10 months

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SGI build quality (was RE: great site)

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Feb 13, 10:34, Tim wrote: > On an only slightly related note, IMHO the build quality and general > longevity of Silicon Graphics hardware really isn't what you'd hope > of kit that cost so much new... > > I've seen Sun boxes that have been through the mill several times by > the look of things, but flick the switch and you're up and running > (possibility of needing to solder a battery onto the PROM > notwithstanding.) Doesn't sound like you've looked at many recent Suns. The Ultra5 and later are built like cheap PCs. Not at all like the older ones. > Personal (limited, I grant you ;-) experience of Indys on the other > hand suggest you need at least 3 candidates handy if you want to put > together a working combination of power supply, processor and mobo/PROM. I've not had much trouble with them. I have three of my own, and was responsible for "tidying up", reconfiguring, and reselling several dozen at work. I admit the Nidex PSUs have a bad reputation, but I've only had two (or maybe three) fail out of nearly 100 machines. You do know that a few of the later graphics boards need 005, 008 or 010 PROMs? Same applies to certain CPUs (the R5K needs an 010, for example, and that comes with the upgrade kit). > Which isn't to say I don't love 'em, an Indy is my main workstation at > home & the sight of SGI rapidly going down the tubes is deeply sad... I spent this afternoon splitting an Origin 2000 apart to sell part of it off :-( -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 10 months

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Amstrad's email phone and Spectrums

by ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk

A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text Size: 707 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://www.classiccmp.org/pipermail/cctalk/attachments/20020213/bbaac8ac/at…

23 years, 10 months

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SGI build quality (was RE: great site)

by timwa＠snowgoons.fsnet.co.uk

Bill Bradford wrote: > On Wed, Feb 13, 2002 at 10:34:31AM +0000, Tim wrote: >> I also don't think I've yet forgiven SGI for making the power >> supply (simple slide-in/slide-out with two thumbscrews) on the O2000 >> a non user replaceable part - i.e. they won't sell you one without >> a service contract and an engineer round to plug it in. > You sure about that? I had to replace a bad PSU on an O2K in '99; > called SGI, shipped them the power supply, they shipped one back... In the UK, in 2000, they wouldn't ship a power supply without an attendant engineer to perform the complex task of undoing the thumbscrews. (With the attendant cost, as well - of course...) Whether this was global policy or just a local thing, or just SGI being bloody minded for the sake of it I wouldn't like to comment :-). Of course, when said engineer did come round, he cheered me up immensely with "Oh, yes, this model of PSU was known to be bad, they always blow; the replacement should be fine." Well great, thanks for telling me when I needed to know... I also forgot to mention the sheer awfulness of IRIX in my previous list of gripes... Anyone else had to deal with a corrupt XFS filesystem on a production machine? "Excuse me, my XFS filesystem is corrupt and I need it fixed," "well, XFS can't get corrupted so we don't have any tools to repair it." "OK, lets pretend XFS isn't corrupt but that IRIX panics every time it reads a particular directory entry, how do I repair it?" "Sorry, XFS cannot be corrupt, so there is no way to repair it..." Cue a long night of restoring from backups :-(. Fortunately for Sun, there ain't any SGI systems still in production use round my end of the world any more... Cheers, Tim. -- Tim Walls at home in Croydon - Reply to tim(a)snowgoons.fsnet.co.uk

23 years, 10 months

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VMS help file

by Antonio.Carlini＠riverstonenet.com

> Congratulations. What does "chuffed" mean? Happy (as a lark) Antonio

23 years, 10 months

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small-shop management was Taking control of your collection

by mythtech＠Mac.com

> But wouldn't I need the full FMP installed on the old IBM machine ? Since >this is a neighborly freeby I'm not about to put out big bucks for an >install. There is a developer version of FMP that lets you create runtime solutions, that you can distribute royalty free (you are allowed to charge any amount you want for your database solutions and don't have to pay FMP a dime past the cost of the dev kit). However, that developer version last time I checked is about $500 (that was the price when I bought it, it might have gone up or down slightly since, but figure around there). If this is just a "neighborly freeby" like you say, then I would agree, $500 is WAY too much to spend... as is $200 for a regular single copy of FMP. Depending on your needs, one of the FMP versions has been released as freeware. I *think* it is version 3, which would be good as it is relational and has decent scripting... but I can't seem to turn up any info on it. It might be version 2.1 that was released as freeware, in which case don't bother... it has no relational abilities so doing database linking gets to be VERY messy. If you want to poke around to find the free version, all I recall is some time back, FileMaker Inc released one of the versions free with a few magazine CDs (which I guess might not technically make it freeware, but rather just super cheap purchased... but I would think it would fall into enough of a grey zone that you could get away with using it if you can find a copy). I will keep hunting, and if I turn up any good info, I'll let you know. -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 10 months

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OT: But too funny...

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> Douglas Quebbeman wrote: > > > Seriously, Outlook isn't the source of the stated problems; half-assed, > > self-taught, sycophantic sysadmins who can't secure their systems are! > > Is that true, or has network management gotten to the point that it > takes the equivilent of a PhD to be able to manage the thing? I don't have a PhD; it took me seven years to get an associate degree (well, you don't get credits for partying, and they were no yet offering a bachelor's degree). You just have to realize it's not just a mailer but a programmable platform and secure it accordingly. Regards, -dq

23 years, 10 months

1
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Classic Comp UUCP network.

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Owen Robertson [mailto:univac2@earthlink.net] > would welcome the opportunity to be an active participant in its > development. My only question is (question, not criticism): Why UUCP? Ehh -- good question. Why not? I, for one, would be open to any similar method of communication. FIDO, maybe? :) UUCP is just what springs to my own mind. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

6
6
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Taking control of your collection (small-shop management)

by mtapley＠swri.edu

"Lawrence Walker" <lgwalker(a)mts.net> said: > So now I'm trying to set up a program using an old copy of >Paradox for Windows. (Yeah I know many other OS are better but M-Sloth >is what they'll be exposed to in this world) "This world" depends on what you give them, in this case, since they (from your description) don't have heritage or outside interaction with computers to consider. Thoughts: 1) You won't be around forever (no offense intended). 2) They may have to maintain or replace the system, or decide to upgrade, themselves. If you use Mac OS 7-9 on a used Mac and go with a used copy of Filemaker instead of Paradox, they are *far* more likely to be able to maintain the program themselves, and far more likely to be able to acquire new hardware (if the old one dies) without having to replace the software as well. Note that FM is currently cross-platform, so if they later decide to go Winders, they can. I don't know the cost of hardware and software to you, so maybe lack of availability of Mac's or copies of Filemaker makes this not an option, but you would be doing them a *real* favor to get them off MICROS~1 right at the start. Disclaimer: I don't run a business, so I may not know what I'm talking about. Anybody knowledgable here, please chime in. I think this is a *vital* topic for classic-computers, BTW, as keeping the machines productive is far and away the best way to keep them alive and known. The upgrade path availability is admittedly slightly off-topic, but relevant to the discussion. - Mark

23 years, 10 months

2
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great site

by Adrian.Graham＠corporatemicrosystems.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Sellam Ismail [mailto:foo@siconic.com] > Sent: 12 February 2002 09:00 > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > Subject: RE: great site > Unfortunately, a lot of pictures were posted that shouldn't have been. > What you're referring to were pictures that were taken of my > collection Aaah! That makes sense. No wonder I thought I'd struck museum paydirt! > The site is undergoing renovation but if you want something badly and > aren't getting a response, let me know and I'll get the > message through to the right people. OK then. I'll give them a test with an Exidy Sorceror, Memotech RS128 and an HH Tiger. *grin* a www.binarydinosaurs.co.uk

23 years, 10 months

1
0
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"Mindset" machine?

by doc＠mdrconsult.com

I came across a desktop something-or-other today with radiused front and rear faces, about 18"x13"x2.25", 2 1.5"x2"x5" sokets in the front edge with some kind of cartridge in one, and "MINDSET" embossed on the front side. I didn't have a flashlight, so I couldn't read the FCC label. Does that sound familiar to anyone? Doc

23 years, 10 months

6
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Old HP Scanner

by tractorb＠ihug.co.nz

Thanks to all for the information re the above. Turns out it is basically a dog unless I can get the wierd special interface card which is scarcer than the proverbial rocking-horse excrement. There's a remote chance it was still where the scanner came from but I'm probably too late now. I won't throw it out just yet though- will put it with all the other 'computer trash' - just in case.... ('Oh Lord' sez spouse of 30 plus years who still can't get the car in the garage!) And the connector WAS a 36 pin standard Centronics style printer connector- enjoyed all the discussion though! Tks all Dave Brown Christchurch NZ

23 years, 10 months

1
0
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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: James L. Rice [mailto:jrice@texoma.net] > Watch out for semiconducting tape. I had one electrician working for > me, who wrapped all of the splices on a entire job with leftover > semiconducting tape. When we megged the leads, every one showed a > direct short to ground. The guy had over 20 years > experience, but was > in over his head on that one. *ouch* I don't remember having seen semiconducting tape. Does it look a lot like normal vinyl tape? :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

3
2
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SCSI Bus Problem?

by jhfine＠idirect.com

Sellam - this one is racked in a tower box as well with TEN 5 1/4" half height drive bays - is that what you are using? I can't begin to imagine TEN 5 1/4" FULL HEIGHT drive bays, but if that is what you really meant, then I guess this box is only half the size. But in addition to the 6 SCSI drives listed below, there are: two EIDE 40 GByte hard drives - eventually to be expanded to four one 3 1/2" floppy 1.44 MByte one 5 1/4" floppy 1.2 MByte one IDE CDRW burner one IDE CDROM Total drives = 12 the 2 (eventually 4) EIDE drives are hanging on two brackets OUTSIDE the box - so I can see the LEDs flash on them - the LEDs are on the bottom of the drive in the middle. The drives are hanging from secure solid brackets at the 90 degree angle orientation so they stick out only a total of 1 1/4" from the box - very little torque on the brackets. This idea was from a recent suggestion about hanging drives from convenient locations inside the box - thank you (I forget who gave the suggestion - I simply extended it to hanging the drives outside). I have been able to do the following with a single internal SCSI cable that is terminated via an active external terminator (#1 configuration): SCSI hard drive #0 FAT32 - ID=0 SCSI hard drive #1 FAT32 - ID=1 SCSI hard drive #2 FAT32 - ID=2 SCSI Iomega Zip Drive - ID=4 SCSI CDROM Drive #0 - ID=5 SCSI CDROM Drive #1 - ID=6 It all boots and work fine under W98. I can also use an external cable as well (#2 configuration - includes #1): Sony SMO S501 - ID=0 Sony SMO S501 - ID=1 Sony SMO S501 - ID=2 (this one only is terminated) In this case, I MUST remove both SCSI CDROM drives from the internal cable (not just power them down), but ONLY power down the three SCSI hard drives. This also boots and works fine. On many occasions, I wish to switch between the three Sony drives and the three SCSI hard drives. Since W98 and the device drivers think that the Sony drives are removable, none of the software complains if I switch off (i.e. JUST turn off the power) the Sony drives and power on the SCSI hard drives - no cables are added or removed and I use a spare PC power supply for SCSI hard drives, so the internal power supply for the PC is not affected. This all works fine and since it is the minimum configuration that I need right now, I am VERY pleased and satisfied. Question: Can anyone suggest why I must remove the SCSI CDROM drives from the internal SCSI cable before I can attach the external cable with the three Sony drives - otherwise W98 does not complete the boot? Hint: If I attempt to boot with the same configuration as #2 (i.e. with the 3 Sony drives attached via the external cable) but now with the 3 Sony drives turned off and the 3 SCSI hard drives turned on, I also can't boot - i.e. if I want to be able to switch between the Sony drives and the SCSI hard drives, I must boot with the Sony drives powered on and the SCSI hard drives powered off - and the SCSI CDROM drives removed from the SCSI internal cable. Please don't say I am not allowed to switch between the Sony and the SCSI hard drives in the first place - that is something I often require - it works and I am satisfied - if it ever stops working on future systems, I will obviously need to find a solution. ================================================= A note added this morning. My son#3 suggested that I eliminate the external cable completely. Just attach a connecting cable to the end of the internal 50 pin flat cable (remove the active terminator) to the external Sony drives (my case will always be run with the sides off) and put the active terminator at the end of the Sony daisy chain (instead of having that last Sony drive apply termination - so that when I turn off the Sony drives and power on the SCSI hard drives termination will still be there). This all works just fine. Except that when I boot >from a floppy to be able to copy a GHOST backup file from a CD to the D: hard drive, I must unplug the power from the SCSI CD internal drives as only TWO CDROM drives are recognized by the floppy when DOS from W98 boots. Since the SCSI CD internal drives are OT (10 years old and slow), I certainly want to use the "newer" IDE CDROM drives which are much faster. The reason that I will just copy the GHOST back-up file to the D: hard drive is that GHOST will not work when I boot with CDROM support - after I do the copy from the CD to the D: hard drive, I must boot again without CDROM support in order to run GHOST. All in all, the restrictions was very few. I now can now normally boot with all four CDROM drives and the three Sony drives. Or if the Sony drives are off, then I can boot with the three SCSI hard drives turned on and they will be recognized as permanent had drives with correct FAT32 file structures (I did need to do an FDISK). Of course, in this latter case, I can't switch to the Sony drives. The only time that I need to do something a bit unusual is to unplug the internal power to the two SCSI CDROM drives when I boot from a floppy and I want to copy a file from a CD to the D: drive - and then only because of the time it takes with the old SCSI CDROM drives as opposed to the new IDE CDROM drives. Question: Is there agreement that the probable cause of the original problem when there was both an external and an internal cable was likely to do with termination? But is there a specific explanation as to why the SCSI CDROM drives needed to be removed from the SCSI 50 pin internal flat cable when the three Sony drives were plugged into the external cable? 'Tis a puzzle, but now a satisfactory solution has been found.

23 years, 10 months

17
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cdburners (Web site downloaders)

by mtapley＠swri.edu

Lawrence LeMay <lemay(a)cs.umn.edu> asked: > Somewhat out of question, but does anyone know of any software that would > download a web site, or a portion, to a local disk? Chris answered: > I think the other app that I have heard recommended (I >use iCab myself), is called Site Sucker, or Web Sucker, one of those... WebWhacker came with the OS (mmmm... 7.6?) on my PB3400. It seemed OK, though I did not exercise it much. - Mark

23 years, 10 months

1
0
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DCA controller

by fmc＠reanimators.org

"Robert Schaefer" <rschaefe(a)gcfn.org> wrote: > Hey, I've got a DCA controller here in front of me. It's a full-length > 8-bit ISA/MCA flippy card, with 1 BNC & 1 RJ-11 (4P4C) ports on it. One > sticker says `*LA 0006E1*' and one says `003581 REV.A' A little googling > indicates this might be some sort of 3270 controller, but I couldn't find > anything to confirm this. Anyone know what it is/want it? I haven't seen the thing in years, but Wollongong had something like this in the QA lab. Made by DCA, ISA on one edge, MCA on the opposite, with a daughterboard that plugs into one side or the other depending on which bus you want it to ride. Oh, and it had two different back plates (one for MCA, one for ISA); you attached the appropriate one to the daughterboard. I don't remember what connectors it had poking out the back. Anyway, it was an Ethernet interface. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that they made IRMA 3270 interfaces this way too. What does surprise me is that Attachmate (who bought DCA) appears to still sell something like this: the "IRMA 3 Convertible Adapter". http://www.attachmate.com/products/profile/0,1016,416_1,00.html -Frank McConnell

23 years, 10 months

1
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great site

by halarewich＠shaw.ca

that sells old computer stuff http://www.aftermathtechnologies.com/index.html ce ya Chris H

23 years, 10 months

7
8
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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: r. 'bear' stricklin [mailto:red@bears.org] > On Tue, 12 Feb 2002, Christopher Smith wrote: > That's a shitty answer. > That being said, I concede the point. Well, my father was an electrician, and I was raised with stories of incredibly non-compliant I-can't-believe-it-doesn't-melt wiring schemes... Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

2
1
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OT: Parallal-USB adapter

by rcini＠optonline.net

Hello, all: Has anyone used the USB to parallel port adapter cables for homebrew projects? I'm wondering if it can truly function as a parallel adapter for a non-printer application (a LCD display hack) and if anyone has done this. Rich Rich Cini Collector of classic computers Build Master for the Altair32 Emulation Project Web site: http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/ /************************************************************/

23 years, 10 months

1
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great site

by Adrian.Graham＠corporatemicrosystems.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: chris halarewich [mailto:halarewich@shaw.ca] > Sent: 12 February 2002 11:19 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: great site > > > that sells old computer stuff > http://www.aftermathtechnologies.com/index.html It would've been a greater site if it'd had let me spend money and not just tell me half the things I wanted were reserved. Mmmm boxed Magnavox Odyssey.....had 3 of 'em too. a www.binarydinosaurs.co.uk

23 years, 10 months

3
2
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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: David Woyciesjes [mailto:DAW@yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu] > Oh boy! What did I do! I was just trying to make up an > example of > dumb-ass electricians! At least this thread does relate to > Classic Computer > Collecting... Well, a common problem I've seen three or four times personally is to wire the neutral and earth swapped. This causes all manner of trouble for UPS systems. They don't like it at all. :) I've also seen wires taped together with incredibly not-good-at-insulating masking tape, causing a high-resistance (if you're very, very lucky) short. Last one of those I found was when I went to change a light bulb, and wondered why the ceiling felt all tingly. Joking aside, I'm lucky the ceiling tile was between me and the wires. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

4
3
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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Tothwolf [mailto:tothwolf@concentric.net] > Needless to say, a 20A system (max inrush) running from a 15A > outlet/circuit just does not seem all that safe. I put the > proper plug on > the cord just this weekend, since I got one in with that > weekends haul. Well, isn't the breaker on the SGI desksides 16A? I suppose, in that case, that they'd be relatively safe on a 16A "air conditioner" circuit, or the like, but 15A is living dangerously. :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

4
4
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Monday Haul

by doc＠mdrconsult.com

And I do mean "haul". I found the stash at work today, and dragged it home. I had already copped the DEC 3000/300x Friday, and my boss told me he thought there was some more of that stuff around somewhere. So I snarked it. 3 DEC 3000/300x 2 untested as yet, w 2xRZ26E each and looks like 64M RAM also MAGMA 2+1 TC (serial/parallel adapter?) 1 w/2xRZ26E and 80M RAM. no MAGMA booting OSF/1 v3.2, Oracle 1 Mouse/KBD breakout w/mouse. 1 DEC SZ12 expansion unit with an RZ58 and a Seagate ST32430N 1 DEC MicroVAX 3100-90 w/serious problems - system board looks like it was wet & powered up. :o( Boots to console, but gets errors at several checkpoints and ends up with "normal operation not possible". Haven't done much trouble-shooting. Looks like 128M RAM *** RRD42 - with "OpenVMS v6.2 Binaries 1 of 1" in caddy! 2xRZ26-E 1G RZ26L-E 1G 3 DEC MicroVAX 3100-80 1) 72M RZ25-E 425M No OS 2) 40M TLZ06 4mm DAT 2xRZ25-E @425M OpenVMS 6.2 3) 40M TLZ06 4mm DAT 3xDSP3107 @1G OpenVMS 6.2 RZ26-E OpenVMS 6.0 1 VSXXX-AA Mouse untested 1 VSXXX-AB Graphics Tablet & Puck. untested, and haven't found the Stylus yet. Do the RZ26-E drives always sound like a gravel-crusher, or are all these toast? All this cool stuff, and the other day I was heavily lusting after an MV3100-30 on eBay, and right now I'm just p*ssed because the '90 is broken. Spoiled, huh? Doc

23 years, 10 months

5
6
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QT13 on a VS3200

by pat＠purdueriots.com

I'm trying to get my brand new (to me) Emulex QT13 working on my QBus VAXstation 3200, and am having some troubles. When I have the card set to MicroVAX mode, it doesn't get recognized by the hardware. When I set it to LSI-11 mode, it gets recognized, but doesn't seem to work. I've tried both TSV05 and TMSCP emulations, and neither one will seem to work. I've even run the on-card diagnostics, and haven't had any success getting the card to recognize the drive, either (it just waits a few seconds and then says *** TAPE ERROR ***). I've tried swaping the data cables to the drive, with no luck in getting it to work. Help! -- Pat

23 years, 10 months

1
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Freight again

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Russ Blakeman [mailto:rhb57@vol.com] > Ever thought to take a plane/train/bus to Mass (Doesn't Amtrack run to > Chicago still from Shampoo-Banana?) and once you get there Yep, thought about that. The problem is that I guess it will likely take more than a weekend to do it. I could try to get a day off of work, but I'd really rather not do that. Another option is to send somebody else. I know a few people crazy enough to try it... who knows. > If Amtrak doesn't come from C-U, I know there are commuter > planes from the > C-U airport to both Midway and O'hare and Greyhound should > still run there. Yep -- all true, though it still may be a longer trip than I'd like to make. > be the best in this case. truckers won't appreciate the > equipment and will > charge big bux for crating and handling as well. Well, I'd hope they won't go out of their way to screw it up. ;) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

3
2
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HP-HIL adapter

by doc＠mdrconsult.com

I'm not sure this is quite 10 years old, but.... I have an HP Apollo 9000/735 with the infamous HIL kbd/mouse port. I've been running the thing headless since I got it because I can't bring myself to pay the asking price for the "Localization Kits" out there. I've run across references to & pictures of an adapter that converts HP-HIL to 2 PS/2 ports. Does anyone have the pinouts/schematic for this critter? Or have one they don't want? Aquiring minds just want. Doc

23 years, 10 months

7
13
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The most bit slice CPUs on one card

by aek＠spies.com

Last weekl someone was asking about the greatest number of bit slice CPUs that they'd ever seen on a card. I know this isn't the record but today I picked up two card with six 2901s on them. The surprise is that there's also an 8008 on the same card! -- Sounds like some sort of 24 bit processor (SEL ?) DEC floating point processor boards for the 11/34 and 44 have a bunch.

23 years, 10 months

1
0
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"Programmer's Panel" for disk drives

by Innfogra＠aol.com

Magnetic Peripherals made the CDC 9" drive line 9715 IIRC. Could be a tester for that. Look at the cables. They should be SMD. (26 pin & 60 Pin) I think it is worth saving but I have none of the drives any more. Paxton Astoria, OR

23 years, 10 months

1
0
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The most bit slice CPUs on one card

by rigdonj＠cfl.rr.com

Last weekl someone was asking about the greatest number of bit slice CPUs that they'd ever seen on a card. I know this isn't the record but today I picked up two card with six 2901s on them. The surprise is that there's also an 8008 on the same card! Joe

23 years, 10 months

2
1
0 0

Freight again

by csmith＠amdocs.com

Hi guys. I'm seriously considering (to the point of looking for a shipping arrangement) picking up that Prime system that was offered here recently. Any ideas? The system is in Waltham Mass, and I'm in Champaign, IL. I'd love to hear from somebody going this direction sometime soon, otherwise, what is a good shipping company to use? I would have to arrange pickup and delivery, myself, which I've never done before, so assume I know nothing about this. Also, U-Haul probably isn't a desirable option. :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

2
1
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Dumpster in the alley.

by Robert_Feldman＠jdedwards.com

Location: Chicago, Illinois, Wabash and Lake Streets, behind Harold Washington College. What: a 20 foot construction dumpster being loaded at this moment (8:00 AM CST) with PC's, mainly PS/2 30's and 50's. They're literally tossing them into the dumpster. :( Bob

23 years, 10 months

3
3
0 0

Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

Oh boy! What did I do! I was just trying to make up an example of dumb-ass electricians! At least this thread does relate to Classic Computer Collecting... --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash > ---------- > From: r. 'bear' stricklin > > On Tue, 12 Feb 2002, Tothwolf wrote: > > > You won't find a 16A breaker in a branch circuit. You'd likely see a 15A > > breaker (residential, probably 14Ga, maybe 12Ga wire), or a 20A breaker > > (12Ga or 10Ga wire). A 15A circuit would not be safe at all, while a 20A > > *might* be ok, but the system could still overload the receptacle and > plug > > since they are still only rated for 15A. > > Wait a minute, isn't the only physical difference between NEMA 5-15 (110V, > 15A) and 5-20 (110V, 20A) that one pin is rotated 90 degrees? In this > case, since residential electrical code would mandate wiring capable of > delivering 20A service on a circuit protected by a 20A breaker, wouldn't > you say that the principle reason for NEMA 5-20 existing be to prevent > user error more than anything else? > > ok > r. > >

23 years, 10 months

1
0
0 0

Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: r. 'bear' stricklin [mailto:red@bears.org] > Wait a minute, isn't the only physical difference between > NEMA 5-15 (110V, > 15A) and 5-20 (110V, 20A) that one pin is rotated 90 degrees? In this > case, since residential electrical code would mandate wiring > capable of > delivering 20A service on a circuit protected by a 20A > breaker, wouldn't > you say that the principle reason for NEMA 5-20 existing be to prevent > user error more than anything else? Who's to say that all wiring is done in a manner compliant with residential electric code? ;) It's better to be safe, especially where electricity is concerned. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

2
1
0 0

Dumpster in the alley. (Chicago)

by Robert_Feldman＠jdedwards.com

I went back downstairs at about 9:00, and a trash picker was _tossing_ PC's into the bed of his beat-up pickup, which he had backed up next to the dumpster. Went back out at 11:00, and the dumpster had been hauled away. Probably land fill by now :( Bob -----Original Message----- From: Tothwolf [mailto:tothwolf@concentric.net] Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2002 2:36 PM To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org Subject: Re: Dumpster in the alley. (Chicago) On Tue, 12 Feb 2002, Julius Sridhar wrote: > On Tue, 12 Feb 2002 CARL.P.HIRSCH(a)sargentlundy.com wrote: > > > It's a shame they're 286's and can't even run Linux... > > They are 286's and they *can* run Linux? Anyway, these aren't your > everyday standard piece-o-shit PC's. AT the very least, some of the MCA boards, drives, memory, and power supplies could be useful to some people. Hrm, that's nearly a complete system isn't it? ;) -Toth

23 years, 10 months

1
0
0 0

great site

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: John Allain [mailto:allain@panix.com] > > ...The web information is stale... > - - - > > ...{items were} trashed internally. > > ...There was a shipping mix-up on that item > > ...Needless to say, it wouldn't power up when I got it > > ...They're a little slow in responding. > Let's see... > The item was broken, misdelivered Again, this wasn't exactly their fault, and they did do their best to fix the problem with the indy, which is likely to have been caused by shipping. In the other case, I purchased the LD player with the understanding that since they had no LDs to check it, I had to buy it as is. > and service was poor (slow). Slow... can't argue with that, but having worked with volunteer organizations in the past, I can understand that they're likely to be way understaffed. I wouldn't equate slow service with poor service, though. > What's _Your_ time worth, anyway? Whatever I make of it. As I said, the misdelivery was probably an exceptional case. I'm satisfied that they did their best to correct the problem, and I'm certainly willing to try them again. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

1
0
0 0

Freight again

by ceby2＠csc.com

Chris -- Ping me off list, I might be able to help at least for loading. My office is in Waltham. Regards, Colin Eby Senior Consultant CSC Consulting

23 years, 10 months

1
0
0 0

Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Tothwolf [mailto:tothwolf@concentric.net] > On Tue, 12 Feb 2002, Christopher Smith wrote: > > Well, isn't the breaker on the SGI desksides 16A? > It is, but I don't think I want to push the limits that close. Well, me neither, but the point is that if your wire will handle it, most houses have 20A breakers. :) Chances are it would be ok on a 16A dedicated line, or a nominally 15A circuit with nothing else plugged in. (depending on wiring, of course) > You won't find a 16A breaker in a branch circuit. You'd > likely see a 15A Well, what I meant here was a dedicated circuit designed to carry 16A, which likely would (obviously) have a breaker that's rated higher... I have encountered them in a couple of houses before, usually for air conditioning, refrigerators, etc. > *might* be ok, but the system could still overload the > receptacle and plug > since they are still only rated for 15A. True enough -- unless they aren't. > SGI actually rated these systems for a dedicated 20A branch circuit. At any rate, that's probably the safest way to go. Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

1
0
0 0

T2200SX HardDrive setup in cmos

by mrgray＠gil.com.au

I have put an 120mb HDD in my T2200sx an the cmos can not see it. Can anyone help me

23 years, 10 months

2
1
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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

> ---------- > From: Robert F Schaefer > > >> ---------- > >> From: Robert F Schaefer > >> > >> > You want to know why this message subject immediately jumped out > >> > an grabbed my attention? > >> > My Wife is the Grainger/National Accounts Coordinator for Hubbell > >> > wiring devices. She's one of the people who tell dumb-*** > >> > electricians that you can't use a 15 amp plug in a 30 amp circuit... > >> > >> Hey! I *don't* resemble that remark. In my experience, it's commonly > >> the > >> > >> owner or the equipment mfgr with their head up their a$$. I've seen > >> some scarey stuff in my few years in the trade. (And you can put a > >> 15 amp plug > >> > >> on a 30 amp circuit-- see NFPA 70 (2002) article 210.21(B)(3) > >> exception no. > >> 2 --not that it comes up often!) > > (After I looked that over again, it reads like I might be pissed-- that's > not the case!) > ---Nah, I knew you weren't pissed. After I wrote it, I realized that I might be a little off in that example... :-) > > Bob --- > > I know, I'm sure you don't :-). But there _are_ some electricians > > out there, who are, well, *out there*. > > I know-- I work with him... ^_^ > > > As for that "15 amp plug - 30 amp circuit" thing, you're right, I > > pulled that example out of my ass [1], but she has dealt with many > > idiot customers trying to do things that are _very_ asinine. I'm > > surprised that some of them haven't managed to kill themselves yet. > > Some people are alive just because it's illegal to stand by and watch them > > kill themselves. It's amazing that some of these people manage to > remember > to breath every day. > > `Don't put your finger in there.' `Ok.' `Don't put your finger in > there.' `Ok.' `Don't put your finger in there.' `Ok.' **BZZZAP** `What > > happened?' `I put my finger in there.' > > I sure hope I don't get killed trying to save some moron. I'll be cursing > > all the way to h#ll if I do. > > Bob > ---"Doc, it hurts when I do this!" "So don't do that!" > > > > [1] Yep. That shows that I can do the wiring in the house, I just don't > > design it without a little reference nearby. :-) > > > > --- David A Woyciesjes > > --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

23 years, 10 months

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Dumpster in the alley. (Chicago)

by CARL.P.HIRSCH＠sargentlundy.com

It's a shame they're 286's and can't even run Linux... Bob, I'm wondering if I can hit you up for resources here in Chicago. I've lived here for about 2 years and haven't come across any good tech resources. I'm hoping you can point me to some of the various resellers, corporate liquidators, junk shops, and scrappers where good stuff might be found in the Chicagoland area. I'm looking for stuff to rescue as well as raw material for art. Also - HAMFESTS. Are there any hamfests in the area this year? Are hamfests in chicago likely to have much non-radio content? thanks much, -carl "Feldman, Robert" <Robert_Feldman@jdedw To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org ards.com> cc: Sent by: Subject: Dumpster in the alley. owner-classiccmp@clas siccmp.org 02/12/02 07:58 AM Please respond to classiccmp Location: Chicago, Illinois, Wabash and Lake Streets, behind Harold Washington College. What: a 20 foot construction dumpster being loaded at this moment (8:00 AM CST) with PC's, mainly PS/2 30's and 50's. They're literally tossing them into the dumpster. :( Bob

23 years, 10 months

4
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NSA 3270/Elite Terminal Emulator

by lgwalker＠mts.net

I have an NSA 3270/Elite sleeve/binder with 3 disks that I haven't got a clue about. Of course I could RTFM but any attempt so far has escaped me. I'm trying to determine if I could use it for something, sell it on E-Pay for BIG BUCKs, offer it to the list, or bury it in my obscure,likely of no use bin. Any illumination would be helpful and appreciated. Lawrence Reply to: lgwalker(a)mts.net

23 years, 10 months

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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

> ---------- > From: Robert F Schaefer > > > You want to know why this message subject immediately jumped out and > > grabbed my attention? > > My Wife is the Grainger/National Accounts Coordinator for Hubbell > > wiring devices. She's one of the people who tell dumb-*** electricians > > that you can't use a 15 amp plug in a 30 amp circuit... > > Hey! I *don't* resemble that remark. In my experience, it's commonly the > > owner or the equipment mfgr with their head up their a$$. I've seen some > scarey stuff in my few years in the trade. (And you can put a 15 amp plug > > on a 30 amp circuit-- see NFPA 70 (2002) article 210.21(B)(3) exception > no. > 2 --not that it comes up often!) > > Bob > > > > > --- David A Woyciesjes > Bob --- I know, I'm sure you don't :-). But there _are_ some electricians out there, who are, well, *out there*. As for that "15 amp plug - 30 amp circuit" thing, you're right, I pulled that example out of my ass [1], but she has dealt with many idiot customers trying to do things that are _very_ asinine. I'm surprised that some of them haven't managed to kill themselves yet. [1] Yep. That shows that I can do the wiring in the house, I just don't design it without a little reference nearby. :-) --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

23 years, 10 months

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OT: SCSI HDD help?

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

Yes, this is Off Topic, but since you're all knowledgeable, and packrats... Probably should keep this off-list too... I have a Quantum Viking 3.5" SCSI-2 HDD, SCA-80 connector, P/N 4550S VK45J012 REV 03-C K8600. It seems to spin up okay, but ARC setup on my DEC Alpha doesn't see it. The biggest chip on the board, probably the controller, gets to a temperature that seems way hotter than it should be. Well, compared to another Quantum 4.5GB Viking drive. Question is, can just the controller board be replaced? Does anyone have one? or is this toast? --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

23 years, 10 months

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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

You want to know why this message subject immediately jumped out and grabbed my attention? My Wife is the Grainger/National Accounts Coordinator for Hubbell wiring devices. She's one of the people who tell dumb-*** electricians that you can't use a 15 amp plug in a 30 amp circuit... --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash > ---------- > From: Tothwolf > > I'm sure there are other folks on the list that have systems that use > twist-lock connectors, so I am posting here before I contact a surplus > company to work out a trade. > > I have the following Hubbell twist-lock connectors that are surplus to my > needs: > > Qty Description Hubbell Part # > NEMA > 4 125V 30A Insulgrip Plug HBL2611 > L5-30P > 3 125V/250V 20A Insulgrip Plug HBL9965C > N/A > 1 125V/250V 20A Insulgrip Flanged Receptacle HBL3326C > N/A > 1 125V/250V 30A Insulgrip Plug HBL3331C > N/A > 1 125V/250V 30A Insulgrip Flanged Inlet HBL3334C > N/A > 1 125V/250V 30A Insulgrip Flanged Receptacle HBL3335C > N/A > 2 125V 15A/250V 10A Insulgrip Plug [Not UL Listed] HBL7567C > N/A > > I am looking for these connectors to get power to my old SGI systems: > > Qty Description Hubbell Part # > NEMA > 2 125V 20A Insulgrip Plug HBL2311 > L5-20P > 3 125V 20A Insulgrip Connector Body HBL2313 > L5-20R > 4 125V 20A Single Flush Receptacle HBL2310 > L5-20R > 2 250V 30A Insulgrip Plug HBL2621 > L6-30P > 2 250V 30A Insulgrip Connector Body HBL2623 > L6-30R > 3 250V 30A Single Flush Receptacle HBL2620 > L6-30R > > Hubbell twist-lock catalog: > http://www.hubbell-wiring.com/new/sectionb.pdf > > If anyone wants to make a trade, email me directly. > > -Toth > >

23 years, 10 months

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Dumpster in the alley.

by PasserM＠umkc.edu

How do you think it got its name? (Sorry, couldn't resist.) >They had adult theaters on Wacker Street?

23 years, 10 months

1
0
0 0

Ancient "toy computer"

by acme_ent＠bellsouth.net

Okay, in order to pose this question I have to come clean here and admit my age: Right around 1960 or '61 (I was five or six years old at the time) I was given a toy computer. I suppose it was meant to represent a mainframe (what else could it have been, given the era?) and there was a rectangular (4 x 8? 5 X 7?) array of blinkenlights on the front of it. There was also a tray in the front which accepted a small punched card. A set of these cards came with the toy. Each card had a multiple-choice question printed on it, as well as four answers to choose from, numbered A through D. Additional card sets could be purchased separately. When a card was placed into the tray and the tray was then closed, the blinkenlights would display a "random" pattern for a couple of seconds (always the same pattern) and then the array would display the correct answer to the printed question, A B C or D. It didn't take long for me to be able to read the holes in the cards, and I even "modified" a couple of them so that the toy displayed an incorrect answer. Does *anyone* remember this thing? It must have cost a few bucks back then. What was it called? Glen 0/0

23 years, 10 months

6
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OT: But too funny...

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Marvin Johnston [mailto:marvin@rain.org] > Douglas Quebbeman wrote: > > Seriously, Outlook isn't the source of the stated problems; > half-assed, > > self-taught, sycophantic sysadmins who can't secure their > systems are! > Is that true, or has network management gotten to the point that it > takes the equivilent of a PhD to be able to manage the thing? Actually, no, but it's a combination of some things: The software that's mandated for use in most companies (by people who have too much authority in the company and no idea what they're doing...) is terrible, and hard to manage. The people being hired to run networks these days only know how to "use" this terrible software, leaving anything that isn't garbage to be either neglected or outsourced. (usually the former...) People don't expect decent performance from their systems, because of the aforementioned terrible software, and so points one and two continue. Well, that's what _I_ think it is... Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

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Hubbell twist-lock connectors

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: David Woyciesjes [mailto:DAW@yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu] > You want to know why this message subject immediately > jumped out and > grabbed my attention? > My Wife is the Grainger/National Accounts Coordinator > for Hubbell > wiring devices. She's one of the people who tell dumb-*** > electricians that > you can't use a 15 amp plug in a 30 amp circuit... Well, um, I suppose you _could_ do it, if you didn't mind toasting the connector, and possibly some other stuff in the process :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

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Wanted: Empty SCSI SCA-80 RAID tower...

by DAW＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

> ---------- > From: Eric Dittman > > > So, to see if I understand you correctly... > > > > - The SBB is the tray for the HDD... > > The SBB is "Storage Building Block", with the storage element inside. > Okay, a simple "yes" would've worked... ;-) > > - The SBBs for use in the 350, have a 50 pin connector, none have the > SCA... > > Yes. The BA350 and BA356 have the same backplane connector, but the > wide SBBs can not be seen when installed in a BA350. However, narrow > SBBs can be used in a BA356. > Not surprised... > > -- If so, I wonder if there is room inside the tray to fit a SCA > 80-50pin > > adapter? > > Usually not. There isn't much room in the 3.5" SBBs. Maybe, if the > SCA converter was real small, it may fit. > Hmmm, bummer... <<<<<clip>>>>> > > -If I want to use narrow SCA-80 drives in a Digital Storage Shelf, I > should > > look for the 356 and SBBs for that? > > It would be easier. With a BA356 you can use a BA35X-MG narrow > personality module if you want to connect to a narrow SCSI bus > or use a wide-narrow external SCSI cable. The only drawback > (which may not be an issue for you) is the HSxY0 raid controllers > don't work well with a wide-narrow external cable. > -- > Alright, thanks for the info, Eric. Well, I do have a (so far) winning bid of $6.00 on a BA-350. I wonder if that's what it really is... I'll see what I can find for SBBs for it ( has only 2 power supplies). If I can't use it, no big loss. Alternatively, I've been thinking about just converting a PC case to a drive tower, and just have a pile o' disks. And if I want some RAID, use software RAID. Yes, this is personal use. I'd never suggest software RAID in a business... It'd be a shame to see 7 good 1GB HDDs go to waste... --- David A Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- mailto:david.woyciesjes@yale.edu --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 90581 Mac OS X 10.1.2 - Darwin Kernel Version 5.2: Fri Dec 7 21:39:35 PST 2001 Running since 01/22/2002 without a crash

23 years, 10 months

1
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Classic Comp UUCP network.

by csmith＠amdocs.com

> -----Original Message----- > From: Doc [mailto:doc@mdrconsult.com] > FWIW, I got curious. Everyone has been mentioning FidoNet > in the past > tense, and I just did work 2 years ago for a guy who was > trying hard to > get me into it. I just looked, and there are 8 active Fido dialups in > Austin. Yep, it's probably still going. :) Chris Christopher Smith, Perl Developer Amdocs - Champaign, IL /usr/bin/perl -e ' print((~"\x95\xc4\xe3"^"Just Another Perl Hacker.")."\x08!\n"); '

23 years, 10 months

1
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[Maybe OT] A/UX installation

by bdwheele＠indiana.edu

I think A/UX 3.0 is only 7 years old, so its not really on topic, but it _is_ dead, so that has to account for something! I recently downloaded the CD image of the A/UX 3.0.1 installation CD & a boot disk from http://home.earthlink.net/~gamba2/syslist.html I got the boot disk extracted (it was a diskcopy_image) and the CD image itself was gzipped. I gunzipped it on my linux box and burned it onto a CD with: cdrecord -speed 8 -dev 0,6,0 -eject -v AUX_3.0.1_Install.toast_image When I try to boot up on a IIci, the floppy works ok, and it starts to search for the CD in the CD drive. The cd drive is a toshiba 5401B, I pulled from an alpha. It never finds a valid disk. So, to try to figure out what was wrong, I used BasiliskII (a mac-on-unix emulation) and tried to mount the CD image as a disk under system 7.6...and it wanted to format it. Should the CD be mountable? With this bit of experimentation, it looks like the CD image isn't right. Any ideas? Thanks! Brian Wheeler bdwheele(a)indiana.edu

23 years, 10 months

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