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

Apple /// keyboard

by Poetry1948＠aol.com

I broke 2 keys off of my Apple ///. Does anyone know where I can get a replacement cheap?

26 years

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List Archives?

by owad＠applefritter.com

Hello all, I'm back after a month and a half long hiatus. Is there an up-to-date archive of the list publicly available so that I can catch up on my reading? All of the ones I've managed to find are outdated. Thanks. Tom ------------------------------Applefritter------------------------------ Apple Prototypes, Clones, & Hacks - The obscure, unusual, & exceptional. ---------------------<http://www.applefritter.com/>---------------------

26 years

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Other useful test equipment (was: RE: Scope use...)

by CordaAJ＠nswc.navy.mil

> -----Original Message----- > From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk [mailto:ard@p850ug1.demon.co.uk] > Sent: Friday, July 21, 2000 6:05 PM > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Other useful test equipment (was: RE: Scope use...) > > > > One last word on test equipment. Unless you are into vintage > > test equipment collecting (a very respectable hobby in it's own > > right!) I suggest that you try to get the most modern/reliable > > version you can _reasonably_ afford, especially if your point > > Relaible, sure, but not necessarily modern. > > Often the choice (at least for a hobbyist) is between an > older high-class instrument (like a Tektronix 'scope) and a more modern, > cheaper, and much worse instrument. I agree with this in concept. What you're shooting for above all is _quality_ of design. My point was that given 2 O'scopes, One by HP and One by Tektronix (both quality manufacturers) approx. same condition and at approximately the same price, I would lean towards the one with the newest fabrication date. This is especially true if you are considering 2 scopes of the same model/manufacturer. The newer model will most likely have the newest engineering revisions/mods. > > Take the better one _every time_. You may have to spend a > couple of days repairing it, but after that it will be reliable > again. And it will work properly. Here again, I agree with this in principle. My only comment is that you should _know_ what you are doing if you buy a 'Scope with problems. If you feel comfortable with your ability to repair this level of equipment, you can end up with some real bargains! But then again, I didn't target the original post to those people, as they already know what they are doing. If you look at the root message that this thread was derived from, it concerned someone asking on how to "use" a scope to debug digital hardware. We must keep in mind that a lot of people on the mailing list are "digital" experts (except for all you PDP-8 owners with "real" Transistor logic flipchips :-), and most older scopes are as far from "digital" internally as you can get. Different worlds. > You will be able to trust the results you get from it. Some > hobbyist-grade instruments couldn't possible give sensible results ! > A lot of cheap 'scopes don't trigger properly -- I have seen one that > can't trigger on a 1kHz TTL square wave (!). And without a > decent trigger > system you won't get a stable trace, and without a stable > trace you can't > make measurements. > > My first 'scope was a Solartron CD1400. Old, valved, and not > particularly > high spec (15MHz IIRC). I spent a good few days tracking down > the open > resistor on the timebase PCB. After I'd done that I had a 'scope that > worked and which still works some 20 years later (it's needed _no_ > repairs in those 20 years). Having seen some of the modern > 'cheap scopes' > (that would have cost about 20 times what I paid for the > Solartron), I > know I made the right decision. > > > > in obtaining it is to use it to debug something else. This goes > > for O'scopes as well as Logic Analyzers, meters, etc. > > As any engineer will tell you, you want to reduce the number of > > variables in a problem you are trying to troubleshoot, and the > > last thing you need in such a situation is a piece of test > > equipment that you can't trust. Also be realistic in your > > True. But don't make the mistake of thinking that a new instrument is > _necessarily_ a trustworthy instrument. And don't make the mistake of > assuming that if you get 'crazy results' that the instrument > is working fine, no matter how good a brand it is, and how new it is. > _Check it_. > I couldn't agree with you more! The primary ingredient of troubleshooting is Common Sense. If your test equipment is telling you nonsense, then suspect the test gear. Of course, experience is the greatest way to develop Common Sense. > It doesn't take long to ensure that the 'scope gives a sensible > trace when tapped on the supply line. Or when connected to a known-good clock > generator. And it might save many hours of looking for a > non-existant fault! > > It is well worth learning how to verify that your instruments > are giving sensible results. Not necessarily knowing how to calibrate > them (because 99% of the time you don't need accuracy). But at least > to ensure that they're not out by a factor of 10. Or that the 'scope > hasn't suddenly lost all high frequency response, or that it's ringing > like crazy on a sharp edge. > > > selection. If you have a choice between an 1997 Fluke DVM (in > > good condition) and a 2000 "Bonusmart blisterpack special" > > you might be much better off choosing the Fluke from a > > reliability/dependability viewpoint. > > Err, 1997 is not old. Any Fluke meter that didn't last at > least 10 years would disappoint me... Agreed... I just picked that date at random. I still use an analog meter (Brain Rot has caused me to block out the Manufacturer at the momement... perhaps a Triplett Mod 260? Black thing with a mirrored scale...oh well :-)when working on some circuits. It's older than sin, but as far as I'm concerned, it's one of the best analog meters around. > > Given the choice between a 1960's Fluke/Solartron/HP and a modern > no-name, I'd probably take the older instrument. Spend a few > days getting it back to rights. And then know it would carry on working. > > -tony >

26 years

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Tek 2230 'scope

by jfoust＠threedee.com

I picked up a Tek 2230, a 100 MHz two-channel digital storage oscilloscope for $150 today, on a rolling stand. It shows signs of life in the sense that the display works and the buttons seem to have some effect, like stepping through menus. I've always wanted a nice 'scope, even though I have very little experience using one. Where do I begin? I have no manual, just the little tech ref booklet. A manual sold on eBay a few weeks ago for $25 or so. It has a half-dozen probes. Was this a good deal? I found a number of refurb places on the web selling them for $1400-$2500. - John The 2230 Digital Storage Oscilloscope is a combination non-storage and digital storage dual-channel 100 MHz bandwidth instrument. It is a rugged, lightweight oscilloscope featuring microprocessor operation and alphanumeric CRT readout of many of the front panel controls. In the digital storage mode, up to three waveform sets (CH 1 and/or CH 2) may be stored in a save ref. memory and recalled for display at a later time. The digital storage sampling rate is 20 megasamples per second maximum, and the acquired record length is 4 k samples (1 k may also be selected) for a single channel or 2 k samples for dual-channel (Chop or Alt) displays. Manufacturer's Standard Accessories 2 10X Voltage Probes Front Panel Cover Accessory Pouch Operators Manual Users Reference Card Manufacturer's Options Option 10 = GPIB IEEE-488 Interface includes 26K battery backed memory Tektronix 2230 This is a 100MHz, digital storage and non-storage oscilloscope. Features include cursors for time and voltage measurements, 100ns glitch capture, and signal averaging. TEKTRONIX/ 2230 100 MHz Digitizing Oscilloscope 100 MHz, 2 channel, combination analog and digital storage oscilloscope. Features microprocessor operation and alphanumeric CRT readout of many of the front panel controls. Up to three waveform sets may be stored in digital storage mode. Dual Mode portable Oscilloscope. Bandwidth: DC to 100 MHz (storage or non-storage), Single-shot: 2 MHz (single channel). Vertical deflection factors: 2 mV/div to 5 V/div. Sweep Ranges: 0.05us to 0.5 s/div. Triggering modes: Normal, P-P, Auto, TV Line, TV Field, Single Sweep, and HF Reject. Glitch capture: 100ns. Record Length: 4K. Sampling Speed: 20 MSa/s with 10 bit vertical resolution. Switch between real time analog ? digital storage modes at a touch of a button. Full waveform measurements with on screen cursors. 4 memory locations.

26 years

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Compucorp 140

by mbillian＠erols.com

Hi, I'm new to the list, was wondering if anyone could help me with a Compucorp 140 (Statistician) nixie tube calculator I found the other day. The calc is missing a couple of items. I was wondering if anyone has a power cord (fits 1 in dia socket with 3 pins in equilateral triangle on 3/8" spacing), 'chg sign' key, 'reset' key and the key with 2 bell shaped curves on it (or a complete junk unit). I would be greatful for any help Mitch Billian

26 years

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PDP-11/34A

by xds_sigma7＠hotmail.com

OK, to clarify, what I'm asking about is whether or not all 11/34A PSU's have those three particular power supplies in the main box and if so, is that where those three belong? Will J ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

26 years

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Other useful test equipment (was: RE: Scope use...)

by CordaAJ＠nswc.navy.mil

> -----Original Message----- > From: Douglas Quebbeman [mailto:dhquebbeman@theestopinalgroup.com] > Sent: Friday, July 21, 2000 3:17 PM > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > Subject: RE: Other useful test equipment (was: RE: Scope use...) > > > > I'll second that. I picked up a used HP 16xx something or > other with 4 > > pods of 8 inputs each, and it's been so useful debugging my home > > designs. An alternative would be a PC parallel port > based model, but > > they seem kind of cheesy compared to a nice, solid, HP unit. > > I used an (older?) HP Logic Analyzer that appeared to be an embedded > Macintosh; I never opened it up to make that determination, though, > as it was on lease. I don't know about the earlier HP units, but I think a number of the really _early_ designs for logic analyzers were based on some of the microprocessing systems available at the time. At one time I had 2 logic analyzers, both made by Nicolet, separated by a few years. The innards of the earlier (and smaller) unit turned out to be a repackaged Apple II. the later unit was a Z80 based CP/M unit with a built-in 5.25" drive. It even came with a CP/M boot disk that turned the unit into a general CP/M machine. > > Are these the vintage of units that are being dumped? > > -dq > No, I didn't mean to imply that any particular manufacturer's units were being dumped on the market... although I have noticed quite a number of HP1631A and D systems at the hamfests in my area of the country (VA-MD). My current analyzer is a HP1631D, and I paid < $200 (with probes.) It has a 200 Mhz sample rate (50 Mhz analog bandwidth.) It can even display analog waveforms, so you can use it as an Digital O'scope in some situations. We still use this same model where I work, and I am very pleased with it. BTW, A number of pieces of HP equipment of this era (circa 1985) shared the same physical "look", i.e. the HP1631D Logic analizer looks virtually identical the the HP54201D (and HP54101?) Digital O'scopes (unless you pay close attention to the button legends and nameplate), so If you happen across a stack of identical HP equipment at a hamfest, don't assume that they are all the same model from simply a casual glance. One last word on test equipment. Unless you are into vintage test equipment collecting (a very respectable hobby in it's own right!) I suggest that you try to get the most modern/reliable version you can _reasonably_ afford, especially if your point in obtaining it is to use it to debug something else. This goes for O'scopes as well as Logic Analyzers, meters, etc. As any engineer will tell you, you want to reduce the number of variables in a problem you are trying to troubleshoot, and the last thing you need in such a situation is a piece of test equipment that you can't trust. Also be realistic in your selection. If you have a choice between an 1997 Fluke DVM (in good condition) and a 2000 "Bonusmart blisterpack special" you might be much better off choosing the Fluke from a reliability/dependability viewpoint. -al- -acorda(a)1bigred.com

26 years

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Some Finds

by jrkeys＠concentric.net

Just a short list of some items added to the collection this week; 1. HP 7980XC Tape unit with manual, rolling case with keys, cables, and mics items 2. HP 2563A printer working and complete 3. HP6000 SCSI SE minitower 4. A rack mounted computer named Tano AVT2 the company is out of New Orleans 5. Supercharger by ARCADIA for the Atari 6. NeXT OS 3.2 new in unopened box 7. NeXT CD-rom drive manual ( now to find a Next CD-rom drive) That's it for now. Keep on computing John Keys

26 years

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Rewiring 3phase VAX 6000 for single phase

by mrbill＠ohno.mrbill.net

Anybody have instructions on re-wiring a VAX 6000 wired for 3phase for normal 240V single phase power? The pallet gets delivered this afternoon... 8-) Bill -- +-------------------\ /-----------------+ | Bill Bradford | www.sunhelp.org | | mrbill(a)mrbill.net | www.decvax.org | | Austin, Texas USA | www.pdp11.org | +-------------------/ \-----------------+

26 years

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Other useful test equipment (was: RE: Scope use...)

by xds_sigma7＠hotmail.com

My logic analyzer is a nice HP1615A, circa 1978, 8080-based... It was free >from this guy I bought all kinds of DEC crud from (he happened to have designed the I/O read/write board for the RA90 among other things, but thats a diff story). I had paid him for the DEC stuff, and then he said "Hey, do you want this?" so I said "Wow, cool!" and voila, free logic analyzer.. I think I even have the pods for DSPs.. weird. Will J ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com

26 years

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Other useful test equipment (was: RE: Scope use...)

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> I'll second that. I picked up a used HP 16xx something or other with 4 > pods of 8 inputs each, and it's been so useful debugging my home > designs. An alternative would be a PC parallel port based model, but > they seem kind of cheesy compared to a nice, solid, HP unit. I used an (older?) HP Logic Analyzer that appeared to be an embedded Macintosh; I never opened it up to make that determination, though, as it was on lease. Are these the vintage of units that are being dumped? -dq

26 years

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Logitech Modula 2 Compiler

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

I had forgotten that when I first heard of the company Logitech, it was from a flyer for their Modula 2 compiler. The brochure has a 1984 postmark, so timewise it qualifies for discussion here, but OTOH it's software, not a computer. Anyway, does anyone know of a part of Logitech still considers itself a software firm? That is, are they still selling this compiler? Or might they be willing to donate it to the growing list of abandonware? I've been in touch with Teresa Knezek recently, and unless someone else knows its already available or if she's already working on trying to get it masde available, then I think I'll drop her a line next week to see what she can do. Did anyone ever use this compiler? How was the code generation? How fast was it? -doug quebbeman

26 years

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Mac floppy

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Tony wrote: > Ouch!. That's what I thought, as well as some choice expletives :) > heads and stepper, so it should work on the Apple drive chassis) and > align it with that electronics. Maybe a couple of years down the line I'll be able to tackle something like that, but for now the easiest way is to get another drive for $5 from another list member! Should be with me in just over a week. cheers

26 years

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For cost of shipping: Two problematic floppy drives

by Marion.Bates＠dartmouth.edu

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26 years

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Hi Dwight, I got a 'proper' Opening tool from RS for ukp6, which was well worth it. cheers > -----Original Message----- > From: Dwight Elvey [mailto:elvey@hal.com] > Sent: 21 July 2000 01:37 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex] > > > > Hi > Torx drivers can be bought from auto parts stores that carry tools. > To get long shaft ones, you'll most likely need to order them. > Torx have gotten popular in the auto industry so the tool companies > like K&D sell them. I have a set of 1/4 inch drive bits that I > bought from Sears, so you just need to ask around. > Dwight >

26 years

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PDP 11/05 (was: RE: It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, ap olog ies, etc...))

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> I'm also trying to restore an 11/05 (without any docs), > and would love to find the same info. I've done some > web searches, but most people seem to post only a photo > and some basic info for their system (Interesting, but > not much help when trying to do a restoration). Does > anyone know of a site where I might find scanned > images of the 11/05 schematics, and possibly some > scanned docs or information on the 11/05 Unibus > backplane, card placement, etc.? I'm hopefully getting either an 11/03 or 11/05 soon....if it's an 05 hopefully it will come with some docs since ISTR they've had it from new. I'll let you know! a

26 years

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Mac floppy

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

I know I *could* use that drive, but I'm going for authenticity; plus I really want to fix the Classic and not cannibalise it. cheers! > -----Original Message----- > From: Eric Smith [mailto:eric@brouhaha.com] > Sent: 20 July 2000 19:34 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Mac floppy > > > > I was considering using the floppy drive from my bust Classic till I > > discovered that it uses a SuperDrive..... > > I'm pretty sure I've used Apple FDHD/SuperDrive mechanisms in place of > 800K drives in the past. The Mac Plus obviously won't be able to use > the 720K and 1440K modes, but it should work fine for 400K and 800K. >

26 years

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Digest version of the classiccmp list

by mark_k＠iname.com

Hi, Has anyone else who subscribes to the digest version of the list noticed that it seems to be limited to sending messages of 45K or less? If the total list traffic is larger than that in any given day, the list processor sends out two or three digest messages rather than a single one containing all messages for that day. Isn't the point of the digest version so that you only receive one message per day? It worked like that before the list moved server. Is there any chance of the list maintainer changing the digest behaviour to send a single message per day? -- Mark

26 years

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Mac floppy

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Hi all, It's amazing how fast you can do things when you've got the right tools for the job :) Got my Mac Plus cracked open last night - that long TORX driver isn't called a MacCracker for nothing - and discovered the previous owner had managed to mash the metal cover of a floppy disk into the head mechanism etc; having freed that up and got it working mechanically again I discovered what had been rattling round the case - the bottom read/write head which has snapped off. So! Beyond repair since I haven't got another drive for spares.... Has any of you got one they'd be willing to sell? It's not the sort of thing I see lying around at markets and boot sales! cheers -- Adrian Graham MCSE/ASE/MCP C CAT Limited Gubbins: http://www.ccat.co.uk (work) <http://www.snakebiteandblack.co.uk> (home) <http://www.binarydinosaurs.co.uk> (80's computer collection) "Missing you already" - Mark Radcliffe

26 years

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Bad link on VCF site (was: Re: PDP 11/05 (was: RE: It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)))

by fauradon＠mn.mediaone.net

The link to the Sanctuary is obsolete (and the old site is gone) Tha new site is at: http://people.mn.mediaone.net/fauradon/index.html It stil is incomplete but hey it's got a couple of scans that could be interesting. Francois -----Original Message----- From: Sellam Ismail <foo(a)siconic.com> To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> Date: Thursday, July 20, 2000 4:17 PM Subject: Re: PDP 11/05 (was: RE: It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)) >On Thu, 20 Jul 2000, Corda Albert J DLVA wrote: > >> not much help when trying to do a restoration). Does >> anyone know of a site where I might find scanned >> images of the 11/05 schematics, and possibly some >> scanned docs or information on the 11/05 Unibus >> backplane, card placement, etc.? > >Try checking the DEC section of the VCF Link Library: > >http://www.vintage.org/cgi-bin/links.pl#dec > >Sellam International Man of Intrigue and Danger >--------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- >Looking for a six in a pile of nines... > > VCF 4.0 is September 30-October 1 > San Jose Convention Center, San Jose, California > See http://www.vintage.org for details! > >

26 years

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PDP 11/05 (was: RE: It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apolog ies, etc...))

by CordaAJ＠nswc.navy.mil

-----Original Message----- From: Mike [mailto:dogas@leading.net] Sent: Wednesday, July 19, 2000 11:02 PM To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org Subject: It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...) ...<Text deleted for brevity>... >... >I also finally got the processor board I needed to get my PDP 11/05 running. Can >someone help me out with a 'restoration checklist' for the machine? (no docs...cept' a >11x processor handbook) >... I'm also trying to restore an 11/05 (without any docs), and would love to find the same info. I've done some web searches, but most people seem to post only a photo and some basic info for their system (Interesting, but not much help when trying to do a restoration). Does anyone know of a site where I might find scanned images of the 11/05 schematics, and possibly some scanned docs or information on the 11/05 Unibus backplane, card placement, etc.? -al- -acorda(a)geocities.com

26 years

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Mac floppy

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> Oh dear, that sounds like a drive that's "beyond repair" > even for Tony Duell :-) *grin* > I have to report that I did buy a Mac external disk drive > at a car boot sale for three quid. One of the useful > skills for the car boot enthusiast is the ability to spot a > rare and valuable artifact at twenty paces, then buy it > without giving the seller any hints that might cause them > to jack the price up... Yep - already got that skill, thankfully. It's how I spotted things like a fully boxed and packaged Sharp MZ700 under a pile of clothes, my first Mac Plus buried under a table amongst, you guessed it, clothes.....even my first museum machine (Enterprise) was spotted from quite a distance as it lay scattered on a blue sheet with old lawnmowers and tables etc! Had a nice muddy footprint on it too. > Anyway, keep searching the car boot sales, PC shop > junk-boxes and charity shops! You'll find one, eventually! I was considering using the floppy drive from my bust Classic till I discovered that it uses a SuperDrive.....charity shops up here don't sell electrical items much since they've got to get them tested for safety. I'll just have to keep mingling with the great unwashed every weekend :o) a

26 years

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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by dogas＠leading.net

Thanks everyone for the NeXT links and info. I'm kinda stoked about getting it going and will follow up with updates. Thanks - Mike: dogas(a)leading.net

26 years

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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by dogas＠leading.net

>From: Mark Tapley <mtapley(a)swri.edu> > >Cha-ching! Nice score. Thanks, it made me feel a little better about my current poverty level. > - Optical disk which says NeXTStep 1.0 on the package. > ...snip... >bootable in that configuration. (I'd take as an even trade a known-good >3.5" SCSI drive with capacity greater than 540 Meg, which I'd then use to >swap for my flaky drive, but that may not be a good trade for you. Or you >could just agree to keep html out of your posts :-) . ) I won't be able to </html> D'oh. I think I can dig up some scsi disks for you. Thanks for the ver 1.0 offer! I'll drop you a note again when you're ready. I'll get in the queue at Apple, but I'd like to get as much software for it as I can. Especially Mathematica. and the development environment. Thanks Mark! - Mike: dogas(a)leading.net

26 years

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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by dogas＠leading.net

From: Tim Mann <mann(a)pa.dec.com> >There is a scan of the TRS-80 VS-100 voice synth documentation at >http://www.asub.arknet.edu/wade/wintrs80.htm. Look near the bottom of >the page for the link. Wonderful! Thanks!

26 years

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NeXT boot floppy (was: Re: It's been awhile...)

by mtapley＠swri.edu

>> It is possible to load from CD, but I think you need either a floppy or >> an optical to start the boot process (but I'm not clear on that). > >Is the boot floppy image available anywhere? I can migrate the 2.88Mb drive >to my desktop, fire up Linux and just dd the info right to it (presuming I >track down a source of 4Mb media). OK, I got a bit less lazy so I could answer more accurately: Turbo systems can boot directly from CD: http://til.info.apple.com/techinfo.nsf/artnum/n72662 Other systems need a boot floppy to kick into the CD. It is possible to create floppies from images if you have a running NeXT: http://til.info.apple.com/techinfo.nsf/artnum/n72667 I have a running NeXT cube with a floppy drive, and a limited supply of floppies, so Ethan, if you have trouble with your Linux box, contact me off-list, and anyone else stuck for a boot floppy, same offer. - Mark

26 years

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by mgregory＠vantageresearch.com

I'm curious to know how list members feel about the question of repairing versus replacing common computers. For example, in my area, Commodore 64s are extremely common. So if I received a bad one, after checking for obvious faults I probably wouldn't spend much time trying to troubleshoot it. It's easier to just find a working one. The bad machine would either become a static display, or a parts donor, or a very low priority rainy day project. >From some previous discussions on the list, I believe that some people feel that every classic computer (regardless of rarity) is worth saving. Many electronic hobbiests may find as much joy in repairing the broken 64 as in playing with a working one. These are completely valid viewpoints. However, I could also argue that the limited time I have to spend on this hobby would be better spent trying to document a rare find, or repair an unusual computer, than in repairing yet another C-64. How do list members (especially those with large collections) feel about this? Repair, replace, both? Other viewpoints welcomed. Regards, Mark Gregory

26 years

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aaaargh - frickin' Outlook!

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

For the 2nd time this week I've managed to delete the location all the list messages end up. For some reason when you've finished reading a message and you delete it sometimes Outlook will have focus on the FOLDER and not the message. Of course, its partially my fault for always doing permanent deletes, but if you're going to delete a folder with unread messages in it I think it should tell you! So, if you've sent any answers to my questions last night, particularly Tony, and you've still got them can you resend please......Grrr.... -- Adrian Graham MCSE/ASE/MCP C CAT Limited Gubbins: http://www.ccat.co.uk (work) <http://www.snakebiteandblack.co.uk> (home) <http://www.binarydinosaurs.co.uk> (80's computer collection) "Missing you already" - Mark Radcliffe

26 years

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> > putting out *a* voltage but can't deduce from the readout > *what* voltage. > > Eh? This was taught in schools in my day :-)... My school wouldn't let me do electronics because I didn't have a maths o'level :( They wouldn't accept my argument that all an exam proved was you could remember what was in the text books. Nothing to stop me looking anything up I needed? Ta for the tutorial - I'll compare it to my meter tonight! a

26 years

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The Apple ][c+ lives!

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> > with a new carrier (in case of accidents) and a new fuse. > Of course, she's > > You were lucky! :-) I know! > lock to either 50Hz or 60Hz with a tweak of the vertical hold > control. I thought that; the monitor I used was a Monitor ///. The vertical hold control couldn't get a steady picture. I've got a Monitor // and a couple of small Philips monitors I use on a QL that might work. > Some later model TVs are actually designed to handle both > 50Hz (PAL) and > 60Hz (NTSC) signals so you can watch American recordings, etc. The next TV I buy will have that feature; mine's around 6 years old now, right from the beginning of NICAM broadcasts. cheers a

26 years

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While we're talking about Lisas

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> That's actually not the major hazard. It's well insulated, and unless > it's defective, it won't flash over. The main problem is the > few hundred volts on tracks on the monitor analogue board. Painful if you > touch them to say the least. That's why the bloke that gave me the things to check recommended I solder on some flyleads to the components I need to check; a lot less risk of zappage and I can put the ends into a terminal block for ease of testing. a

26 years

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by CLASSICCMP＠enterprise.trailing-edge.com

>> Incidentally, an analogue multimeter can be more use than a >> digital one >> for some work. It's a lot better at showing trends, >> indicating when the >> amplitude of a signal is peaking, etc. Accuracy is not that >> important in >> most repairs -- certainly +/-5% is easily good enough for most work. >Yes, but the cheapie one I bought for work hasn't got the clearest readout >on the planet :) And I don't think it survived a 1 foot drop onto a wooden >floor despite being encased in a smart rubber coat! The one thing I've never >been able to do is read voltages from one - I can see that my transformer is >putting out *a* voltage but can't deduce from the readout *what* voltage. >Inexperience showing thru there. It's like the difference between analogue >and digital watches I suppose. Earth - a planet so backwards they still think digital watches are a pretty neat idea. I personally don't see what's so inaccurate about analog watches. I can easily read mine to a precision of one second, which is one part in 12*60*60. And that's just a regular watch; there are plenty of analog stopwatches out there that will time to a hundredth of a second, which (considering the human interface) is just fine. Tim.

26 years

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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, et

by lgwalker＠look.ca

On 19 Jul 2000, at 17:09, Mark Tapley wrote: > Mike, > > >I won a lot at the auction for $15. Under the pile was a 1988 NeXT Cube = > >(fist year of production after six years of umm, development), matching = > >NeXT laser printer, and keyboard, and mouse. Trading the rest of the = > >cart off got me also a 21" radius monster for free that I niavely hoped = > >I'd be able to use with the Cube. > > Cha-ching! Nice score. > Turning green with envy. I only have a color W-S > >I rushed home with my new MegaPixel, fondiling it along the way, and = > >immediately hooked everyting up. Power! ...Well, it boots. I get to = > >the NeXT rom monitor ver 1 rel 46 and can exercise the machine from = > >there. It doesn't have the floptical in it and a 'b sd' boot command = > >returns a read capacity error on the scsi hard disk. With the rom = > >monitor I can boot to an ethernet attress or scsi target. Is there = > >anyway I can get a disk image of ole NeXTStep on a compatible scsi drive = > >and can I use something like an Apple scsi CD-ROM with it? > > You can use an Apple CD-ROM, my cube works fine with an Apple 300 external. > Reputedly you can even use an AppleCD 150 SNIP > Alternately, hit http://til.info.apple.com/techinfo.nsf/artnum/n70038 and > surf from there; Apple was upgrading for free to NS 3.3 for any existing > machine. (I'd do this anyway if I were you, just to get a current copy of > the OS, whether you want to keep the machine original or not.) You'll get a > CD. It is possible to load from CD, but I think you need either a floppy or > an optical to start the boot process (but I'm not clear on that). There are > then patches to put atop that...depends on whether you want original > NeXTStep or current NeXTStep. > Apple supplied a couple of floppies with the free upgrade. > Let me know... > - Mark > ciao larry lgwalker(a)look.ca walkers(a)altavista.net bigwalk(a)xoommail.com

26 years

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No subject

by lgwalker＠look.ca

26 years

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(Micro)VaxServer/Station 3100

by hofmanwb＠worldonline.nl

A good soul decided to give me a pile of 3100's. And I know not very much about Vaxes. So I started digging before I part with most of them. When booting a 3100 it tells you it is a KA41-2,KA41-A,B,D,E, KA42A or B, KA43-A or KA45-B I could not locate a proper list of what is what in 3100's. Lists I found were incomplete or contradictionary. Anyone? What I did find however was that in order to get from a KA41-D to a KA41-E you had to switch Eprom. A MicroVax 3100 turned into a VaxServer this way. A miracle. What consequences has such a switch for your software? Are you no longer allowed to do things? Does some software run and other software not? Although I have a number of VMS books, I could not locate how to make a chinese copy of a disk. It is nice to be able to go back after you tried something hazardous. Help will be appreciated!! Wim

26 years

3
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(Micro)VaxServer/Station 3100

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

--- "W.B.(Wim) Hofman" <hofmanwb(a)worldonline.nl> wrote: > What I did find however was that in order to get from a KA41-D to a KA41-E > you had to switch Eprom. A MicroVax 3100 turned into a VaxServer this way. > A miracle. What consequences has such a switch for your software? Are you > no longer allowed to do things? Does some software run and other software > not? I know that some stuff was written to check the model number and was user-limited to, for example, two for a "workstation" and either unlimited or less-limited for a "server". The idea was that you would pay less for a workstation license and so there should be some way to prevent customers >from buying the cheaper product and using it on a more "powerful" machine. Lots of products, third-party and DEC alike, were priced based on the capacity of your box. If you upgraded your CPU (adding extra CPUs, changing out a 6xxx for an 11/7xx, etc), you typically owed lots of people lots of extra money. I remember the phenomenon because our products were priced according to modem speed (sync modems) - a 9600 bps product was about 1/2 the cost of the 56Kbps product. Our customers loved the fact that we would let them pull a board from an 11/750 and drop it in an 8600 for no charge. Back to you original question - there's a call you can make from DCL that will tell you the type of CPU installed in your machine (It's an F$GETSYI call, far enough down in the OS). As a developer, you can easily build in code to refuse to operate on a "full VAX" or something similar, but that wasn't common. -ethan ===== Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com The original webpage address is still going away. The permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/

26 years

1
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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

> Mike, > > >Is there anyway I can get a disk image of ole NeXTStep on a compatible > >scsi drive... I have a slab that I got for free a couple of years ago - mono monitor, mouse and keyboard included, 0K RAM, 0Mb disk (pre-scavenged). I've been wanting to get something running on this ever since I got it. > Alternately, hit http://til.info.apple.com/techinfo.nsf/artnum/n70038 and > surf from there; Apple was upgrading for free to NS 3.3 for any existing > machine. You'll get a CD. I went there and it all seems simple... > It is possible to load from CD, but I think you need either a floppy or > an optical to start the boot process (but I'm not clear on that). Is the boot floppy image available anywhere? I can migrate the 2.88Mb drive to my desktop, fire up Linux and just dd the info right to it (presuming I track down a source of 4Mb media). I've got lots of other toys to play with, but since this came up, I'd like to see what I can get running here. Thanks, -ethan ===== Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com The original webpage address is still going away. The permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/

26 years

1
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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by mtapley＠swri.edu

Mike, >I won a lot at the auction for $15. Under the pile was a 1988 NeXT Cube = >(fist year of production after six years of umm, development), matching = >NeXT laser printer, and keyboard, and mouse. Trading the rest of the = >cart off got me also a 21" radius monster for free that I niavely hoped = >I'd be able to use with the Cube. Cha-ching! Nice score. >I rushed home with my new MegaPixel, fondiling it along the way, and = >immediately hooked everyting up. Power! ...Well, it boots. I get to = >the NeXT rom monitor ver 1 rel 46 and can exercise the machine from = >there. It doesn't have the floptical in it and a 'b sd' boot command = >returns a read capacity error on the scsi hard disk. With the rom = >monitor I can boot to an ethernet attress or scsi target. Is there = >anyway I can get a disk image of ole NeXTStep on a compatible scsi drive = >and can I use something like an Apple scsi CD-ROM with it? You can use an Apple CD-ROM, my cube works fine with an Apple 300 external. It's possible... Right now my optical is intermittent (just needs cleaning, I hope?) but once I get it cleaned I have: - Optical disk which says NeXTStep 1.0 on the package. I haven't tried booting this disk, so I can't promise that's really what's in it. - 380 M original Maxtor hard drive from my cube. That's now out of the cube to make room for a floppy + 3.5" 540M hard drive combo in a custom bracket. (which hard drive is also getting a wee bit flaky, I think.) I've backed up the 380M drive to optical, so what I could do when I take the system home to work on it is boot the NS 1.0 optical, build the 380M hard drive from the optical, and ship you the 380M drive. It should be bootable in that configuration. (I'd take as an even trade a known-good 3.5" SCSI drive with capacity greater than 540 Meg, which I'd then use to swap for my flaky drive, but that may not be a good trade for you. Or you could just agree to keep html out of your posts :-) . ) I won't be able to work on it until next weekend at least, though. Sorry about that. Alternately, hit http://til.info.apple.com/techinfo.nsf/artnum/n70038 and surf from there; Apple was upgrading for free to NS 3.3 for any existing machine. (I'd do this anyway if I were you, just to get a current copy of the OS, whether you want to keep the machine original or not.) You'll get a CD. It is possible to load from CD, but I think you need either a floppy or an optical to start the boot process (but I'm not clear on that). There are then patches to put atop that...depends on whether you want original NeXTStep or current NeXTStep. Let me know... - Mark

26 years

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It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by dogas＠leading.net

Hi everyone! It's been a bit since I allowed myself the luxery of 'dropping in' I've missed you guys. I've been playing around lately with a pretty complete TRS-80 Model 1 setup( LNW EI, RS EI, Holmes EI (real cool), Plug&Power, LightPen, Voice Synth, Floppies, Exatrons, Plotter, Quick Printer, LinePirnters, Acoustic and dc modems, sans software) . Anyone have some trs-dos or newdos systems disks and software and I'm especially looking for the software driver to run the voice synthesizer. One day I'll find a Voxbox too. Also been tinkering with the RCA Cosmac Dev 4, what a cool machine. I also finally got the processor board I needed to get my PDP 11/05 running. Can someone help me out with a 'restoration checklist' for the machine? (no docs...cept' a 11x processor handbook) And of couse I was able to interleve in some classic computer hunting with the many temporary bouts of insanity and on a low budget I must brag. First, at a school sale, I picked up a Commodore PET 4008, and a PET 40032, and a TRS-80 Plotter 1 for $1 each. Then, a comrad going through spacial compression, ;), yielded 2 station-wagon fulls of stuff including a TRS-80 m1 monitor, 3 minidisks, a128k mac, 3 ][+'s, 15 ][e's, many ][ and /// monitors, many ][ drives, a Commodore 1581 floppy and light pen, two Adam floppys (one boxed), and more. He wouldn't take money. I had to fight being given money for the "work done cleaning." A Tandy 4D, one of the few RS computers through the 6000 that I was oddly missing. Then, found a great apple 2gs system with a Mac Crate card and 30mb harddrive with gsos 6 on it. It rocks! and cost $5 Then, found another Osborne 1 at a fleamarket. Heh, when I opened the keyboard lid, water drained out. Lets say that negotations began then. ;) At that same fleamarket I also found the oldest Commodore that I now own for $5. It's a logo'd model 202 electromachicanical adding machine that's beautiful and works. A Tek 464 Storage Scope for $9. And then the sequence began that would put some wood in the ole pants... I won a lot at the auction for $15. Under the pile was a 1988 NeXT Cube (fist year of production after six years of umm, development), matching NeXT laser printer, and keyboard, and mouse. Trading the rest of the cart off got me also a 21" radius monster for free that I niavely hoped I'd be able to use with the Cube. I got the Cube home and after first glance I realized that I wouldn't even be able to turn it on. I was missing the MegaPixel display. Mouse plugs into keyboard, keyboard plugs into monitor, monitor plugs into the Cube, Cube plugs into wall, funny bone's connected to the... Anyway, the power switch is on the keyboard. I coudn't even turn it on because of the missing monitor link. I thought that one was going to take a *long* while to find. I 'got a fix the only way I could' by reading "Steve Jobs: The NeXT Big Thing" by and recommend it. Early PARC and a little Apple is touched upon, and Jobs stewardship of NeXT and more is evaluated pretty openly. Anyway, employing blue feather technologies, not the company, guess what, the MegaPixel display showed up the *next time* at the same auction. Major probability earthquake! This time though, someone else was intereted in something else on the cart (all junk) and it took $40 to win it. Damn! Auction dynamics in action, At other times it would have been $5. But the other bidder was known to 'just sit' on purchases and desperate situations call for desperate measures. I marginalized $20 and scored! I rushed home with my new MegaPixel, fondiling it along the way, and immediately hooked everyting up. Power! ...Well, it boots. I get to the NeXT rom monitor ver 1 rel 46 and can exercise the machine from there. It doesn't have the floptical in it and a 'b sd' boot command returns a read capacity error on the scsi hard disk. With the rom monitor I can boot to an ethernet attress or scsi target. Is there anyway I can get a disk image of ole NeXTStep on a compatible scsi drive and can I use something like an Apple scsi CD-ROM with it? That's all of it for the 'new stuff'' section, I think I also owe some people documentation (Allison and Doug) and will get those copies out early next week. I'm very sorry it is taking so long Also been trying to organize the collection, an inhuman feat. One of my Mt. Everests, among many. Joe, where are ya buddy? I'd have been down there earlier but my car's been acting up. D'oh. Howzit going? And, should anyone find themselves in or going to Jacksonville FL, drop me a note for a little north Florida VCFing. Cheers - Mike: dogas(a)leading.net

26 years

6
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The Apple ][c+ lives!

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Yes folks, my little apple is happy again after I replaced the blown fuse with a new carrier (in case of accidents) and a new fuse. Of course, she's kicking out a 60hz video signal so I can't really use the display, but I did get a 'no boot disk found on line' prompt with no obvious burning smell. And the floppy drive mechanism works too - must've been Apple's first dalliance with mechanised eject, er, mechanisms. Lisa and HP monitor tonight so cross your fingers :) cheers -- Adrian Graham MCSE/ASE/MCP C CAT Limited http://www.ccat.co.uk (work) http://www.snakebiteandblack.co.uk (home) http://www.binarydinosaurs.co.uk (80's computer collection) "In the pub already" - Mark Radcliffe

26 years

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Tony didst spake: > the Xcellite tools are available from RS components, etc. Not any more they're not; well according to the web anyway. The dead-tree edition of the march-august catalogue only has Xcelite drivers and nut spinners, not TORX tools. However, RS DO do a extra long T15 driver that can be used in 'maintenance and servicing of computer systems, especially Macintosh' so I'll need one of those then :) 6 english pounds to you, squire. cheers

26 years

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> Basically they will tell you if a given point is 'high' > (above a certain > threshold voltage), 'low' (below a different threshold voltage), > illegal/floating (between the 2 thresholds). They also indicate if a > point is changing state ('clocking'), or if there's a narrow > pulse on a particular point. Right, so I need to know which pins of various chips do what then. Dammit - that's more info than I have time to find ATM. Pity there isn't a 'Logic Probing for Dummies' book :o) Once the museum room's finished and I get a proper work area I can maybe kick back and start getting down to that sort of level. > The cheaper ones have fixed thresholds for TTL chips (which > is all you > really need) and maybe 4000-series CMOS. More advanced (and > expensive!) Maplins appear to do 2, one just over a tenner (ukp10) and the other at ukp17. > Now, as to how it's used. You can use it to find a stuck (or > not driven > at all) line on a data or address bus. To check if buffer > chips are being > enabled. To see if the output of a gate is stuck high or low, > and what > the inputs are doing. To see if a CPU is getting a clock signal, etc. Definitely too much info I need to learn for now I think.... > If you want to preserve both the board and the chip, then > first suck off > the solder with a temperature-controlled iron (you should > really be using > one of these for all work...) and a solder sucker. If a hole My gas one is temperature controlled, plus our erstwhile engineer down in head office is retiring, so I might be able to buy some of their test kit off them since he was the last one who could do those sorts of repairs. An entire electronic workshop will be vacant!

26 years

2
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While we're talking about Lisas

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> I wish this list had been around when I started with classic > computers some 14 years ago. Back then there were few collectors, and I > had to work a lot of stuff out for myself... You sound like the sort of bloke who's easily capable of doing that though. > In general testing with the unit powered up (assuming this > can be done > without causing further damage) is going to find the fault a lot more > quickly than testing individual components. It's also going to find > thermal problems that only occur when the unit is warm, or components > that fail under load, etc. I know, I'm just worried about being zapped. The Lisa in particular is difficult to work on without dismantling because of the positioning of the video card. At least it's the other side of the CRT from the high voltage stinger - they scare the crap out of me! > South-west London.... Bugger - too far south :) cheers

26 years

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> Incidentally, an analogue multimeter can be more use than a > digital one > for some work. It's a lot better at showing trends, > indicating when the > amplitude of a signal is peaking, etc. Accuracy is not that > important in > most repairs -- certainly +/-5% is easily good enough for most work. Yes, but the cheapie one I bought for work hasn't got the clearest readout on the planet :) And I don't think it survived a 1 foot drop onto a wooden floor despite being encased in a smart rubber coat! The one thing I've never been able to do is read voltages from one - I can see that my transformer is putting out *a* voltage but can't deduce from the readout *what* voltage. Inexperience showing thru there. It's like the difference between analogue and digital watches I suppose.

26 years

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by allisonp＠world.std.com

>I'll agree with that. The instrument I use the most is (obviously) a >multimeter -- in my case an old analogue one. One day I must get a Fluke Got a few of those, my favorite is an Eico circuit tester/transistor tester I built in my teens. I like it as there are no diodes or other rectifier devices and it's stable in strong RF fields. I also use a Triplite 630 pocket meter (analog). The fluke is a M12, well made, rugged holds calibration well. I also have a weston, a digital volt meter that is probe shaped (NLS) and an old tandy DMM I got back in 74. >comes a logic probe. For a long time I used a cheap Tandy one, then I >upgraded to the LogicDart. And third on the list comes a bench PSU. Mine Wish I had a Dart. I do have several I've made for my own use. >is a 30V 8A Velleman kit that works very well. It's a simple design All my bench PSUs are home made or resurected and modified H744 PSUs. >Ditto. I've found a little handheld 'scope (only 5MHz on repetitive >waveforms, 500kHz single-shot) is very useful for checking for PSU Old faithful is a NLS M15 I got in 74, been through a few sets of gell cells. Another is a B&K 2120, at 379$(US) it's an honest 20mhz triggered sweep scope, small too for the 5" screen. I recently got a heath IO 10D-31 5mhz triggered also, replaced a few bad fets and dialed it in and it's a fair scope. >the other instruments I've mentioned. Other stuff (counters, sig-gen, LCR >meter, etc) is very nice to have, and I'm sure it's saved me a lot of >time, but I think I could work without it if I had to. I have them and use them, I do/did a fair amount of RF. >As I said a few years back 'Your brain is the most important piece of >test gear that you have'. No instrument will find the fault for you -- >all instruments just provide information as to what's going on. You have >to know how to interpret the results. ;) Allison

26 years

2
1
0 0

It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...)

by gregorym＠cadvision.com

----Original Message----- From: Mike <dogas(a)leading.net> To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> Date: Wednesday, July 19, 2000 8:13 AM Subject: It's been awhile (hi, new stuff, help, apologies, etc...) I rushed home with my new MegaPixel, fondiling it along the way, and immediately hooked everyting up. Power! ...Well, it boots. I get to the NeXT rom monitor ver 1 rel 46 and can exercise the machine from there. It doesn't have the floptical in it and a 'b sd' boot command returns a read capacity error on the scsi hard disk. With the rom monitor I can boot to an ethernet attress or scsi target. Is there anyway I can get a disk image of ole NeXTStep on a compatible scsi drive and can I use something like an Apple scsi CD-ROM with it? Hi Mike, I'd recommend contacting Deep Space Technologies (www.deepspacetech.com). They're a NeXT vendor of long standing, and they still sell NeXT hardware and parts. They sell hard drives formatted with NeXTstep as part of their systems; they'll probably be willing to unbundle one for you. Licensing isn't an issue, since Apple takes the very sensible position that possession of the hardware entitles you to run the OS. However, you got an exceptional deal on your NeXT, so you may pay as much for the drive and OS as you paid for the rest of the system. Almost any SCSI CD-ROM will work with a NeXT. I don't know if a Cube will boot from CD-ROM, (I never had a CD-ROM when I had my Cube), but if it will, you could get a copy of NeXTstep on CD (see next paragraph) and do an install to any SCSI drive you have lying around. You should also contact Apple and request the Year 2000 Upgrade/NeXTstep 3.3 upgrade from them. If you send in your machine's serial number, they'll send you free of charge a CD containing the last version of NeXTstep and some Y2K patches. I believe you can also request Openstep if you prefer that. You should also try and get an optical drive - a Cube just isn't complete without one. Brand new ones were selling on eBay for reasonable prices ($30-40 IIRC) 4-6 months ago. Enjoy your Cube! Mark (who has a mild case of seller's remorse after parting with his Cube a few months ago)

26 years

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Am I right in assuming DVM=digital voltmeter? a > -----Original Message----- > From: Douglas Quebbeman [mailto:dhquebbeman@theestopinalgroup.com] > Sent: 18 July 2000 13:34 > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > Subject: RE: Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex] > > > > Surely any serious computer hobbyist, especially one who is a > > collector or preservationist, has at least the following: DVM, > > oscilloscope (even if just an old 5mHZ one to look for > things like PSU > > ripple/spikes), soldering iron, logic probe, assorted hand tools and > > perhaps a logic analyzer. These are not things that the > average hobbyist > > should be unlikely to have. > > I guess I got spoiled by working at the university and at a local > electronics trade school, and then later for a small embedded systems > firm. I almost always had a scope of someone else's available to use. > Now I don't, and I regret not picking up a dual-trace 15 or 20mHz > scope when I'd see one available, cheap, from time to time. > > My favorite was the Tektronix storage display scope. Now, I just > try to get by using a Rat Shack logic probe and a DVM. Plenty of > soldering irons (one Ungar, one generic one-piece, one Wahl), and > various hand tools. A manual wire-wrap pen somewhere. A CSC bread- > board. A fair selection of components, new and used. > > -dq >

26 years

4
4
0 0

VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment)

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Me and a colleague once brought an entire PDP 11/73 (big box variety, not the BA23 or BA213 style) down a flight of stairs; I think we removed the RL02s first, but even then it was still bloody heavy. Nutters. > -----Original Message----- > From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk [mailto:ard@p850ug1.demon.co.uk] > Sent: 18 July 2000 20:59 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment) > > > [Moving the 11/730] > > > > No, but it took an entire weekend and you had quad muscles > *this big* by the > > time you'd finished :o) > > Actually, it took an afternoon to dismantle and move 2 > machines (one to > me, one to a friend). Putting them back together took a > little longer... > > Once they're taken apart, the individual parts are not that > heavy and are > no problem to carry. The empty rack frame was about the worst > part to move. > > -tony >

26 years

1
0
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> > ....and then replace it with a chip socket followed by working chip? > > Yes. The socket may not be 'original', but it makes future repairs > easier, and possibly prevents further damage to the PCB from > such repairs. > > Use a good quality socket. I use nothing but the turned-pin type now -- > bad connections on IC sockets are a pain to trace. The extra cost of such > a socket is cheap compared to my time tracking down a fault! Tony- By "turned pin" you mean as in turned on a machine lathe, correct? We just call these "machined" pins here... always a joy to discover alternate usages of our uncommon tongue. :-) -dq

26 years, 1 month

3
2
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Repairing Timex

by sring＠uslink.net

Can anyone recommend sources regarding the troubleshooting and repair of the Timex 1000? Also wish to buy magazines, etc. for this computer. From: "Stephanie Ring" sring(a)uslink.net

26 years, 1 month

4
4
0 0

Experience with P112 CPU board?

by RCini＠congressfinancial.com

Has anyone played with the P112 Z80 SBC from D-X Designs (Dave Brooks)? It looks like a nice little Z80 setup in a 4" x 5" board. Rich ========================== Richard A. Cini, Jr. Congress Financial Corporation 1133 Avenue of the Americas 30th Floor New York, NY 10036 (212) 545-4402 (212) 840-6259 (facsimile)

26 years, 1 month

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> You'll need a REALLY LONG T-15! I found a longish 1/4 inch > hex-drive Torx bit and a slender 1/4 inch hex extender. If > you're very lucky/keen, you can get a special Mac > screwdriver with is T-15 and about two feet long! I know - I'm hoping my extender is slender enough :) > If you're absolutely sure it's a dead chip, the safest way > to replace it is to snip all the legs off, one by one, and > then unsolder them. Your goal is to save the (unique) PCB > and replace the (not unique) chip. PCB foil will come > unstuck if heated for a while, especially on cheaper PCBs, > such as were used in early 1980s home computers... ....and then replace it with a chip socket followed by working chip?

26 years, 1 month

2
1
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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

Paul Williams wrote: > > 3. There's a big difference between writing a program and > engineering a large software system. Right arm! I learned a few interesting techniques in college, but trial-by-fire is the only way I know of to learn how to engineer a large software system (such as the process control system I designed so long ago). It helps to be able to design one to throw away, as per Brooks. Lacking the freedom to do so, it helps to learn how to obfuscate precisely what you're working on when report to TPTB. > No doubt I should have sprinkled some smileys in the above text. :-) -dq

26 years, 1 month

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Java Exidy Sorcerer Emulator

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Jul 18, 23:03, Phil Guerney wrote: > Many micro's of that time had the " as shift-2, but I wish I had a > Sorcerer to confirm The Sorcerer keyboard layout is ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * = ~ ESC 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 : = ^ { } LINE TAB Q W E R T Y U I O P [ ] FEED RETURN SHFT + ` | RUB GRAPH LOCK A S D F G H J K L ; @ \ _ CLEAR < > ? RUN CTRL SHIFT Z X C V B N M , . / SHIFT RPT STOP > However simple BASIC statements (that did not use "=") ran fine. Not a > bad achievement for a Java program that loads in less than a minute. Though it runs incredibly slowly, at least on my unix box. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Dept. of Computer Science University of York

26 years, 1 month

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Tony wrote: > of the time you can manage with the common hand tools (screwdrivers, > pliers, etc), a good soldering iron, a DVM, a logic probe and a brain. Now there's a question - I've just got back from a little expedition to Maplins (butane gas, digital multimeter since I'm sure work's analogue one is iffy since I dropped it :), T10 and T15 torx bits etc (I WILL get into that Mac Plus)) and I could've got a logic probe too. I know they're used to test deadness etc in chips, but how do I use one? It'd be nice to trace which chip is dead in my knackered Atari 800XL and Memotech MTX500 (x2), then I'll have to teach myself how to resolder non-socketed chips! (in the case of the atari anyway) a

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> Yes, but do you know that no other components have failed (in other > words, have you fitted a new fuse and found that the machine > still works)? I was going to do that last night but discovered that the gas soldering iron I'd just bought obviously didn't come with any gas :). I think I must've bumped me head in the crash or something. My other iron's buried somewhere deep within the bowels of our babysitter's house! > It may be that the overvoltage damaged something else, and > that something > else blew the fuse. Or, let's hope you're lucky and it was > just the fuse... That's 1st on the list of 2 things to do tonight......2nd is the A1097C.... cheers!

26 years, 1 month

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While we're talking about Lisas

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Hells - I wish I'd known about this list when I first started getting screen problems! I can certainly check all the power-off things like oxidation etc, but I think I'll leave the power-on stuff to an expert! Whereabouts are you Tony? > -----Original Message----- > From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk [mailto:ard@p850ug1.demon.co.uk] > Sent: 17 July 2000 20:50 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: While we're talking about Lisas > > > > <snip>

26 years, 1 month

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VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment)

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

No, but it took an entire weekend and you had quad muscles *this big* by the time you'd finished :o) > -----Original Message----- > From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk [mailto:ard@p850ug1.demon.co.uk] > Sent: 17 July 2000 20:50 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment) > > > > I just wish I had space in the museum for machines of that > size, but apart > > from anything else getting them up 2 flights of stairs > would be a bit > > Wimp ;-) > > I took my 11/730 upstairs by hand.... It's the 'compact > system' -- a 4' > rack containing the CPU, an R80 drive and a TS05 tape unit. > Of course I > dismantled it to move it -- took all the units out of the rack, took > everything out of the CPU board (boards, PSU, cartridge tape > drives) and > took the R80 apart (pulled the HDA and the PSU). The result > was not that > hard to move. > > -tony >

26 years, 1 month

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Java Exidy Sorcerer Emulator

by fauradon＠mn.mediaone.net

Here http://www.classicgaming.com/AqEmu/ Francois PS: Where do I send you an e-mail for a link correction? >Aquarius emulator? Where? > >Sellam International Man of Intrigue and Danger >--------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- >Looking for a six in a pile of nines... > > VCF 4.0 is September 30-October 1 > San Jose Convention Center, San Jose, California > See http://www.vintage.org for details! > >

26 years, 1 month

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Java Exidy Sorcerer Emulator

by dlw＠trailingedge.com

> I couldn't find an obvious email address for him (stripping off > "/Sorcerer" takes you to *someone's* home page, but it doesn't > mention Sorcerer, so I'm not sure it's Philip. Sorry, his email address on the original message to me was phil(a)liaquay.demon.co.uk > On my PC (win 98), with Netscape 4.7, the majority of the > special characters don't work (i.e., they appear blank and > don't move the cursor when hit...like double-quote (")). > Some work, but differently. (Shift 2 (or was it shift-3?) > got me a double quote (instead of the "@" (or #)). Also, > backspace doesn't seem to work. Yes, I noticed that too. Have to look at my Sorcerer keyboard to check some of the locations of the special characters. I have an Aquarius emulator that treats the keyboard the same way, shift-2 is the " character, etc. I've asked if I can post the source on my Sorcerer pages. On a related note, some else in the UK has just send me a copy of a DOS Sorcerer emulator he has been working on. I'd like to see about getting this on my Sorcerer pages as well. Now if I can only get some drives and CP/M for my real live Sorcerer.... ----- David Williams - Computer Packrat dlw(a)trailingedge.com http://www.trailingedge.com

26 years, 1 month

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Free VAXStations, DC area

by CLASSICCMP＠enterprise.trailing-edge.com

As I "modernize" things here, I discover that I have some surplus equipment. The following is available immediately, for free, from my basement in Bethesda MD (just barely inside the Washington DC beltway). Pickup only, fist-come-first-served: Vaxstation 3100-30, maybe 16 Megs of memory, internal RZ23 scsi disk. Comes with VR319 19" monochrome monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Vaxstation 3100-38, 24 Megs of memory, no internal SCSI disk. Comes with VR260 15" color monitor, keyboard, and mouse. The systems have been running continuously here for a couple years, and were at TRIUMF before that, and are in functional (though maybe a little dinged up) condition. Both have internal floppy drives, but I never use them, so I don't know if they work. No CD-ROM drive either, but if you bring along a 500 Meg to 1 Gig SCSI drive and buy me lunch I'll install the hobbyist OpenVMS 7.2 distribution on it for you from my CD-ROM. Also available: several DEC Rainbows, Professionals, and matching color and black-and-white monitors. Most of this stuff is in pretty ratty condition, but I believe someone could piece together at least a couple of working systems. Also comes with boxes and boxes and boxes of Rainbow documentation and software on RX50's. Drop me an E-mail (shoppa(a)trailing-edge.com) or give me a call (301-767-5917) if you're interested. Again, pickup only, I can't ship. And if you show up here and I'm in a good mood, I might try to make you take some other stuff from the basement :-). -- Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa(a)trailing-edge.com Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/ 7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917 Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927

26 years, 1 month

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Need U.S. source for belt for Amstrad PCW8256 3" drive

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

I can't remember if anyone replied to this; is there a US equivalent of CPC, or are they a US firm? Over here if you buy enough you can get the part #AVBELT3 for 50 english pennies. a > -----Original Message----- > From: Bill Dawson [mailto:whdawson@mlynk.com] > Sent: 09 July 2000 03:44 > To: Classiccmp@Classiccmp. Org > Subject: Need U.S. source for belt for Amstrad PCW8256 3" drive > > > Hello all, > > Here's the dimensions of the needed belt: > > 72mm x 3mm x 0.5mm > > also acceptable: > > 71.0mm x 2.8mm x 0.6mm or 69-72mm x 3-4mm x 0.5-0.6mm > > > The rest of the story: > > I picked up an Amstrad PCW8256 today complete with printer, original > disks (LocaScript and CP/M Plus), 2 game disks with instructions, 5 > spare disks with LocaScript files from the previous owner, > the Start Up > Guide and the User Guide. All for $10.00. > > It is in great condition and appears to have had little use. However, > this is the first Amstrad I've ever owned (or seen for that > matter), and > also my first experience with these strange 3" floppy disks and drive. > I was told it worked, but upon getting it home I found it > wouldn't boot. > After some poking around I decided to take the floppy drive out and > check for head movement. This is when I discovered that the > floppy only > spun when I pulled up on the pressure pad. At this time it started > seeking, so seeing that the spindle is belt driven, I knew where the > problem was. I removed enough screws and connectors to get to the old > belt out and replaced it with an appropriately sized rubber > band. After > reassembly, everything now works great. It boots LocaScript, > CP/M, and > runs the games. > > But..... > > I'd like to replace the rubber band with real belt. > > Can anyone help? > > Bill Dawson > whdawson(a)mlynk.com <mailto:whdawson@mlynk.com> > ? > Your computer will do far more than you ever expected it to, > and that won't be enough. > > Pournelle's First Law >

26 years, 1 month

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IBM CAD system help

by aw288＠osfn.org

RCS is about to get an IBM 7361 Fastdraft CAD system - apparently an S/I based, two headed, big white box. At least that is what we think. All we know so far is that it dates to the early 1980s. Does anyone have any information on this box? Stories? Rumors? Anything? William Donzelli aw288(a)osfn.org

26 years, 1 month

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Java Exidy Sorcerer Emulator

by dlw＠trailingedge.com

Philip M. Scull in the UK send me a link to add to my Exidy Sorcerer pages for a Sorcerer emulator he was working on in Java. It was pretty neat. Thought I'd pass it along to everyone here. URL is: http://www.liaquay.demon.co.uk/Sorcerer Comes up in BASIC and of course I/O is limited at the moment but he's still working on it. It runs as an applet in a Java-enabled browser. ----- David Williams - Computer Packrat dlw(a)trailingedge.com http://www.trailingedge.com

26 years, 1 month

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

Yup... > Am I right in assuming DVM=digital voltmeter? > > a > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Douglas Quebbeman [mailto:dhquebbeman@theestopinalgroup.com] > > Sent: 18 July 2000 13:34 > > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > > Subject: RE: Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex] > > > > > > > Surely any serious computer hobbyist, especially one who is a > > > collector or preservationist, has at least the following: DVM, > > > oscilloscope (even if just an old 5mHZ one to look for > > things like PSU > > > ripple/spikes), soldering iron, logic probe, assorted > hand tools and > > > perhaps a logic analyzer. These are not things that the > > average hobbyist > > > should be unlikely to have. > > > > I guess I got spoiled by working at the university and at a local > > electronics trade school, and then later for a small > embedded systems > > firm. I almost always had a scope of someone else's > available to use. > > Now I don't, and I regret not picking up a dual-trace 15 or 20mHz > > scope when I'd see one available, cheap, from time to time. > > > > My favorite was the Tektronix storage display scope. Now, I just > > try to get by using a Rat Shack logic probe and a DVM. Plenty of > > soldering irons (one Ungar, one generic one-piece, one Wahl), and > > various hand tools. A manual wire-wrap pen somewhere. A CSC bread- > > board. A fair selection of components, new and used. > > > > -dq > > >

26 years, 1 month

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> Surely any serious computer hobbyist, especially one who is a > collector or preservationist, has at least the following: DVM, > oscilloscope (even if just an old 5mHZ one to look for things like PSU > ripple/spikes), soldering iron, logic probe, assorted hand tools and > perhaps a logic analyzer. These are not things that the average hobbyist > should be unlikely to have. I guess I got spoiled by working at the university and at a local electronics trade school, and then later for a small embedded systems firm. I almost always had a scope of someone else's available to use. Now I don't, and I regret not picking up a dual-trace 15 or 20mHz scope when I'd see one available, cheap, from time to time. My favorite was the Tektronix storage display scope. Now, I just try to get by using a Rat Shack logic probe and a DVM. Plenty of soldering irons (one Ungar, one generic one-piece, one Wahl), and various hand tools. A manual wire-wrap pen somewhere. A CSC bread- board. A fair selection of components, new and used. -dq

26 years, 1 month

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> I have the ability to burn most "mainstream" eproms that > would be used in > classic machines (from 2716's up to IIRC 27128 or 27256's) > which I do know > many other folks don't have the ability to do... So I think > part of the > "what would you fix vs. part out" question has a lot to do > with what people actually have the ability to fix. Before I started all this I woudn't have dared doing things like chip swaps, de-soldering and re-soldering components, changing drive belts and general easily-spotted repairs. Now I'll attempt apple floppy drive repair, I found and fixed a bent pin on the mobo socket that stopped the brightness control working on a Colour Classic, found blown fuses, bad connections, oxidised chip pins etc and over a few months have acquired enough tools to do most things. Though I still haven't got the right size nut spinner for my Lisa's screen mountings :) Still can't troubleshoot dead chips either. a

26 years, 1 month

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Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex]

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

My museum ethos is to save at least one of each model of machine I can reasonably afford, so with the really common stuff like C64s, Spectrums, Amstrads, Ataris etc if I get a broken one and obvious chip swaps/dry joints/general muck etc doesn't fix it I get another one. Most spares can generally be passed onto other collectors, but that hasn't stopped me ending up with a pile of broken Spectrum Pluses :) a > -----Original Message----- > From: Mark Gregory [mailto:mgregory@vantageresearch.com] > Sent: 17 July 2000 22:32 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Repair or Replace? [Was: Repairing Timex] > > > I'm curious to know how list members feel about the question > of repairing > versus replacing common computers. > >

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> Err, how can 120V at 5A be anything other than 600VA? Or is it 450VA > continuously rated, 5A peak current or something? Yep - it's definitely a 450VA transformer because I coulnd't afford the 600VA one! I wanted to get a fairly large one in case the ProFile turned out to be a non-switcher, which is academic now because I've got a UK one. > equipment doesn't like that sort of supply. Even > autoswitching PSUs tend > to blow up when connected to one of these units. I know - that's why I'm worried about the Lisa PSU. At first I DID try a US travel adapter which ran my TRS80s and small NTSC TV quite happily - feed Lisa from it and the fuse blew so I scattered off to Maplins and got a *real* transformer with UK plug on one side and US socket on the other. It had better be OK - it was bloody ukp70 :) > I've seen the result of connecting a mac+ to this sort of > unit, and it wasn't pretty! Indeed. One question I don't think I've asked yet is does anyone know where I can get a 1.8A Lisa PSU, which is 120/240 switchable, for less than SunRem's $129 plus shipping? Anyone got a dead 2/10 or MacXL they don't mind losing the PSU from?

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Hi Carlos, Surface shipping would be around $25 depending on weight. I was thinking last night about how I'd had the monitor positioned on the front seat - it was screen backwards so the airbag will have caught the upper rear of the casing with all its force since it was only an inch or so away from the monitor. The metal cover may also have whipped past the top of the case on its way to smashing the windscreen - have a look at this picture to see what it did to laminated glass: http://www.fop.i12.com/Museum/car-3-low.jpg I don't think the monitor will have jumped up high enough to cause that amount of damage, so I'll blame the airbag if anything's smashed internally. I'll check it tonight and let you know. cheers! a > -----Original Message----- > From: Carlos Murillo-Sanchez [mailto:cem14@cornell.edu] > Sent: 17 July 2000 20:22 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: ...and here's another - HP9000 question > > > Adrian: > > While our systems staff were moving a big bunch of HP stuff that just > got decomissioned, they dropped and smashed an A1097C (ouch!). > I have the electronic guts should you want them. Of course, > shipping might be an issue. Let me know if you are interested > at all. > > carlos > > > Adrian Graham wrote: > > > > Hi Carlos, > > > > It's the A1097 I think.....it definitely begins with 'A' > though and I'm > > fairly sure its not the 2094. And it wasn't that heavy :) > > > > thanks! > > -- > Carlos Murillo-Sanchez email: cem14(a)cornell.edu > 428 Phillips Hall, Electrical Engineering Department > Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 >

26 years, 1 month

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VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment)

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

<jealous> :) I plan to have a proper museum too since the room originally destined for it is waaay to small now, but despite having a bit of land it's all largely in one 6 foot wide strip (but 60 feet long!). I'll probably end up renting an old warehouse or something - according to Those In The Know I could get a grant for setting a museum up. a > -----Original Message----- > From: Ethan Dicks [mailto:ethan_dicks@yahoo.com] > Sent: 17 July 2000 18:03 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: RE: VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment) > > > > --- Adrian Graham <agraham(a)ccat.co.uk> wrote: > > > As I continue to improve and upgrade my classic space at > my Farm, this > > > box is one of the ones that I intend to set up early. > > > I just wish I had space in the museum for machines of that > size, but apart > > from anything else getting them up 2 flights of stairs > would be a bit > > prohibitive :) Got the aforementioned MVII though, along > with a 3400, 4200, > > PDP 11/73 and a spare RL02 drive. > > One of the things that attracted me to the Farm was this > quonset hut with > No STAIRS! Eventually, as I've said before, I plan to build a museum > building in the space next to the hut. I think Hans Franke > can attest I > now have the room for as much building as the money permits. > > -ethan > > > > ===== > Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to > vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com > > The original webpage address is still going away. The > permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ > > See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Get Yahoo! Mail - Free email you can access from anywhere! > http://mail.yahoo.com/ >

26 years, 1 month

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Mac Classic analogue board

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

I mentioned this in another thread so I thought I'd ask the question properly; I've got a Classic that will fry the glass fuse (and do the sound and lights bit too) when one is inserted. Is it a common fault? I should've guessed something was wrong when I bought it - there wasn't a fuse in the plug and it had no case screws, but then I didn't spot that till I got it home. cheers a

26 years, 1 month

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Repair or Replace?

by mgregory＠vantageresearch.com

-----Original Message----- From: Mike Ford <mikeford(a)socal.rr.com> To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org <classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org> Date: Monday, July 17, 2000 4:27 PM Subject: Re: Repair or Replace? > >I sure wish I had sane reasons for a lot of what I do. Repairs are things I >just find myself doing without a lot of conscious thought. I do from time >to time have enough presence of mind to stop when it leaks into some >functioning portion of my brain that the object at hand is a worthless >piece of junk even if working, ie seriously yellow keyboard with missing >keycaps and broken screw mounting posts. > Often, I find that I've developed an emotional attachment to stuff that is otherwise worthless junk. For example, I once agonized over throwing out the shell of a Coleco ADAM keyboard with a cracked circuit board, because I remebered the thrill of finding the system it belonged to tucked into a dusty corner in a thrift store a few years ago. >Having a couple boxes for different grades of "junk" helps a lot due to >magnet force all empty boxes exude. When you have a box for breakage, or >scrap circuit boards, they tend to get filled up. Without said boxes I tend >to put things down on any convient surface to "look at" later. > Sounds like my "study" (where little studying ever gets done) which has computers in various stages of disassembly on every flat surface (and a few piles rising up from the floor). I generally keep the door closed to prevent gasps of "what the heck happened in here!" from any uninitiated passersby. Cheers, Mark

26 years, 1 month

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The Molecular SuperMicro 70-32

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On July 17, Douglas Quebbeman wrote: > > One would hope that on this list at least people would know > > the difference between a "Cracker" and a "Hacker"! In the > > above paragraph you're obviously talking about "Cracker"! > > One would hope that on this list that those of us who are > true cognoscenti would recognize another member of the true > cognoscenti and understand by usage the correct meaning. Gezundheit. -Dave McGuire

26 years, 1 month

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The Molecular SuperMicro 70-32

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

> doug quebbeman wrote: > >N*Star used password-based security, and was apparantly easy > >to hack. One of the digital electronics instructors at the school > >who generally played dumb when it came to newer technology still > >remains the primary candidate for the hacker who made my life > >miserable. I got some quid pro quo later, but that's another > >story. > > One would hope that on this list at least people would know > the difference between a "Cracker" and a "Hacker"! In the > above paragraph you're obviously talking about "Cracker"! One would hope that on this list that those of us who are true cognoscenti would recognize another member of the true cognoscenti and understand by usage the correct meaning. Sheesh! -dq

26 years, 1 month

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VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment)

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> As I continue to improve and upgrade my classic space at my Farm, this > box is one of the ones that I intend to set up early. I cut > my teeth on > a lot of stuff on this guy. I was very happy to take it with > me when I moved on. I can't remember what happened to ours when we upgraded to a MicroVAX II BA213 in around 86 :( With the cost of the machines in those days it'll have gone for part-ex I reckon. Its LA100 is somewhere though, still going strong. I just wish I had space in the museum for machines of that size, but apart >from anything else getting them up 2 flights of stairs would be a bit prohibitive :) Got the aforementioned MVII though, along with a 3400, 4200, PDP 11/73 and a spare RL02 drive. a

26 years, 1 month

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The Molecular SuperMicro 70-32

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

One of the more interesting microcomputers I used during my career was a Molecular SuperMicro 70-32. This machine had a unique architecture in that it was a file server and client machines and LAN all wrapped in one box. The file server was a 6 mHz Z80 board, and it had an onboard SASI interface (or was this late enough to be SCSI) as well as a floppy interface. Our unit had a QIC-24 tape drive and a 60MB hard drive... the HD was fast for its time. Molecular referred to the file server as the file processor. The client computers were boards that plugged into the bus, and were each 4 mHz Z-80 units. All I/O was through the bus. These client nodes were referred to as the Application Pro- cessors. The Supermicro's main operating system was called N*Star, and provided most of the MP/M-II API/OS calls, but not all of them, and IIRC, it provided some of its own and seemed to have some from another CP/M clone whose name escapes me. You could boot the file processor from the floppy drive into CP/M. The "bus" was actually configured as a network, using CSMA/CA to handle the traffic. It seemed to run just about every CP/M package we could throw at it. However, while I recall spending lots of time customizing a copy of ZCPR/2 for the Televideo TS-803, I don't recall doing this for N*Star, so there may have been some compatiability problems. I think it *did* run Microshell, though (which was my first "brush" with Un*x). N*Star used password-based security, and was apparantly easy to hack. One of the digital electronics instructors at the school who generally played dumb when it came to newer technology still remains the primary candidate for the hacker who made my life miserable. I got some quid pro quo later, but that's another story. Irv Hoff had one or worked on one, as I found a patch for the OS he'd authored whilst playing data recovery mule this weekend. I also recall that someone had a software package running on one that acted just like Compuserve; everything was GO commands and it had forums that worked identically. Has this machine been a subject of discussion on the list before now? Anyone else used one/have one? regards, -doug quebbeman

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Hi Carlos, It's the A1097 I think.....it definitely begins with 'A' though and I'm fairly sure its not the 2094. And it wasn't that heavy :) thanks! > -----Original Message----- > From: Carlos Murillo-Sanchez [mailto:cem14@cornell.edu] > Sent: 14 July 2000 16:20 > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: ...and here's another - HP9000 question > > > Hi Adrian; > > Somewhere in time between the higher-end series 300 and the > lower-end series 400, HP switched from 60Hz to 72Hz framebuffers > and fixed frequency monitors to go along with them. The 98752A > (one of the heaviest suckers I have ever lifted!) > and the 98789A are examples of 60Hz tubes. The A1097 and A2094 > are two of the most common 72Hz monitors. If you tell me the > monitor model (framebuffer model would help too) I might be > able to find out more for you. > > carlos. > > Adrian Graham wrote: > > > > Hi folks, > > > > I forgot to mention, in the crash I had last week that > damaged the Apple /// > > etc I also had an HP Apollo 9000/600 workstation with 19" > monitor. Whilst > > I'm assuming the front passenger airbag caught the monitor > since it was > > unrestrained on the front seat (but the seat was pushed > right up to the > > dash) it is now however refusing to display blue. If I > remove the B plug on > > the RGB cable the display doesn't alter......since if I > remove the green the > > sync goes and they're from a similar era could I substitute > a spare DEC > > VRT21 I've got lying around here in the office? That > monitor is a 60hz > > 1280x1024 RGB sync-on-green Trinitron. > > Of course, I'd like to repair the HP's monitor, but my knowledge of > > repairing monitors begins at the glass fuse and ends on the > high voltage bit > > > > cheers > -- > Carlos Murillo-Sanchez email: cem14(a)cornell.edu > 428 Phillips Hall, Electrical Engineering Department > Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 >

26 years, 1 month

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While we're talking about Lisas

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Thanks Louis, I'll give that a try. Other things I've got to check are the voltages on the card so I'm leaving her for a couple of days to allow the tube to discharge before I take the stinger off; I've been told its best to solder some extra wires onto the components in question to allow easy voltage checking without the risk of zapping myself. > -----Original Message----- > From: Louis Schulman [mailto:louiss@gate.net] > Sent: 15 July 2000 00:25 > To: Adrian Graham; classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: While we're talking about Lisas > > > This definitely sounds like a video card problem. Most > often, the adjusting pots at the top of the card become > oxidized, and provide intermittent or no performance. > > Thus, you might try the standard procedure of applying some > tuner/channel selector cleaner, and twisting the pots back > and forth, remembering their original position. Some > adjustment will likely be necessary. > > Of course, I could be wrong. But it is worth a try. > > Louis > > On Fri, 14 Jul 2000 14:34:24 +0100, Adrian Graham wrote: > > >My Lisa 2 (vanilla one, 1.2A PSU) has developed a habit of > turning the > >screen off while she's running. In fact it's now permanently > off which is > >annoying to say the least. Some of you may have experienced > this before so > >here are the symptoms; > > > >System working fine (at the time running MacWorks 1.0), > screen goes dim as > >per screensaver then blinks off like I'd hit the power > button. It eventually > >comes back on after leaving it powered down for a couple of > hours. James at > >Sigma Seven Systems said he thought he remembered there was > a serial port > >bug in MW1.0 that caused the screen to go off sometimes so I > left it at > >that. > >I've now got myself a ProFile so I was intending on > installing LisaOS 3.1, > >but when she was powered up for the first time since maybe > mid-may the > >screen came on briefly then blinked off again as it did > before; since then > >it's only come back on once for around 10 minutes. > >While all this is going on the machine keeps running > normally. If I power up > >I hear the self test passing, if I've got the first OS disk > in (or MacWorks > >boot disk) it will actually boot, if I've got a standard > composite monitor > >connected I can see things happening so I know the machine itself is > >fine....... > > > >Anyone else seen this? I've got another video card and > screen coming over > >but it won't be here till the end of august; to say I'm > champing at the bit > >would be an understatement :) > > > >cheers! > > > >

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> conditions, so it > was not judged to need to be user-replaceable. Ah! Makes sense I suppose. > In my experience other components of the Apple ][ power suppy are much > more likely to fail than the fuse, but on the other hand I > never plugged > a 120V A][ into 240V mains. > > Too bad they didn't do autoranging back then. :-( I know - I'm wondering if this is why my Lisa isn't too happy with the video power ATM....having said that I'm running her thru a 240-120V 450VA 5A transformer so it should be fine. Why I didn't plug the ][c into the same transformer I'll never know.

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> I'd start by looking for mechanical damage (cracked PCB, damaged > connectors, etc) on the PCB on the back of the CRT. Some HP > monitors have > the video signal carried on screened cables ending in RCA phono plugs > that plug into the circuit boards and bad connections here are common. OK then - I'll check. I know the monitor hit SOMETHING because the front case/bezel/whatever had separated from the back. This monitor is an A1097.......something. Dammit - I only looked yesterday :) > Normally when a fuse blows there are other faults -- fuses do > not blow > for no good reason. So when the fuse blows you're going to need a > soldering iron anyway to put the other problem right. This one blew because I fed it 240V instead of 120! Still kicking meself for that one. > And soldering the fuse in place stops j-random-public from fitting > whatever fuse happens to be to hand -- like a 13A one. Thus > protecting > the unit from further damage, and prossibly stopping a fire. True...... cheers!

26 years, 1 month

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TRS-80 Model I, not working, only $4,000! What a deal!

by retro＠retrobits.com

Well, I just saw the deal of a lifetime on eBay. A TRS-80 Model I (unfortunately, not working) with only a $4,000 reserve! Hmm... Think this one is a prank? I can't imagine someone would have that big a typo in the decimal points. I have a TRS-80 Model I, obtained at Goodwill for $4. I'll let it go for HALF the asking price of the eBay seller. Take a number! :-) - Earl

26 years, 1 month

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VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment)

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

--- Adrian Graham <agraham(a)ccat.co.uk> wrote: > > As I continue to improve and upgrade my classic space at my Farm, this > > box is one of the ones that I intend to set up early. > I just wish I had space in the museum for machines of that size, but apart > from anything else getting them up 2 flights of stairs would be a bit > prohibitive :) Got the aforementioned MVII though, along with a 3400, 4200, > PDP 11/73 and a spare RL02 drive. One of the things that attracted me to the Farm was this quonset hut with No STAIRS! Eventually, as I've said before, I plan to build a museum building in the space next to the hut. I think Hans Franke can attest I now have the room for as much building as the money permits. -ethan ===== Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com The original webpage address is still going away. The permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/

26 years, 1 month

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Kaypro 10 Western Digital Hard Disk Controller WD 1002-HD0

by whdawson＠mlynk.com

Hello all, I need any technical information anyone may have for this hard drive controller board, especially schematics. I have all the other technical docs for the Kaypro 10. This board is not in the documentation I already have because it was not considered to be field or factory repairable. WD 1002-HD0 61-031050-00 REV Y 8, 1893 Western Digital It connects via 40 pin IDC and ribbon cable to the Kaypro main board and to either 1 or 2 ST-506 10mb MFM drives. LSI on board includes WD1014AL-00, WD1010AL-00, WD1015-00, and SY2128-2. I've already searched the web and found some general information, some helps, most doesn't. Thanks again, Bill Bill Dawson <mailto:whdawson*at*mlynk.com> <- Anti-spam protection ? Your computer will do far more than you ever expected it to, and that won't be enough. Pournelle's First Law

26 years, 1 month

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VAX-11/730 (was RE: Unresistable pond comment)

by ethan_dicks＠yahoo.com

--- Adrian Graham <agraham(a)ccat.co.uk> wrote: > > > I assume you mean something like a VAX 11/730 rather than > > the ol' Austin > > > > And what's wrong with an 11/730? It's a nice little machine... > > I love the 730 - it was my first VAX; I remember us being annoyed that we > couldn't upgrade to VMS V4 because we only had half a meg :) Nothing money can't fix. I have an 11/730 in storage that we built up to 5Mb RAM, the internal RB80/RL02 combo, and a BA-11 on the side for extra goodies. It was ordered the week it was announced from DEC because we needed a cheap VAX for product development. It was how we discovered that its internal slots are not wired the same as a DD-11DK backplane - the original Unibus COMBOARD(R), commonly called the COMBOARD I, does not work in the CPU backplane of an 11/730 or anything identical to it (there are a couple of CPUs with the same configuration). I have one "modified" COMBOARD I on the shelf - it has a mass of wires to route the Unibus signals from one set of fingers to the other. It was a design problem on our end; someone read one set of Unibus signal maps and assumed it was gospel. The COMBOARD II product was built with the Unibus signals coming from the right places. In the literature, the different slots are named "MUD" (Modified Unibus Device) and "SPC" (Small Peripheral Controller). Without reading the labels on the CPUs, I forget which ones crop up in which machines (when I was making these boards on a daily basis, I used to know, but I claim mental bit rot on the details this far out). We used that 11/730 until the last days of the company. For application compatibility purposes, our 11/750 was running VMS 4.6, but we needed to link our product under VMS 5.x for our more modern customers. To that end, I put VMS 5.3 (I think) up on the 11/730, hooked the machines together via 56K DECnet and wrote into the build scripts the ability to copy the objects and privved MACRO code from the 4.6 box to the 5.x box, link and copy back the executables. Building the product used to be a full time job. When I was done, it was a single command (and about 6 hours!) Fun little box. Prior to its life as a linker, it was the first box I ever installed UNIX on - Ultrix 1.1. I also put up UUCP and net news on it, before the Great Renaming. Somewhere I still have some articles >from the newsgroup net.micro.amiga. We took it down for a few months, and when we once again fired up UUCP, all the articles were going into the Junk directory. Mich hair-pulling and hand-wringing later, a buddy of mine at Ohio State casually mentioned that all the newsgroups had changed named recently and would I like a copy of the new newsrc? Doh! As I continue to improve and upgrade my classic space at my Farm, this box is one of the ones that I intend to set up early. I cut my teeth on a lot of stuff on this guy. I was very happy to take it with me when I moved on. -ethan ===== Even though my old e-mail address is no longer going to vanish, please note my new public address: erd(a)iname.com The original webpage address is still going away. The permanent home is: http://penguincentral.com/ See http://ohio.voyager.net/ for details. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/

26 years, 1 month

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Another tech legend for discussion!

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

On July 15, Derek Peschel wrote: > In that case, look at http://www.powells.com for the information about > Powell's Technical Books and ask if volume 1 is still on the shelf. They > will also start book searches for you for both volumes. > > I'm having them search for _Preparation of Programs for an Electronic > Digital Computer_ by Wilkes/Wheeler/Gill. Good luck, man...I've been looking for that book for a few years now. If you find a [second] copy of it please let me know. :) -Dave McGuire

26 years, 1 month

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Another tech legend for discussion!

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

Smart! > -----Original Message----- > From: Douglas Quebbeman [mailto:dhquebbeman@theestopinalgroup.com] > Sent: 17 July 2000 13:39 > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > Subject: RE: Another tech legend for discussion! > > > I hate to speak for Ed, but no, I don't think he'd mind you linking > to that page. > > -dq > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Adrian Graham [mailto:agraham@ccat.co.uk] > > Sent: Monday, July 17, 2000 5:13 AM > > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > > Subject: RE: Another tech legend for discussion! > > > > > > > of the Star's lifecycle as a product. The definitive story of the > > > development of the Lisa GUI can be read at: > > > > > > http://home.san.rr.com/deans/lisagui.html > > > > > > > Excellent - will anyone mind if I like to that from my Lisa page? > > >

26 years, 1 month

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IBM System/1

by hofmanwb＠worldonline.nl

IBM blew it as far as mini's concerned. The IBM 1800 was fun to work with. System 7 software initially had to be developped on a mainframe and was not compatible. System 1 was sold via higher management. So no (mini)computers for the masses. Wim ---------- > From: Eric Smith <eric(a)brouhaha.com> > To: classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: IBM System/1 > Date: Monday, July 10, 2000 5:35 PM > > > What is an IBM system/1 ? > > A minicomputer. In some sense an incompatible followon to the > IBM 1130 & 1800. > > Please save the docs! If noone who actually has a System/1 needs them, > I'd like to have them, and would be happy to pay postage. >

26 years, 1 month

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Another tech legend for discussion!

by dhquebbeman＠theestopinalgroup.com

I hate to speak for Ed, but no, I don't think he'd mind you linking to that page. -dq > -----Original Message----- > From: Adrian Graham [mailto:agraham@ccat.co.uk] > Sent: Monday, July 17, 2000 5:13 AM > To: 'classiccmp(a)classiccmp.org' > Subject: RE: Another tech legend for discussion! > > > > of the Star's lifecycle as a product. The definitive story of the > > development of the Lisa GUI can be read at: > > > > http://home.san.rr.com/deans/lisagui.html > > > > Excellent - will anyone mind if I like to that from my Lisa page? >

26 years, 1 month

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TRS-80 Model I, not working, only $4,000! What a deal!

by allisonp＠world.std.com

-----Original Message----- From: Marvin <marvin(a)rain.org> >Earl Evans wrote: >> >> Well, I just saw the deal of a lifetime on eBay. A TRS-80 Model I >> (unfortunately, not working) with only a $4,000 reserve! > >I think it is this kind of nonsense that breeds more of the same by ignorant >sellers. A $4000 TRS-80 Model I doesn't sound unreasonable ... as long as it >includes a working system including expansion box and monitor, most of the >software ever written for the unit, etc. :). No that is not reasonable. That exceeds the new purchase price for that much. TRS80s arent even scarce nor is it complete. I'd say a clean system with all the facory mods, Expansion interface, disk drives plus software working may warrent some money but not $4k. Allison

26 years, 1 month

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latest finds at Washington MO hamfest

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> I noticed it takes a 3.5 disk and not the 5.25 like I've seen > on the older > ones. If any of you are semi-experts on these, shoot me an > email off-list > with some of the basics, like formatting a floppy. Not > having a book, you > can't say RTFM. I can RTFM for you but for anything else I'll have to see how it is when I replace the fuse :) a

26 years, 1 month

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TRS-80 Model I, not working, only $4,000! What a deal!

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

There was a bloke trying to sell a ZX81 over here for ukp1000 on Yahoo auctions. Unsurprisingly nobody bid :) > -----Original Message----- > From: Earl Evans [mailto:retro@retrobits.com] > Sent: 17 July 2000 02:43 > To: ClassicCmp > Subject: TRS-80 Model I, not working, only $4,000! What a deal! > > > Well, I just saw the deal of a lifetime on eBay. A TRS-80 Model I > (unfortunately, not working) with only a $4,000 reserve! > > Hmm... > > Think this one is a prank? I can't imagine someone would > have that big a > typo in the decimal points. > > I have a TRS-80 Model I, obtained at Goodwill for $4. I'll > let it go for > HALF the asking price of the eBay seller. Take a number! :-) > > - Earl > > >

26 years, 1 month

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An amazing emulator

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

The Spectrum Plus 4 never existed so I wonder what he's got there? :) > -----Original Message----- > From: Sellam Ismail [mailto:foo@siconic.com] > Sent: 15 July 2000 06:48 > To: Classic Computers Mailing List > Subject: An amazing emulator > > > > I find this hard to believe, but apparently this one emulator > can emulate > a bunch of different machines:

26 years, 1 month

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Refusing

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> My guess is that about 90% of the time fuses go poof, and > putting a new one > in makes the world fine again. The great factor here is how > conservatively > the designer specs the fuse, plus of course what happens to blow it. The machine ran happily for around 10 seconds, then made a 'dying fuse' noise. Not quite the bang my spare Mac Classic will give though - I get lights with that one too :) And before anyone mentions it, this one is definitely a 240V machine.

26 years, 1 month

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Unresistable pond comment

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> > I assume you mean something like a VAX 11/730 rather than > the ol' Austin > > And what's wrong with an 11/730? It's a nice little machine... I love the 730 - it was my first VAX; I remember us being annoyed that we couldn't upgrade to VMS V4 because we only had half a meg :) That was why I mentioned the AS400 instead..... > Morris car of the same name? :) Actually, I would't >tarnish a VAX by > roping > a politician to one, so how about an AS/400 instead? > > Err, what about using a no-name Pentium PC clone?? Not heavy enough unless you weld a stack of 'em together!

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> I've never worked out what fault would blow the fuse and not do other > internal damage to the PSU. Maybe an overvoltage surge (or > plugging it > into the wrong mains voltage) would just take out the fuse > with no other > damage but I've never been that lucky! I live in hope :) Fuses cost pennies and it won't take me long to find out whether I HAVE fried other components, whereupon I start kicking myself again. a

26 years, 1 month

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Another tech legend for discussion!

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> of the Star's lifecycle as a product. The definitive story of the > development of the Lisa GUI can be read at: > > http://home.san.rr.com/deans/lisagui.html > Excellent - will anyone mind if I like to that from my Lisa page?

26 years, 1 month

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...and here's another - HP9000 question

by agraham＠ccat.co.uk

> Unless you happened to plug a 120v PS into a 220 supply, > being the case > here, in which case you can leave the soldering iron in the > tool cupboard > and look for your misplaced brain cells ;) I think I should've just stayed in bed that weekend! So I've completely goosed the PSU then? cheers a

26 years, 1 month

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latest finds at Washington MO hamfest

by ghldbrd＠ccp.com

Hello, Had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Jay West at the hamfest, where he lrelieved me of one slighty non-working Apple ][ and disk drive. After having made $60 selling four 6146 tubes, I got crazy and bought another Apple, this time a IIc, with monitor and external 5.25 drive for $10. Guess I'm just rotten to the core . . . . I noticed it takes a 3.5 disk and not the 5.25 like I've seen on the older ones. If any of you are semi-experts on these, shoot me an email off-list with some of the basics, like formatting a floppy. Not having a book, you can't say RTFM. Kind regards -- Gary Hildebrand Box 6184 St. Joseph, MO 64506-0184 816-662-2612 or ghldbrd(a)ccp.com

26 years, 1 month

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Another tech legend for discussion!

by fmc＠reanimators.org

Dave McGuire <mcguire(a)neurotica.com> wrote: > On July 15, Derek Peschel wrote: > > I'm having them search for _Preparation of Programs for an Electronic > > Digital Computer_ by Wilkes/Wheeler/Gill. > > Good luck, man...I've been looking for that book for a few years > now. If you find a [second] copy of it please let me know. :) Um, y'all do know that this was reprinted by Tomash Publishers as part of the Charles Babbage Institute's reprint series for the history of computing, right? ISBN 0-938228-03-X, also 0-262-23118-2. OK, OK, it's not an *original*, but as a reading copy it'll do just fine, and it'll probably be a bit easier on your wallet. ISTR (somewhat more recently, like this year) that CBI was offering some books in the reprint series as thank-you gifts for contributions too. -Frank McConnell

26 years, 1 month

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