test-drb

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101090 discussions

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

Is there an equivalent to CTRL-ALT-Delete on the C64 so you don't have to turn it on and off every time you want to run a new program? Zane -- | Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Administrator | | healyzh at aracnet.com (primary) | OpenVMS Enthusiast | | MONK::HEALYZH (DECnet) | Classic Computer Collector | +----------------------------------+----------------------------+ | Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, | | PDP-10 Emulation and Zane's Computer Museum. | | http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |

19 years, 9 months

Trade: IBM360 F/P for 8, 8/S or 8/L

by root＠parse.com

I'm looking to offload an IBM 360 front panel in order to focus more on my core collection. A good picture can be found at: http://www.parse.com/~museum/misc/index.html I collect PDP-8's mainly, so I'm looking to get a straight 8, and 8/S, or an 8/L. Now, I realize that the front panel is probably not worth a straight 8 or an /S, (but might be worth an /L), so I'm willing to pitch in some cash as well, or other items (lots of spare cards, misc electronics, whatever). Let me know what you have, and where you are located. I'm at Kanata/ON/Canada postal code K2M 1C5. Probably best to take this offlist to rk at parse.com Cheers, -RK -- Robert Krten, PARSE Software Devices Realtime Systems Architecture, Consulting, Books and Training at www.parse.com Looking for Digital Equipment Corp. PDP-1 through PDP-15 minicomputers!

19 years, 9 months

CompuPro floppy controller differences

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: CompuPro floppy controller differences > From: "Dave Dunfield" <dave06a at dunfield.com> > Date: Sat, 09 Sep 2006 08:39:24 -0500 > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > > >> You missed one item, different eprom and contents. The differences there >> include boot code for 8088 and in very late 1A version 68000. They are >> essentially the same, though of the two the latter 1a is prefered. > >Yeah, I ment to mention that ... And hand-in-hand with it, the boot option >switch settings on the 1 are different than the 1A (no 8086 modes for >example). The 8086 mode is only a preset to a block of eprom for booting, same for others. >Q: Are the controllers similar enough that the boot code from the 1A will >work in the 1 - ie: If Rich wanted to run an 8088/86 CPU could he put >the boot code from the !A into the 1 and boot the system? (He might have >to put in just the mode he wants in an accessable "slot" in the 1A ROM >space) Yes, the basic control floppy registers and addresses are identical. The DMA also behaves the same. However it means burning a new eprom as the 1A used a larger prom. NOTE: the caveat is the booter also knows what size floppy is used (8 or 5.25) as well as what CPU in the case of the 1A there are 16 different possible S1 settings for booter. The late 1As could boot 8085/88 card, z80, 8086, 80286, 68000, 32016. Allison

19 years, 9 months

CompuPro floppy controller differences

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: CompuPro floppy controller differences > From: "Richard A. Cini" <rcini at optonline.net> > Date: Fri, 08 Sep 2006 19:36:32 -0400 > To: "'General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts'" <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > >All: > > > > Is there any practical difference between the CompuPro Disk 1 >and Disk 1A that would prevent a 1A disk from working on a 1? I have a line >on a Disk 1 controller but only have access to 1A disks from Dave Dunfield. Generally none. The 1A has an different boot rom (boots more cpus and IO combos) and no serial (bit bang port). The difference of the 765 vs 765A will not be a problem for C-pro disks. If it concerns you you can put a 765A in a disk-1 with no other changes. The rest of the differnces in the two boards are small, though of the two I prefer the 1A as it has a lot of small fixes on the same basic design. Allison > > > > Thanks. > > > >Rich > > > >Rich Cini > >Collector of classic computers > >Lead engineer, Altair32 Emulator > >Web site: <http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/> >http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/ > >Web site: http://www.altair32.com/ > >/***************************************************/ > >

19 years, 9 months

PDP-8m Console Switch Problems - fixed!

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: PDP-8m Console Switch Problems - fixed! > From: Don North <ak6dn at mindspring.com> > Date: Thu, 07 Sep 2006 00:49:17 -0700 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > Cc: cctech at classiccmp.org > >None of the databooks I have ever seen actually show the gate level logic >for the internals of the 74x175 or 74x174; they are only black box diagrams. >So it is not clear to me that the outputs are unbuffered/bidirectional. >They certainly seem to be for Signetics (see below) but my lab tests cannot >verify this for any other mfg. I have old databooks sets that go to the gate and some cases transistor level. >I have pulled totem-pole outputs forcibly high or low before, but >have always used an external series current-limiting resistor to limit >the override current to a 'safe' value. For pullup a current limit is advised, for pull down it's not needed as the pull up device is current limited already. >Well, I am seeing something very different here. I built a breadboard >with the circuit under question: 74x175 device, 470ohm to +5V on MR~, >CLK and Dx inputs forced to ground. I connected voltmeters to the >Q and Q~ outputs, and then tried forcing Q and Q~ alternately to ground >to see if I could change the state of the device. > >I had a number of devices to test, here are the results: > > DATE > MFG DEVICE CODE RESULT > --- ------ ---- --------- > TI 74175 87 FAIL, shorting Q~ to gnd never changes Q to high > SGS 74LS175 82 ditto > TI 74AS175 87 ditto > SIG 74S175 84 PASS, with 470ohm pullup to +5V on Q req'd for Q0-Q3 > SIG 74S175 76 PASS, Q1-Q3 work w/ no resistor, Q0 requires 470ohm > >For the failed devices, I tried with no pullup, and 100, 470, 1K, 4.7K >pullups to +5V on Qx. No value of pullup made any difference. Shorting >a Q~ signal (at ~4V) to ground never changed Q (at ~0.4V) to a HIGH. It the MR/ is not in the correct state (may need pullup) I'd conclude you have some bad parts. Especially the TI[I have the most data on those]! >> I'd give the 7404 the hairy eyeball! A quick test is socket a '175 >> with the Q and /Q output pins floating and using a jumper to ground >> make it flip [It WILL NOT IF MR/ is asserted, you can bend out the >> MR/ pin to avoid that.]. Then test the '04 for input changes output. >> >> >> Allison > >The 7404 on the output seems OK, as is the rest of the downstream logic >(the priority encoder). I measured the input currents required on a >suspect '04 input to set the output high and low and they are well within >spec (about +20uA for input high, -0.7mA for input low). With the 74S175 >out of its socket I could set all the 7404 inputs H/L and observe the >downstream priority encoder outputs were just as expected. That's good. >I have about 15 of the 1984 Signetics 74S175s, I tried all of them in >the console board socket; none of them worked, even a little bit, with >no pullups added. I'd pulse them slow with Q/ connected to D and see if they toggle. I suspect you have a bad run of old chips. I just tossed a few tubes of mid 80s NOS parts as they apprently died of silicon rust [moisture gets into the plastc and they die]. >So I added 470ohm pullups to +5V on the 74S175 Q outputs to 7404 inputs. >Everything started working as would be expected. The switch decode logic >is now 100% functional. You have something really messed up with those 175s your testing. >My thought is that the output pullups on the 74S175 Q pins are trying to >pull those outputs high fairly strongly (10mA load) but the Q output can >still drive a valid low (it is a 20mA schottky driver). This pullup >'preloads' the output, so that a kick on the QB~ (by shorting to gnd) >gets the Q output moving high, the resistor keeps it moving high, able to >override some smaller internal driver trying to keep the output low. >At least that is the only rational explanation I can think of right now. Sounds like you have some '175s with the upper device fried in the totem pole outputs. >Just the 7404 by itself is a -1mA low, +40uA high load; not very much. Unless it has an input with high leakage to Vcc or ground, i've seen both. >In any event, the fix is simple (three resistors really, but I'll add one >on each of the six used outputs). Turns out all the original logic chips >appear to be good (I had removed the original 74S175 intact for testing). > >Thanks to everyone for all the suggestions and helpful hints. Put all the parts on a header and plug it in rather than mess the board up. Allison

19 years, 9 months

CompuPro floppy controller differences

by rcini＠optonline.net

All: Is there any practical difference between the CompuPro Disk 1 and Disk 1A that would prevent a 1A disk from working on a 1? I have a line on a Disk 1 controller but only have access to 1A disks from Dave Dunfield. Thanks. Rich Rich Cini Collector of classic computers Lead engineer, Altair32 Emulator Web site: <http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/> http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/ Web site: http://www.altair32.com/ /***************************************************/

19 years, 9 months

another test

by jwest＠classiccmp.org

2nd test, please ignore, no reply necessary

19 years, 9 months

Problems with a DEC RL-01 drive on a PDP-8/A

by mcsele＠niagarac.on.ca

I did some basic diagnostics on the system. First, checked the superficial stuff like the cable. The Berg has a strain relief attached and all wiring looks solid at that end. Also checked the head lock which was indeed in the lower (free) position however I observed the head suring loading and it does indeed retract properly ... when the LOAD key is out the heads retract immediately to the parked (fully retracted) position. When a fault occurs, heads pull back as well. True, the unit was transported without the head lock in place - any ideas on possible misalignments? When the BOOT switch on the limited-function panel (or the BOOT key on the console) is pressed, the FAULT light blinks momentarily, the READY light goes out momentarily, and the disk is restored to the original, ready, state. When the cartridge is loaded, the heads move from the parked state to engage the disk. During the fault the heads pull back to the parked state and are then restored to the disk again. When the bootstrap is stepped, the READY light never does blink (stays lt), nor does the FAULT light! Which leads me to wonder why? Checked the ROMs on the 8317 board - they are labelled '469A2' which I can't seem to track. Bootstrap option switches are set as SW1: 2,4,8 ON, SW2: 1,6 ON so with the older ROMs one would expect a TA8-E device (obviously different or these ROMs). Can I verify the bootstrap code easily? Now, when I do step-through the bootstrap I have loaded (at address 1 - the one on my web page), the address is seen to step through as follows: 1,2,3,27,30 (with AC=0004), 31,33,34,27,4,5,27,30,31,33,35,1 at whch point it repeats in an endless loop. It seems to fail, then, on the read header function (at which point I did the diagnostics I had outlined finding the DCRC error after which I did a get status. I'd be grateful for any further ideas you might have on the subject otherwise it might well be 'get out the scope' time! Thanks .... Mark Professor Mark Csele Niagara College, Canada 300 Woodlawn Rd., L-8 Welland, ON, L3C 7L3 (905) 735-2211 x.7629 E-Mail: mcsele at niagarac.on.ca URL: http://technology.niagarac.on.ca/people/mcsele Author of "Fundamentals of Light Sources and Lasers", Wiley, 2004

19 years, 9 months

CIT-101 terminals (was Re: Probe/Search TV props)

by ethan.dicks＠gmail.com

On 9/8/06, Gordon JC Pearce <gordon at gjcp.net> wrote: > Ethan Dicks wrote: > > The C-itoh 101 line of VT-100-compatible terminals had the MICR font built > > into ROM... > > http://pdp11.kicks-ass.net Yep. That's exactly it. Also, the CIT-101 has a built-in clock you can see in the first setup screen. You send a (different) documented string to the terminal (typically on login), and for a quick desk clock, tap the SETUP key once to see the tab setup and a digital clock in the upper right corner of the screen. Tap SETUP again and you are back at your OS's prompt. I'm amazed to see so many references to them all at once, but I'd rank them right up there with Wyse terminals as good VT-100 clones. Somewhere, I have some paperwork for how much we (Software Results Corp) paid for them in the early 1980s, but I want to say between $1200 and $1600, *each* (the higher price may be what we paid for real DEC terminals). -ethan

19 years, 9 months

test - please ignore

by jwest＠classiccmp.org

No reply necessary... just had a hiccup with the list server and making sure it's fixed. Jay

19 years, 9 months

portable printing terminals

by rickb＠bensene.com

A Teletype Model 43 could be considered "portable", and to my recollection it used a 7x9 dot matrix printhead, which did lower case nicely. It also used "real" paper as opposed to the thermal stuff of the TI Silent 700's. It was definitely noisier than a Silent 700, but the 43 was very nice to use. I used one of these for a time a long time ago, and found it to be a really nice terminal for use on timesharing systems. Would love to find one today. I have a couple of TI Silent 700's in that have built-in acoustic couplers, and do lower case...except that the lower case is just a shrunken down version of the upper case character set. Readable, but definitely what you'd want to print out RUNOFF documents with. Plus, that thermal paper isn't very durable for long-term document storage. Rick Bensene The Old Calculator Web Museum http://oldcalculatormuseum.com

19 years, 9 months

HP emulator

by ccrodie＠bellsouth.net

Can anyone on the list tell me the current status of Jay West's hpemu project? Chris Rodie

19 years, 9 months

"reset" C64?

by josefcub＠gmail.com

On 9/7/06, Zane H. Healy <healyzh at aracnet.com> wrote: > Is there an equivalent to CTRL-ALT-Delete on the C64 so you don't > have to turn it on and off every time you want to run a new program? > > Zane > RUN/STOP-Restore is what you're looking for, but with many programs it doesn't work due to their hijacking of the metal from the ROM. Wow, a question I could answer. Josef -- "I laugh because I dare not cry. This is a crazy world and the only way to enjoy it is to treat it as a joke." -- Hilda "Sharpie" Burroughs, "The Number of the Beast" by Robert A. Heinlein

19 years, 9 months

PDP-8m Console Switch Problems - fixed!

by ajp166＠bellatlantic.net

> >Subject: Re: PDP-8m Console Switch Problems - fixed! > From: Don North <ak6dn at mindspring.com> > Date: Thu, 07 Sep 2006 11:28:15 -0700 > To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org> > Cc: cctech at classiccmp.org > >I also find it somewhat suspicious in that the BOM for the PDP-8f/m LED >console panel calls out a plain 74175 device for these parts (rev F board > etch). However in the three panels which I have, they are all BUILT with > SIG 74S175 devices >of various date codes in 75 and 76. None of these parts looks to have been >previously reworked (or else someone did a real nice job; hard to tell >sometimes). >I find it somewhat fishy the BOM and the board have different parts; DEC was >usually a little more reliable than this. They have been reworked. In the 70s 74S cost enough more I doubt DEC would have used them in a function where speed wasn't reqired. It's entirely possible someone trying to be true to date used "S" parts. Myself I will not put 74S or 74F in with slow 7400 and I'm wary of 74LS in the wrong places as well. I've been bit by those intermixes in the past, especilly when the part was used as a oscillator, oneshot or other variations of normal logic. In DEC the BOM was it and ECOs were required to deviate. >> Put all the parts on a header and plug it in rather than mess the board up. >I plan to do that, just replacing the two S175 positions with sockets, >and I'll >dead bug the resistors over the top of the S175s. That way, someday when >I come across some of these 'magic' 74x175s :-) that work without pullups > I can replace them easily. I find the _need_ for pullups worrying. Despite the IC tester there is something odd going on. It could be the parts pass dynamic but not static parameters. Allison

19 years, 9 months

Vintage Computer Festival 9.0

by pete＠dunnington.plus.com

On Sep 7 2006, 22:39, Simon Fryer wrote: > On 9/7/06, Roger Holmes <roger.holmes at microspot.co.uk> wrote: > > [...] > > > Any chance of arranging an event (but obviously smaller) in the UK? > > I think a few people from the UK contingent on this list *should* be > able to organise something. I'd be willing to help. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

19 years, 9 months

Sun System Giveway

by rborsuk＠colourfull.com

Hi All, I have two Sun systems that I would like to find new homes for, any takers? One is a Sun Enterprise 2 and the other is a Sun Enterprise 450 (this one is pretty good size). These are free to a good home, though any donations of Data General Equipment (always) and as of late, Commodore Vic 20 equipment, is greatly appreciated. The systems are located about 20 minutes North of Detroit, Michigan. Thanks Rob Robert Borsuk irisworld at mac.com -- (\__/) (='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy and paste bunny into your (")_(") signature to help him gain world domination.

19 years, 9 months

Vintage Computer Festival 9.0

by roger.holmes＠microspot.co.uk

On 7 Sep, 2006, at 08:16, cctech-request at classiccmp.org wrote: > TEN YEARS AGO, a typical home > computer system might have > been a box with an Intel > processor inside running a > Microsoft operating system. > And there were a few Macs. > > Today, a typical home computer > system might be a box with an > Intel processor inside running > a Microsoft operating system. > And there are a few Macs. But now the Macs have Intel processors in them too. Any chance of arranging an event (but obviously smaller) in the UK? Anyone want to come and see my 1962 ICT 1301 mainframe? Maybe not quite as nice as the recent tape drive picture, but what do think of my Ampex TM4s : http://web.onetel.com/~rodritab/mtani.htm Roger Holmes.

19 years, 9 months

Vintage Computer Festival 9.0

by aliensrcooluk＠yahoo.co.uk

--- Simon Fryer <fryers at gmail.com> wrote: > All, > > On 9/7/06, Roger Holmes > <roger.holmes at microspot.co.uk> wrote: > > [...] > > > Any chance of arranging an event (but obviously > smaller) in the UK? > > I think a few people from the UK contingent on thi s > list *should* be > able to organise something. > > > Anyone want to come and see my 1962 ICT 1301 > mainframe? > > Yes. > > Simon > There are UK events, such as Big Bash 4, but I don't know what sort of retro computers they are aimed at having never been to it. Regards, Andrew B aliensrcooluk at yahoo.co.uk

19 years, 9 months

Problems with a DEC RL-01 drive on a PDP-8/A

by mcsele＠niagarac.on.ca

I have a PDP-8/A with an RL-01 drive which does not want to boot and am looking for advice ... The machine (outlined at http://www.technology.niagarac.on.ca/staff/mcsele/pdp8a.html) is functioning properly but 'hangs' when the bootstrap is exectured for the RL-01 drive (the FAULT light blinking briefly then extinguishing). The RL-01 disks were last booted about 10 years ago and were supposedly bootable then (presumably with OS/8). Stepping-through the bootsrtap code, the program hands on the READ HEADER function. A diagnostic program was written to do a READ ERROR at that point and apparently a DCRC error is occurring (AC=4401 in response to the RRER instruction). A GET STATUS was also run and the drive operation verified, but apparently there is still a CRC error. I have outlined all tests perfromed on that web page above (including status words in the silo after the GET STATUS command). If anyone has experience with such a drive I'd love to hear your thoughts on it! I have tried two supposedly bootable cartridges and received the same results. Thanks ... Mark Professor Mark Csele Niagara College, Canada 300 Woodlawn Rd., L-8 Welland, ON, L3C 7L3 (905) 735-2211 x.7629 E-Mail: mcsele at niagarac.on.ca URL: http://technology.niagarac.on.ca/people/mcsele Author of "Fundamentals of Light Sources and Lasers", Wiley, 2004

19 years, 9 months

Epilog: Imaging DEC uVAX MFM drives

by oldcpu＠rogerwilco.org

Just thought I would close this thread with a report of my success getting these uVAXen MFM drives imaged. Thanks to much good advice for list members, I have successfully imaged all drives. I don't have VMS to do a VMS netboot (sorry Allison :) ), so I ended up netbooting NetBSD from a Debian box via MOP/BOOTP/NFS onto each uVAX. Once I had NetBSD installation kernel alive, I configured the network IP and did an NFS mount back to the Debian box. After that, it was a simple matter to 'dd' the uVAX's drive to a file on the Debian, and from there to a CD for long term storage. As it turns out, all four of these vaxen had extremely minimal ULTRIX setups loaded, not VMS, which is a shame. I was hoping for a VMS setup to play with. Well, I'm in the process of getting my OpenVMS licenses, so all is not lost. Thanks everyone for their suggestions, and patiently "reminding" me that MFM drive formats aren't portable. Jared

19 years, 9 months

Fujitsu disk drive info ?

by awootton＠uniserve.com

Dear Sir: A friend gave me an old Fujitsu Denso B14L-0300-0018A power supply from which some of the parts have been removed but that still contains the power transformer and some other pieces. I would like to use what I can from the power supply to make a regulated power supply for an amateur radio transceiver. I have been looking on the internet for information regarding the Fujitsu power supply and yesterday I found your request for information. Were you able to find any information regarding the schematic for the power supply? If so, I would really appreciate it if you would let me know the source or pass on the information you obtained. It seems to be quite hard to find. Yours sincerely, Allen Wootton

19 years, 9 months

Siemens computer series

by aek＠bitsavers.org

> Then again, the 8870 mentioned in Albetos original question is > a small multi user system for office tasks. Is there a document that describes the various Siemens Siemens/Nixdorf computer families, with release dates? The late IBM-compatibles have some documentation, but there isn't anything I see on the web that gives the progression from the 4004 forwards, or the Siemens 16-bit process control systems from the 70s. -- It would be a lot easier to identify the pack if there was a picture, or at least a description of size, #platters, etc.

19 years, 9 months

For Sale: DEC Vaxstation 4000 60

by classiccmp＠vintage-computer.com

Please see http://www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum/showthread.php?t=3696 for more details and pictures. Included are: DEC VS46K Vaxstation 4000 60 DEC RZSX Storage Expansion DEC RZ55 Hard Drives DEC TK50Z Tape Drive DEC TLZ04 Tape Drive DEC RRD40 CD Drive Plus a big monitor and DEC keyboard along with SW tapes and CDs and enough cables to get the whole thing going. Everything was working when I played with it three years ago just before it all went into storage. It's all boxed now in two large/heavy boxes - the monitor isn't yet boxed. I'd really prefer local pickup since I can't guarantee that FedEx/UPS won't hose the system in transit but I'm willing to repack it if need be into more smaller boxes and I can also just bring it to a pack and ship place at the buyers convenience. I can exclude the monitor from the shipment to save on costs, but you're still talking about a heavy load. Anyway, I'm looking to get $100 or so plus shipping for the system which I think is a fair price but I will donate to an appropriate museum or non-profit. Please let me know if you're interested. -- Erik Klein www.vintage-computer.com www.vintage-computer.com/vcforum The Vintage Computer Forums

19 years, 9 months

Alpha Station LX300

by pdp11owner＠gmail.com

I am trying to get an Alpha Station LX300 to run OpenVMS. When I power the machine up, it appears to be using the AlphaBIOS and it wishes to use Windows NT. Is it possible to update the BIOS to use SRM so that I can install OpenVMS, or is this machine doomed to run WindowsNT? Thanks for any information you can supply. --barrym

19 years, 9 months

Siemens-Nixdorf S400 diskpack, info request

by alanp＠snowmoose.com

> > >I need information about a disk unit Siemens-Nixdorf S400. >> To what level of detail do you need? > > >> The early S400 series were rebadged RCA Spectra 70's >> It is probably similar to either IBM 2311 or 2314. > > I do not see how this could be the case since Siemens-Nixdorf did not exist until Siemens bought Nixdorf in 1990. From what I have been able to tell, the SNI S400 was a big iron number cruncher from the '90s. alan Contractor at SNI Neuperlach, 1991-92

19 years, 9 months

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test-drb