test-drb

test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

101090 discussions

by jwest＠imail.kwcorp.com

I just got handed a huge binder, that was getting ready to be pitched during our datacenter move. Apple "Supportools Reference Guide", including product data sheets, system configuration, software, and support. Got sections on apples, macs, A/UX, etc. Offered for trade... Jay West --- [This E-mail scanned for viruses by Declude Virus]

23 years, 5 months

HP 9915A (industrial version of HP 85A)

by vassilip＠dsl.cis.upenn.edu

Joe <rigdonj(a)cfl.rr.com> wrote: > The 85F were delivered as part of various HP test systems and AFIK > they were never listed separately in the HP catalogs. That's probably > why few people have heard of them and may be confusing their > capabilities with standard 85Bs. The 85F is a nice catch IMO, you > gain two ROMs and don't use up any of the ports on the back. Yes, the 85F was part of the 3056DL data acquisition system. You can find a brochure with a description of the 85F config at <http://library.hp41.org/LibView.cfm?Command=Document&ItemID=23075> On page 21 you find the 85F described as: Computer with CRT, keyboard, tape drive, graphics, 16K memory, HP-IB card, I/O ROM and ROM drawer (all that for just $3485). There is no Mass Storage ROM and the Adv Programming ROM was a $165 option. Also since they gave you the ROM drawer, the ROMs would not be inside the 85F, so you do use one port on the back. Even the 9915A which contains the ROMs inside the cabinet, has only three slots, so you appear to lose a slot anyway. Also, Joe, since you have the programmable-rom-module, can you check inside to see the type of the translator IC (the one closest to the the edge connector. I would guess that its either a 1MA5-0101 or a 1MB5-0101. Further down there should be a 8048 (Intel microcontroller) that does all the funny address decoding and stuff. At least with most HP85 I/O cards, the funny voltages on the I/O bus are hidden by the translator chip; on the other side you have industry standard TTL. Because of the "funny" voltages on the I/O bus, contructing a programmable-rom-module from scratch would be very difficult, but if we can use the 1MB5-0101 part (which is found in most adapters) we can convert some of the zillion 82937 HP-IB adaptors that appear constantly on eBay to programmable-rom-modules. Then we can all have the EMS ROM and get rid of the ancient (and huge) 9135A hard disks. BTW The most impressive of these beasts is probably the 9895A dual 8-inch floppy drive, that is so big that the HP85 sitting on top looks like a toy. I have a 20 page brochure on the 9915A. I'll try to make it available on-line soon. This is where I got the keyboard connector info I posted in my previous email. gil smith <gil(a)vauxelectronics.com> wrote: > There are still a few unknown keys in the main > matrix though. Pin 25 use is unknown (2.5V). Pin 1 is chassis ground. As I have mentioned in the previous posting, there is also a speaker signal on the keyboard connector. gil smith <gil(a)vauxelectronics.com> wrote: > Since > there are no lines to enable a specific rom socket, I think the 85 must > poll for roms using fixed address ranges or something -- this implies > that the roms contain address qualification circuitry of some sort. Have a look at page 5-3 of the HP-85 assembler manual (available on CDROM from the HP calculator museum - www.hpmuseum.org). It describes the system memory organization of the HP-85. On page 6-17 the manual explains how to access other ROMs via the bank-switching hooks. Best regards **vp

23 years, 5 months

OT: Clean steel?

by foo＠siconic.com

There are two rooms in the ACCRC building that are filled with huge old (useless) refrigeration systems. Tons of steel. We'd like to get the rooms cleared out so we can use them. We've gotten quotes in the past but all of them will end up costing us to remove the equipment since the rooms are enclosed and one of them is down a ladder with a narrow door. Everything will need to be cut up and removed piece-meal. There is also some very large equipment on the roof that will need a crane to remove. A while back we had a brief discussion about "clean steel". "Clean steel" is supposedly steel that was smelted before the first atomic bomb tests, and therefore contains no radiation. Apparently, air since the first atomic bomb test is now filled with background radiation, and because so much air is used in the smelting process, a lot of the radiation gets into modern steel making it unsuitable for some applications (such as medical test equipment where radioactive isotopes are used as part of the operation). I was thinking that because this building is so old (from the 1930s) that a lot of the steel in those rooms is "clean". I called a scrapper yesterday who has been in the business for 30+ years and is a Harvard graduate, and he said he has never, ever heard of "clean steel". So what gives? Is there a government website somewhere that defines "clean steel"? I'm hoping that the steel is actually worth enough to make it a wash to have it removed. As it stands, the quote I have so far is that we have $25/ton worth of steel and $30/ton to salvage it. Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 5 months

Question about Sharp PC4500 and IBM basic

by kenziem＠sympatico.ca

Can anyone here shed some more light on the sharp PC4500, the IBM basic question? ---------- Forwarded Message ---------- Thank you for your reply. I have a Sharp laptop PC4500 that still works. I don't have a manual for it, and am curious about the unit. There are two expansion slots inside the unit. I was wondering if I can use a mouse with it, but there aren't any ports for a mouse. It has two parallel port connectors only on the outside of the unit. Also, I am looking for an IBM unit with the BASIC code in the ROM. I have a game written in BASIC dating from about 1984 that won't work with GWBASIC. I am curious whether it actually works on an actual IBM (i.e. not clone) unit.

23 years, 5 months

Naming of Systems

by jpl15＠panix.com

I was default sysop of a pair of Sydis voice-phone-data Unix systems back when I was a product manager at a Large Non-Bell California Phone Company. I called 'em Godzilla and Rodan. Not uncommon to get a phone call : "Hey, I think Godzilla just puked.." Earlier, (speaking of Molecular Computers) we sold two of them to a company who did insurance back-office processing. Their resident Geeks named them Pokey and Gumby, and when a user logged into the system, an ASCII-art graphic of the relevant character was displayed on the splash-screen. None of the above machines were made from Pre-Bomb Steel, BTW. Cheers John

23 years, 5 months

EditWriters in New Zealand

by foo＠siconic.com

I deleted the original message that pointed me to this picture: http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~tractorb/editwriter.JPG ...but I would say that these are definitely worth saving. Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 5 months

OT: RE: Clean steel?

by Robert_Feldman＠jdedwards.com

Googling doesn't turn up many hits, but I found two (both related to ships): www.liddiard.demon.co.uk/photoix/brittany/kleber.htm and www.hazegray.org/faq/smn7.htm Given so few hits, maybe is is an urban legend. Then again, some applications might require steel without the slight radiation that blast-furnace smelting might add. The mixing in of contaminated scrap is a different (and very real) issue from air-blast introduced low-level radioactivity. Bob -----Original Message----- From: Kapteyn, Rob [mailto:kapteynr@cboe.com] Sent: Thursday, October 17, 2002 12:09 PM To: 'cctalk(a)classiccmp.org' Subject: RE: Clean steel? My understanding of this: "Unclean" steel is not radioactive because of the A-bomb tests (although we are all being exposed to roughly 3 times "natural" background radiation because of those tests. There have been several very expensive mistakes in which highly radioactive contaminants got mixed in with scrap metal going to smelters. Some of these were not detected until toys and table legs made from the scrap were being shipped to consumers. About 40% of our steel comes from recycled scrap. This scrap always seems to pick up some radioactive contamination. The 60% of steel made from virgin ore is "clean". Your 1930's scrap is still scrap -- not virgin ore. The EPA has a new program to address this problem: http://www.epa.gov/radiation/cleanmetals/ -Rob -----Original Message----- From: cctalk-admin(a)classiccmp.org [mailto:cctalk-admin@classiccmp.org]On Behalf Of Sellam Ismail Sent: Thursday, October 17, 2002 10:51 AM To: Classic Computers Mailing List Subject: OT: Clean steel? There are two rooms in the ACCRC building that are filled with huge old (useless) refrigeration systems. Tons of steel. We'd like to get the rooms cleared out so we can use them. We've gotten quotes in the past but all of them will end up costing us to remove the equipment since the rooms are enclosed and one of them is down a ladder with a narrow door. Everything will need to be cut up and removed piece-meal. There is also some very large equipment on the roof that will need a crane to remove. A while back we had a brief discussion about "clean steel". "Clean steel" is supposedly steel that was smelted before the first atomic bomb tests, and therefore contains no radiation. Apparently, air since the first atomic bomb test is now filled with background radiation, and because so much air is used in the smelting process, a lot of the radiation gets into modern steel making it unsuitable for some applications (such as medical test equipment where radioactive isotopes are used as part of the operation). I was thinking that because this building is so old (from the 1930s) that a lot of the steel in those rooms is "clean". I called a scrapper yesterday who has been in the business for 30+ years and is a Harvard graduate, and he said he has never, ever heard of "clean steel". So what gives? Is there a government website somewhere that defines "clean steel"? I'm hoping that the steel is actually worth enough to make it a wash to have it removed. As it stands, the quote I have so far is that we have $25/ton worth of steel and $30/ton to salvage it. Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 5 months

ASR33 linefeed problems...

by jos.mar＠bluewin.ch

After a whole day of finetuning my ASR linefeed pawl stops, I still cannot get it to produce a reliable linefeed. Most of the time I get nothing ,or a half line, sometimes it feeds at each character. Is there any secret to this mechanism ? The ASR manual is not a great help, as it does not mention anything besides the pawls'and their stops. Jos Dreesen

23 years, 5 months

uyk-20?

by rigdonj＠cfl.rr.com

Does anyone have any info on this computer? I've found one at a scrap place and they're supposed to be getting a several more of them in. I pulled some of the cards from this one and they're marked Sperry-Rand. I checked the date codes on some of the ICs and they were all dated 1977. I pulled eight large core memory boards out of this one. Any body know what the memory capacity is on these? Joe

23 years, 5 months

What Is This Connector?

by mhscc＠canada.com

Priority Interrupt chain. Should go from 16FDC OUT to TU-ART IN. Note that the pins on the 4/16/64FDC are the opposite of all other cards, so the cable connects to the same side pin on both boards (away from the edge of the card). The extra wire is in case you have another board requiring connection to the interrupt chain, e.g. a PRI printer interface; if all you have is the TU-ART, just leave it dangling: __+ +_____________ 16FDC | | __+ +_____________TU-ART | | If you have a WDI type hard disk controller with a connector, do NOT connect to it; they have a separate interrupt chain. Good luck; nice to see someone actually bringing a Cromemco back to life. Which model System 2 BTW? Sounds like a CS-2, dual TM100 floppies, full width 21 slot backplane, no internal HD? So, what other cards were in there? Got any software/OS for it? mike -------------Original Message------------- Message: 42 From: "Scarletdown" <SecretaryBird(a)SoftHome.net> To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org Date: Thu, 17 Oct 2002 22:32:12 -0700 Subject: What Is This Connector? Reply-To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org Earlier today, I had Mintaka (Cromemco System Two) opened up and had her cards pulled so I could write down an inventory of what all she has in her. I noticed that on the FDC16 floppy controller, there is a wire plugged into a 2 pin connector on the card. The other end of the wire is not connected to anything. Any idea what it is supposed to go to? <snip> ------------------------------------------- Introducing NetZero Long Distance Unlimited Long Distance only $29.95/ month! Sign Up Today! www.netzerolongdistance.com

23 years, 5 months

Exxon Qyx Typewriter thingy

by cb＠mythtech.net

So what is an Exxon Qyx good for? Other than as a typewriter? I just found one in my garage (I swear if I dig a bit further, I will find the Ark of the Covenant in there). I found the manuals and software, but I can't yet get to them (really REALLY big pile of gondola shelves are in the way, and I have to move a fridge to get the shelves out... <sigh>). I'm trying to decide if I should haul this out for my garage sale this weekend, or hang on to it. The fact that it is a typewriter with a floppy drive is interesting enough in its own right that I might keep it... but that pack rat mentality is what got everything so burried in the first place (something I am sure just about everyone here is familiar with). Is this just an old word processor, or can you do something more interesting with it? -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 5 months

What Is This Connector?

by SecretaryBird＠SoftHome.net

Earlier today, I had Mintaka (Cromemco System Two) opened up and had her cards pulled so I could write down an inventory of what all she has in her. I noticed that on the FDC16 floppy controller, there is a wire plugged into a 2 pin connector on the card. The other end of the wire is not connected to anything. Any idea what it is supposed to go to? Here is a picture of the wire and connector in question... http://www.oz.net/~otter/Geekware/What-is-This-Connector-0.JPG I also noticed that the TU-ART card has a similar 2 pin connector, with nothing attached to it. http://www.oz.net/~otter/Geekware/What-is-This-Connector-1.JPG Is that where the other end of the wire is supposed to go? And if so, what about that connector in the middle of the wire? Thanks -- Scarletdown

23 years, 5 months

Heathkit H-8

by chris＠blackwidowguitars.com

Hi, I have a Heathkit H-8 of which I know nothing about. I am curious to play with this machine a bit but really I don't know where to start. I believe all I have for the H-8 is the computer - the part with the keypad & led display & a bunch of cables. What can I do with this? How can I test to see if it even works? Any ideas where I could go to find more information about it? Thanks all! Chris Lamrock

23 years, 5 months

[OT]: World's Most Dangerous Server Rooms Finally Revealed :-)

by philpem＠dsl.pipex.com

Hi all, Just found this on The Register - thought some of you might be interested. World's Most Dangerous Server Rooms - Finally Revealed! (my title, not theirs) http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/28/27684.html I like this one [quote] We shall not name the world-renowned North American educational institution in which the server room itself is now out of bounds:- [endquote] I'm not going to spoil the fun by telling you what the sign on the server room door says :-) Later. -- Phil. philpem(a)dsl.pipex.com http://www.philpem.dsl.pipex.com/

23 years, 5 months

OT: Clean steel? more info

by mmcfadden＠cmh.edu

More info for Sellam http://www.geocities.com/darrenmilford/scuttle.html Bayern as raised in 1933. She fetched a scrap value of ?110,000 nearly half of which was profit. The salvage operations on the various ships started in the early 1920's with most of the ships having been raised by the late 1930's. Since then fragments of ships have been raised and since Hiroshima they remain an important source of quality radioactive free metals necessary for certain types of sensitive scientific instruments http://users.accesscomm.ca/shipwreck/index7.htm Radioactivity in the atmosphere has increased over time with the continual testing of atomic bombs of all types. Steel makers need vast amounts of air to make steel so it would follow that steel made nowadays contains certain amounts of radioactivity. Prior to dropping the first A bomb in 1945, steel was radioactive free, and the only source of this 'clean' steel left lies in pre 1945 wrecks that lie on the seabed. Mike

23 years, 5 months

OT: Clean steel? additional ramblings

by mmcfadden＠cmh.edu

Sellam Ismail was asking about "clean steel", here is some of what I know/remember from one of the applications that require it. The trace amounts of radioactive "stuff" in the new steel can swamp out the radioactive particle counters on some experiments. There was an experiment at the University of Missouri to look at the muscle/fat percentages in humans and in cows. There was an especially built building made from "old battleship steel" that enclosed the radioactive particle counter. The "experimental subject" was given trace amounts of radioactive potassium which would be incorporated into their muscle. The entire subject was then placed in a whole body detector to determine the percentage of the body mass that was muscle versus fat. I heard that they had gotten the steel from an old sunken ship. may be entirely myth Thanks Mike

23 years, 5 months

RICM's ZS-1

by pat＠purdueriots.com

Just wandering around the web last night, and I was wondering 'what happened' to RICM's Astronautics ZS-1 ... has it yet been powered up, booted and put through its paces? While I was at Astronautics with Merle, (and everyone else), it looked like a fine machine that would be fun to play around with once it got up and running, and, well, I was just curious if it's been set up and successfully ran any software since it was moved. Pat -- "This fucking university has shown time and time again that it is completely fucking incompetent when it comes to employing technology" -- Anonymous http://dilbert.com/comics/dilbert/archive/images/dilbert2040637020924.gif

23 years, 5 months

Fw: Sign of the times :(

by Huw.Davies＠kerberos.davies.net.au

At 02:47 AM 16/10/2002 -0500, Tothwolf wrote: >If you notice the car on the left of the image, it gives two clues that >show the location is in the US somewhere. The license plate, even though >you can't see all of it, is US sized. The steering wheel is also on the >left side of the car. Another noticeable item in the photo is the DSS dish >on the roof of the red brick building. I'm inclined to agree that this photo is from the US, but of course the majority of cars in Europe have the steering wheel on the left hand side of the car. If the UK is anything to go by, there are lots of satellite dishes there too... Huw Davies | e-mail: Huw.Davies(a)kerberos.davies.net.au | "If God had wanted soccer played in the | air, the sky would be painted green"

23 years, 5 months

Need Help Identifying Mystery S-100 Card

by SecretaryBird＠SoftHome.net

If I provide pictures and a descriptions of the various chips, would anyone here be able to help me identify this S-100 card? First, the pictures: http://www.oz.net/~otter/Geekware/Mystery-Board-Front.JPG http://www.oz.net/~otter/Geekware/Mystery-Board-Back.JPG The largest chip is marked: AM9513PC 8148HP (c) 1980 AMD. To the right of the DIP switches are 4 socketed chips... The two smaller ones: F-74LS136PC 7935 Singapore The two larger ones: 74LS244 PC F 8226 Indonesia The other 9 chips, in no particular order... F-74LS368PC 7918 Indonesia SN74LS00n QQ8130 (has Motorola Logo) 74LS02 PC 8221 Singapore F-74LS32PC 8210 Indonesia 435 DM7476N 74LS14 F 8248 Singapore 2630 937 (has Hewlett Packard Logo) 4N26 240F Korea 4N26 231F Korea I'm assuming that this is a homebrew job. But before I make a decision on whether or not to stick it in Mintaka, or sell it, I really would like to know what this card is for. Anyone have any idea? Thanks -- Scarletdown

23 years, 5 months

Wang 2200 web site and emulator announcement

by frustum＠pacbell.net

Hello one and all. For the past three or four years, I've actively been looking for a first generation Wang 2200 computer. I actually have two now, mostly working. Over the past couple of months I acquired/developed all the technical information I needed to write an emulator. The emulator is far from complete, but it is quite usable. Besides the emulator, I've overhauled my Wang web site and added a lot more content. Now that the ball is rolling, I hope to maintain it more actively. The web site: http://www.thebattles.net/wang/wang.html The emulator: http://www.thebattles.net/wang/emu.html The emulator runs on win32 platforms right now, but I wrote it using a GUI/system abstraction toolkit, wxWindows, so it should be pretty portable to unix/linux/mac at least. If you have no nostalgia for the 2200, why is it interesting anyway? The first generation came out in 1973. Because it was designed before microprocessors were available, it is a microcoded TTL box. In many ways, it can be compared pretty fairly to home computers that came five years later. Because it predates Microsoft, it has a rich and quirky BASIC dialect. Unfortunately, I don't have any Wang BASIC documents online yet, but I do have a quick comparison of Wang BASIC vs early Microsoft BASIC. ----- Jim Battle == frustum(a)pacbell.net

23 years, 5 months

Anyone have a Corvus Mirror?

by foo＠siconic.com

Does anyone have a Corvus Mirror? This was a VHS tape backup unit for the Corvus hard drive. Pictures and info here: http://209.122.187.156:8082/corvus.html If you have one, please contact me privately at <sellam(a)vintage.org>. Thanks! Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 5 months

What is this?

by dwightk.elvey＠amd.com

Hi I wish he'd shown a closeup of the left side. What he did closeup was just a static ram. The good stuff was on the left. I know little about Apple stuff though. Dwight >From: "Sellam Ismail" <foo(a)siconic.com> > >Can anyone identify the Apple ][ card in this eBay auction? > >http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2061361635 > >Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival >------------------------------------------------------------------------------ >International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org > > * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com * > >

23 years, 5 months

Vintage Scopes

by mhscc＠canada.com

In the August 1968 issue of the "Tektronix Service Scope" there is an article comparing the 512 to the new 323 (the first 'scope manufactured by Sony/Tektronix), and although the article doesn't specifically say so, it does sound like the 512 was the first Tek scope, introduced in May 1949. In another issue an article on power supply troubleshooting does state (in bold print at that) that power transformers are warranted for the life of the instrument (mind you, I guess if the transformer goes, the instrument's pretty dead :). I'll gladly photocopy the relevant page if anybody wants to try to get a free replacement :). Also, further to Toth & Tony's discussion, according to Tek the most common problem when the fuse blows immediately is a shorted diode in the bridge. mike ------------Original Message------------ Message: 43 Date: Fri, 11 Oct 2002 16:39:23 -0700 (PDT) From: "Fred Cisin (XenoSoft)" <cisin(a)xenosoft.com> To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org Subject: Re: Vintage Scopes Reply-To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org On Fri, 11 Oct 2002, Philip Pemberton wrote: > Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) wrote: > > Did Tek have any models before the 512? > Not sure. I think my Tek 466 dates back to about 1980. > Later. In 1972? I got a military surplus Tektronix scope. I think that the model number was 512.

23 years, 5 months

What is this?

by cb＠mythtech.net

I thought the Transporter card was an Apple II NIC. But in looking at those pics, I don't see anyway to connect cables. I've never personally seen or used one, so I don't know what kind of cable was used, or where on the card you would look (or if it was even ON the card... might have been a 2nd card that contained the interface for all I know). There is a little bit of info in Google that seems to support my memory of it being a NIC... but nothing that helps explain how to connect it (does seem to indicate that it was a custom network of some sort) -chris <http://www.mythtech.net>

23 years, 5 months

What is this?

by foo＠siconic.com

Can anyone identify the Apple ][ card in this eBay auction? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2061361635 Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org * Old computing resources for business and academia at www.VintageTech.com *

23 years, 5 months

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