Whilst in a self-induced trance, e.tedeschi happened to blather:
>Scott Walde wrote:
While I fully agree with what Scott wrote in his (admittedly longwinded :-)
post, I'm not sure if it was stated simply enough....
>> Back to the religion thing again... If I was giving something away, and a
>> person wanted it to use it for some purpose which I am 'religiously'
>> opposed to (I can't think of a good example off hand) I would probably try
>> to find someone else to take the item. I think that this should be my
>> right. (I do have the right to practice my religion, don't I?) I hope
>> you can see how this applies directly to the computer issue.
To put it in 4 words, I believe Scott is saying: "Live and let live."
>So now the problem is clear...notwithstanding all the previous
>declaration to the contrary THERE IS a problem of someone being opposed
>to some other use (and possibly location) of the stuff. I think it is
>only fair that it is so.
If the problem is clear to you... could you explain it to me? My mind is
still dizzy from all this... :-) (Oh, and BTW, would you mind not yelling?)
>What is NOT fair is to try to hide it and find other excuses like...too
>difficult to pack... to expensive to be worth bothering with it....too
>much paperwork etc. Ain't we all in the same passion? If not then I
>would rather not be here.
Personally, I had no idea that they still "shipped" (pun intended) things
on "the Big Pond." I would not have even thought to look for something
other than airmail, and I can attest (as I live on the Canada-US border)
that Customs can be a right pain in the behind.
>See what I mean? (is this too much cultural for someone?)
Well, no.
Enrico, I do have one question: Are you waiting for someone to say to you:
"You're right?" If so, I don't believe you've presented enough evidence to
us to judge whether or not you are. I can say that several of the "points"
you've tried to make have been very vague and could be interpreted a number
of different ways. I've noticed that several people on this list has tried
to explain what they percieve to be going on, and I readily admit that I
don't know enough about what's going on. However, one thing I do know very
well is communication, and there does seem to be a major miscommunication
problem here.
I for one, would like to see you stay with the list, and yes, there might
be the occasional twit on the list as well, but I'm on 5-6 lists (two of
which I run), and I must say that I've seen fewer twits on this list than
on my others.
I have several friends I've met thru e-mail all over the world (and yes,
including the U.K... ;-) and I will say that I was offended with you're
insistance that this was a "foriegner" issue... This is called the "World
Wide Web" not the "U.S. Web." I can also guarantee that no matter what
country you visit, you *will* find at least one twit living there. Guaranteed.
Enrico, if you can clearly explain your position (with examples, if
necessary) to me in private e-mail, I would be more than glad to help you
out and would even be glad to act as intermediary between you and anyone
else with which there may be a communication problem. Otherwise, I'll go
back lurking and I will have no more to say about this thread. (I
promise!!! ;^> )
Just my tuppence worth,
Roger "Merch" Merchberger
--
Roger Merchberger | If at first you don't succeed,
Programmer, NorthernWay | nuclear warhead disarmament should *not*
zmerch(a)northernway.net | be your first career choice.
> > There is the matter of customs which many americans have little experien
> > with.
> I accept that....but you are such a big country. Isn't it about time you
> start looking outside and try to understand other cultures? (no offence
> meant)
I worked for several companies that was very good in that respect, Japanese
and European. I did exchange information and material on a very regular
basis however, it was another person in shipping that took care of details
of getting it there. AS an engineer the machanics of those transactions
were an inpediment to doing the work!
In short you are confusing the mechanics of transaction with cultural
interaction.
I have had only on case where I got something for the shipping cost and
depite care in packaging by the shipper a s100 box was received severely
bent! Over a certain weight crating is a must it would appear. I don't
have the resources to crate a machine.
For me save for that one long distance transaction other than for a floppy,
a board or paper/books(small under 2kg) to strictly local transactions
withing the driving distance of my old toyota pickup truck. As is, that
can prove difficult!
Allison
Just by coincidence here is an example I have just received just now
(there have been more before I started this debate; I don't that I am
paranoid, there is definetely something in this group which is
(generally speaking):
a) against "displays" (pulling out bits to display etc.)
b) Against shipping overseas (cost is no problem as is paid by the
recipient)
It took my some four e-mail messages to get to this message enclosed
here. See what I mean?
enrico
--
================================================================
Enrico Tedeschi, 54, Easthill Drive, BRIGHTON BN41 2FD, U.K.
tel/fax +(0)1273 701650 (24 hours) or 0850 104725 mobile
website <http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~e.tedeschi>
================================================================
visit Brighton: <http://www.brighton.co.uk/tourist/welcome.htm>
Subject: Mint Commodore PET FOR Sale
From: "Stephen McCoy and Charmiane Barr"
<mrsmrx(a)efni.com>
Date: 1997/06/17Message-Id:
<01bc7b43$fddee5c0$b8933dcf@charmaine>
Newsgroups: aus.computers.amiga[More Headers]
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
------=_NextPart_000_01BC7B1A.15107EE0
Content-Type: text/plain;
charset=ISO-8859-1Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Hey all If you are in the market for antique computers and
accessories I got one
for you--Commodore PET (Slim 25) with a working tape drive and
cable. The
unit works at its factory best standards as well as the tape
drive. If
anyone is collecting antique Commodore computer from the
seventies/eighties
this is a classic machine and there are few left in North
America.
If you wish to bid on this unit (only serious bids will
be
received/answered) please write an email to me at the below
address and I
will get back to you.Thanks for reading and have a good day.--
Stephen McCoy
"Quiet"mrsmrx(a)efni.comWise men are those with an open mind to
subjects others are not :]
I would suggest subscribing to the list in Digest form. One big email message per
day and you can skim through to the ones you want to read. Or just delete the
whole thing if you're not in the mood (heaven forbid!)
> > I just subscribed to this mailing list yesterday and am amazed at the
> > traffic. Just today, I seem to have received more than 80 messages!
>
> Which is why I'm dropping it.
>
References: <199706200702.AAA08312(a)lists.u.washington.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Sorry to burst your bubbles, but the Commodore drives ARE 300 RPM like
most of the others, many 1541 flywheels have the speed-calibaration
diagram on them (use fluorecent light to determine correct RPM).
154s and the lot have software&hardware to adjust the density on
tracks so more data can be stuffed in inner tracks and allow the outer
ones to spread out. No special speed involved here.
It is because of this that many computers with dumb drives can't read
the 1541 format (including Amiga!) the controller cards seem to be
limited in this fasion. Thus there is quite a demand for 1541 drivess
and (pre-converted) .d64 files in the 64 emulator community. ;)
I think all the 5.25" Commodore drives were based on the variable
density initiated in the 2040 DOS. My Complete Commodore Inner Space
Anthology has differing sector counts on tracks on all the models (4040,
2031, 1541, 8050, 8250/SFD-1001) The hard drives (9060 & 9090) seem to
be uniform thoough.
Things changed with the 1581 disk (3.5") which uses a variation of the
MFM format, and can be readable with PC/Amiga computers (with the proper
software, of course.)
--
Taking quotes from that LA article on collecting:
> Most of these early machines and programs, which didn't work very
>well when they were new [IBM PC,MS/DOS], are even more troublesome to maintain now
>[Windows 95]--and have been rendered obsolete by wave after wave of new equipment.
>[Macintosh, Amiga, NeXT, etc., etc.]
Yep, translates to modern-day very well.
> Greelish, a computer repairman, has spent about $2,600 in recent
>years building a collection of 35 computers, mostly by trolling for
>bargains on the Internet.
$2,600 for only 35 machines???? Anyone have his address, I have some
64s for him!
--
"Altairless" Larry Anderson
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Visit our web page at: http://www.goldrush.com/~foxnhare/
Call our BBS (Silicon Realms BBS 300-2400 baud) at: (209) 754-1363
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Here's some TI/99 stuff that might interest some people.
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Hole In The Wall now offers a small (but growing) selection of TI99/4A
parts and equipment as a service to the TI community. Our Web site
should be up within 10 days.
TI Peripheral Expansion Boxes - $40
TI99/4A consoles (black and silver) - $27.50 (orig. box, manuals, RF)
TI RS232 Cards - $40
TI Disk Controller Cards (SSSD) - $20
TI 32x8 Memory Expansion - $25
TI Writer (orig. cart, disk and manual in binder) - $10
Much more to come! Email for more info.
--
<= KEITH BERGMAN =>
The Glass Eye / Hole In the Wall Enterprises
PIT Magazine / Chicken Dog
kbergman(a)toltbbs.com
"just want a way not to be what gets sold to me" - Jawbox
--
Sam
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete, Writer, Jackass
In a message dated 97-06-20 18:10:08 EDT
> Kai Kaltenbach wrote:
> > > > I'm kind of curious how many Altairs we have on this list. I've got
> > > > 3...
I suggest that a Classic Computer Rescue team head out to Kai's house and
rescue two of those Altairs. They could them be put up for adoption and
ultimately be given a loving home where they will be receive the INDIVIDUAL
care and nurturing that they deserve. :-)
Lou
In a message dated 97-06-20 03:16:54 EDT, Tim Shoppa wrote:
> Hmm. One of my friends got a LOT of apple II stuff from a business that
> > went under. One of the things he got was an 8" CP/M disk. I'm gonna go
> > try to get my hands on it. (It said CP/M on it). It may be
> > destroyed/gone by now. This was a year or two ago, before I got
> > interested in old stuff... Any way to tell what system it's for without
> > being able to read it?
The disk could be for an Apple system. 8" drive controllers where offered for
the Apple II line back in 1980 because of the huge (for the time) capacity of
DSDD 8" disks. I had a Lobo controller hooked up to a Franklin 1000 and two 8
inchers and it was pretty impressive. I eventually replaced the drives with a
10 meg Corvus hard drive (cost $5000). I've been trying to locate an 8"
controller for my Franklin 1000 for quite a while but haven't had any luck.
Lou
At 12:36 AM 6/20/97 -0700, you wrote:
>Gee, then I have an Apple bonanza worth $2000 in my garage. Whatever.
>This is what I am dreading of this hobby, that assholes like this Haddock
>guy start trying to price things out.
I think it's as someone said; at the time the book was written, Apple II's
were still in strong demand, esp. from the school market. My girlfriend's
school still uses and maintains a fleet of II's. (Schools simply cannot
afford to buy lots of new computers.) (Ask me, if you're interested, about
how macs ended up in her classroom.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------- O-
Uncle Roger "There is pleasure pure in being mad
sinasohn(a)crl.com that none but madmen know."
Roger Louis Sinasohn & Associates
San Francisco, California http://www.crl.com/~sinasohn/
In a message dated 97-06-18 02:16:46 EDT, you write:
<< His e-mail address is Mikeooo1(a)aol.com and he left his phone number for
me:
(201) 331-1313.
Please reply if you are interested in going in together on this.
Sam
>>
I would be interested in this.
Kelly Fergason
KFergason(a)aol.com
I'd like to buy. Can I reserve it? Please e-mail me with your address and
I'll send you a check. (woukd you prefer money order? some sort of trade? I
have scads of old computer stuff.)
Manney
----------
> From: classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu
> To: Manney
> Subject: FS: BOOK The History of Computers
> Date: Friday, June 20, 1997 1:52 PM
>
> For Sale:
>
> The History of Computers -A Family Alubum of Computer Genealogy-
> by Les Freed
> ZD press
> ISBN 1-56276-275-3
> all color and lots of pictures and illustrations
>
> $12 (shipping included within the United States, original price is
$24.95)
>
Sam,
I don't own any computers that use EBCDIC, but I use them every day at
work. EBCDIC - extended binary coded decimal interchange code is the
character set used on most (if not all) IBM mainframes and midrange
systems. (IBM S/390, S/36, S/38, AS/400 etc.) This set has its roots
in punched cards (and prior) and really makes more sense when viewed
>from that perspective vs. that of the way things are today. ASCII -
American National Standard Code for Information Interchange.
Back when I was in college, an instructor stated it this way:
(Speaking about the need for a uniform way to share info across
machines.)
"There are two ways to obtain a standard in the industry. The first
is to get a big committee together and have all parties involved agree
on what it should be (ASCII). Or, be the largest company in the
industry, do it your own way and force everyone else to adopt your way
of thinking.
Dan
---Sam Ismail <dastar(a)crl.com> wrote:
>
>
> DOes anyone have a computer which uses the EBCDIC character set,
rather
> than ASCII (did I get the acronym right? what does it stand for
anyway)?
>
> Just curious.
>
>
> Sam
>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Computer Historian, Programmer, Musician, Philosopher, Athlete,
Writer, Jackass
>
>
>
>
_____________________________________________________________________
Sent by RocketMail. Get your free e-mail at http://www.rocketmail.com
> Today it would look a LOT different. Let's see, what WOULD it look like?
> Start with a PAL to generate the oddball clocks, and some misc decoding, f
> it, then throw a 32k skinnydip SRAM at it (OK, you can tie one address li
> to ground to limit it to 16K), an 8K EPROM (since that's what I've got in
> stock), say, an 8251 for serial I/O, and you've got a basic machine.
Actually a 8ksram and a 8kprom would do it. Or better yet a 2 or 8k EEprom.
That this is slow enough you could use the EEprom for sram! (the slow parts
was 20us and the real fast one was 10us (single byte instruction).
The real annoying part is capturing all the muxed status and syncing it.
Making the front pannel logic is the real work, it wouldn't be right without
the FP!
> What do ya think?
Tim, your a sick puppy. It's got style!
Allison
At 06:30 PM 6/18/97 -0500, you wrote:
>
>On Wed, 18 Jun 1997, Kai Kaltenbach wrote:
>> | ----------
>> | From: James Willing
>> | Subject: Re: Mark 8
>> |
>> | On Wed, 18 Jun 1997, Marvin wrote:
>> |
>> | > I need another project :) and I was thinking about building the Mark
>> | > 8 computer. Somewhere, I seem to recall that someone was having the
>> | > board sets for this computer made up, does anyone out there know
>> | > or remember who might be doing this?
>> |
>> | That would be me...
>>
>> If you get one of these up and running, I have a Scelbi book, "Space
>> Wars for the 8008 Microprocessor" with full hex code listings...
>
>I also have the three books -
>
> An 8008 Editor Program
> Machine Language Programming for the 8008
> Assembler Programs for the 8008
>
>I am such a packrat 8-)
>
>BC
>
>
Here I go volunteering again. Could those books be scanned/ocr'd? I'm sure
that the original authors wouldn't care, even if they did admit to writing
them. I have all the hardware and software to do that.
I have a softspot in my heart (and my head) for the 8008. That was my first
computer. I couldn't afford to buy something like the Mark 8, so I designed,
and built it, myself. By the time I was ready to retire it, I had an S100
video card (SSM), and a 9-track tape drive, running one track serial at 5k
baud. Used my own designed r/w amps, even. It ran great, just real slow.
I still have the CPU chip from that machine, holding down a piece of foam.
Seing these posts about the Mark 8 made me nastolgic. If I could get enough
data, I might consider building a new machine with that old "first CPU" chip.
Today it would look a LOT different. Let's see, what WOULD it look like?
Start with a PAL to generate the oddball clocks, and some misc decoding, for
it, then throw a 32k skinnydip SRAM at it (OK, you can tie one address line
to ground to limit it to 16K), an 8K EPROM (since that's what I've got in
stock), say, an 8251 for serial I/O, and you've got a basic machine.
What do ya think?
Tim Olmstead
timolmst(a)cyberramp.net
At 06:57 19/06/97 -0400, you wrote:
>
>On Sat, 14 Jun 1997, steve wrote:
>
>> At 06:10 13/06/97 -0400, you wrote:
>
><snip>
>
>> >Of course this all assumes that I *have* a PC.
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
><snip>
>
>
>Besides, I was talking about CP/M for the Commodore 1541 drive. That's a
>multi-speed drive that uses GCR encoding, not MFM. Try writing THAT with
>22DISK on your PC-clone.
>I used to know that only C=1570 and C=1571 were capable to read and write
CP/M disks in a proper way. (GCR+MFM)
By the way anyone else apart me owning a C=1570 here?
Ciao
> The oldest CPU type I have is an NEC 8080A. Still trying to figure out
> how to make use of it. The legs are pretty corroded (used to live in
> humid climates).
I could give you a dozen of them (all pre '80 date code or older!). You
need other parts to build a system using it. Minimally you need 8224 clock
chip and a 8bit latch or 8228 to get the status signals off the buss. The
rest if perpherals and memory.
Others from that (pre 1980) era I have:
IMSAI IMP-48 (works but, I really need a manual or schematic!!!) circa '79
If you've never seen one it's a small board with relays and opto IO for
control use, tty interface, cassette IO led display and keyboard for
programming(in hex!).
National SC/MP 8a500 cpu(late '78)
RCA1802(base cosmac elf 1979, board from the first PE article)
6502(old part)
TI9900 chip on board(technico super starter system)
moto 6800D1 kit('75-76)
LSI-11/03 card that's a tad older them most of those (functional too).
I also have a small system using the National nibbleBASIC (8070) chip in
1980.
Allison
> I know - this will be something I do in Electronics class next year.
> While everyone else makes an oscillator or something stupid, I'll build
> an Imsai!
You laugh, I did something along that line (1971) only it was a solidstate
Oscope of my own design. I wanted the class for acces to the tinshop so I
could fabricate the steel shields(for the crt) and chassis. If it were
three years later it would have been a mark-8!
While off the subject...
I had a Horizon up in '78 and put the NS* version of the pascal P-system.
Since I knew zip about pascal I decided to take a course that used pascal,
so happens it was data structures. Blew the proffessors mind when after
going on about the 1180 the class would use for assignments I asked if I
could use my own system if it conformed to Niklus&wirth. Seems he didn't
believe me until I brough the whole mess (left the printer behind) with me
the next class and set it up! It was the begining of the revolution as
Apples were also just starting to be seen. A year later that declaration of
I happen to have a suitable system was no longer an item of skepticism.
Sorta like the pocket calc in my EE junior year.... ;-)
Allison
> Define "plans". I have full sets of the schematics for the units in my
> collection (as I suspect many do), but if you are talking about the
> mechanical drawings for things like the case, boards, etc., I am not awar
> of those ever being made available.
The case was a standard box available at the time. Some of the inside
brackets were custom as were the layouts. I've never seen a full printset,
and I wonder if there really was.
Allison
For Sale:
The History of Computers -A Family Alubum of Computer Genealogy-
by Les Freed
ZD press
ISBN 1-56276-275-3
all color and lots of pictures and illustrations
$12 (shipping included within the United States, original price is $24.95)
| Does anyone still have the PLANS for one?
If you mean schematics, yes. The Altair was built from a kit, not
plans. You may be thinking of the Scelbi Mark 8, which was built from
plans.
Kai