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

Reading a VMS CD-ROM for SIMH under Windows?

by dzubint＠vcn.bc.ca

Yes, I went through the exact same thing... I couldn't find anything under MS-Windoze which would get the CD directly. It helps to have a dual-bootable machine with MS-Windows and Linux/NetBSD/FreeBSD/whatever I rebooted my machine under Linux and just do the "dd" command dd if=/dev/cdrom of=vms.img (which you probably already know about). Then I copied the resulting file to a FAT-mounted drive and after that, I rebooted the machine under MS-Windows and the file was readable under SIMH on Windows. That file can the be burned onto a regular CD-R, shipped off to your friend (I'm assuming here that everybody has all of the correct & legal software licenses), and your friend can use the CD-R from Windows...they don't need to dual boot. I don't think there is any way for SIMH on Windows to read the CD directly, you need the intermediate image file first. Thomas Dzubin

23 years, 1 month

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Need PDP-11/R20 bulbs

by root＠parse.com

Anyone know of a source for PDP-11/R20 bulbs? I have a few burnt out ones... See www.parse.com/~pdp11/ Thanks in advance! Cheers, -RK -- Looking for Digital Equipment Corp. PDP-1 through PDP-15 minicomputers! Robert Krten, PARSE Software Devices +1 613 599 8316. Realtime Systems Architecture, Consulting and Training at www.parse.com

23 years, 1 month

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OT: Large, multi-button mouse recommendations?

by bill＠timeguy.com

I've been doing a lot of finicky CAD work recently, and my hand is really starting to hurt from gripping the mouse tightly for fine control. I'm looking for a larger mouse (according to one site that sells various sizes of mouse, I'm between a "large" and an "x-large" hand size) that I can lay my hand more or less flat on top of (maybe with a couple of finger loops, so you don't have to grasp it constantly) and ideally with a small multi-button keypad of some kind on top. Is there such an animal out there (aside from the Space Mouse guys' $500 products) that might have these features? Suggestions welcome.

23 years, 1 month

1
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Visual 1050 - can anybody send me a photo?

by d_cymbal＠hotmail.com

Hello All, I am trying to put together a bio of the Visual 1050 for old-computers.com and I need a couple of photos of the system for them to accept submission. Can anyone help me out? I've googled myself out with no luck. This is the info I've been able to compile so far. Any additions appreciated. Thanks. > - Model Name: 1050 > - Brand : Visual Technology > - Manufacturer: Visual Technology, Incorporated 540 Main Street, Tewksbury, MA 01876 > - Country: USA > - Announce date: July 1983 > - Release date: 1984 > - End of production date: 1987? > - Built-in software or language: Visual 1050 Utility Manager, DR C-Basic, DR-CP/M MAC & SID, DR-GSX (graphics extensions), DR-Graph, Wordstar with mailmerge, Multiplan (spreadsheet), TTY-1050 (communications). > - Keyboard: Keytronic 65-02335 93-key ASCII (incl. numeric key pad & 17 function keys) > - CPU: Z80A > - CPU speed: 4mhz > - Coprocessors: none > - RAM: 128Kb (bank-switched) > - Video Processor: 6502-2 > - Video RAM: 320Kb (32Kb x 10) > - ROM: 8Kb > - Text resolutions: 640x300 (80 x 25) > - Graphical resolutions: 640x300 > - Number of colours: mono > - Monitor: Tatung MN1213P31AU, 12" hi-res, green phosphor > - Sound: none > - Size: CPU - 5"h x 17"w x 17"d Monitor - 12"h x 12"w x 13"d (all approx. dim) > - Weight: CPU - 15 lbs Monitor - 10 lbs (all approx. weight) > - Connectors: video, keyboard, serial, parallel & winchester ports > - Built-in storage media: 2 - 400Kb, 5 1/4", SSDD, 96tpi, floppy disk drives (TEAC FD-55E) with optional 10Mb external Winchester hard disk drive. > - Operating system: Digital Research (DR) CP/M Plus (CP/M, Version 3) > - Power supply: 75 watt, switching @115/230 VAC > - Extensions: > - Price: $2700

23 years, 1 month

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Cromemco 68k System 100 on eBay

by classiccmp＠crash.com

> Sho 'nuff, but don't feel bad; lots of people > only think of 64K Z80 CP/M systems like the > classic Z-2 when they think of Cromemco I was aware Cromemco had some sort of 68000-based systems with "real" Unix later in the game. But having only heard rumors I never guessed they used an '020, and didn't realize they had System V and all those goodies. Glad to learn of it, and all those firsts. By contrast, I was well aware of the many CPU options from CompuPro (Godbout) including the CPU-68k, which I used, and the 32016, which I'd still like to find someday... Somewhere around here I have some S-100 Journals (I think that's the name) that I found on the newsstand in the late 80's. Be interesting to see what was being listed besides 386s and Concurrent DOS. --Steve.

23 years, 1 month

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ODEC LR30544

by blevinsd＠tir.com

I have an ODEC line printer ( I think a 300 LPM ). I received it in 1985 but never used it. I think it has been used very little. I would like to sell it. Is there any market for such a printer?

23 years, 1 month

2
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Timex/Sinclair 2068

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

to: Here's a cool website about the 2068 with pictures of the old Zebra (Portugese) Disk Systems. http://www.timexsinclair.org/ Enjoy! I had fun reading these articles... I still have half of a disk system here, and my friend Tom in NJ has the other half I'm sure I can grab from him some time... Al

23 years, 1 month

1
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resurrecting a PDP-11/10

by iamvirtual＠hotmail.com

I have a PDP-11/10 (a.k.a PDP-11/05) which I am attempting to bring back to life. It was placed in storage many years back, and appears to be in good condition. I am at the point where I can enter programs from the front panel and execute them (core memory and processor appear to work). I have a LA36 hooked up as the console to the SLU. I think the TS03 tape drive may work, and I am in the process of cleaning a RK05 disk drive and disk pack. My question is, what am I looking for in order to load RT-11? Is RT-11 easier to install via tape, or am I looking for a bootable disk pack? At this point, I am not looking for specifics, I need to know what is the general means to bootstrap RT-11 onto a PDP-11. This exercise is a precursor to getting a PDP-11/20 up and running. I would also like to know if one of the PDP-11 emulators would assist me to learn what I need to do in terms of bootstrapping a system. I have used a PDP-11 10+ years ago, but never needed to bootstrap a system. Thanks for any assistance. --barryM

23 years, 1 month

11
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More Stuff in Norman, OK

by jss＠subatomix.com

Forget the Univac III, get yer Cray now: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3403082724 What the heck is going on here? Next thing, we'll find out the ENIAC was secretly hidden away in some building on North Base. -- Jeffrey Sharp

23 years, 1 month

2
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Univac on eBay

by terryf＠intersurf.com

Apparently, somebody wants that thing BAD!!

23 years, 1 month

5
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Thanks, now TELEX tty for sale

by grg2＠attbi.com

Many profuse thanks to everybody that rounded up information for me about TELEX ttys. I'm in a bit of an embarrasing situation-- after getting this nice Model 32 WU tty, tsting it out, finding out it works perfectly, I finally realize -- I don't have any space for it! My SWL area is very small, already full, plus no easy way to get the TTY down the steep narrow stairs to my lair. So I've reluctantly put it up for auction on eBay. Interested folks can see it at: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3010656618 You could do a lot worse than to have a shiny , sleek, and well-working Model 32 TTY. Thanks for reading, George

23 years, 1 month

3
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Identify these transputer boards

by ram_suganthi＠hotmail.com

Hi, Below is a post I sent about 3 years ago on some transputer boards that I received which I didnt know what they are. Well, I finally got some answers (nothing is late in this hobby).... Vytal LTD designed the B020 graphics board and the VTM 301 Vector Tram board (as well as the VecTram) which was licensed to INMOS to be sold. The VTM 301 is a pre-cursor to the IMSB420 VecTram module and was the 1st of many production runs. It is not software compatible to the IMSB420. The underside of the tram is where the DSP processor is inserted... The IMSB020 graphics board was also designed by Vytal LTD... The Paradise 1/A was designed by T2SL and is a SCSI Tram. I finally found information on this and scanned the documentation and posted it on the web. The link is http://www.classiccmp.org/transputer/documentation/t2sl/Paradise-1.doc. Yes, it is in microshaft format, but I will soon change that. Now on other transputer stuff I recently aquired like a prototype RS232 to Transputer link board from INMOS... Cheers, Ram ********************************************************************** Hi, I picked up several transputer based hardware including a B020, B008 and several trams including 2 SCSIs trams and an ethernet tram. Among the collection, I found 2 wierd looking ones. One is a tram and the other I got no idea how to use it. The Tram is a size 4 tram and has the following labels: T2SL Paradise- 1/A It contains what looks like an IDE connector and has the following chips: INMOS IMST222C LOGIC L54C80JC-4 and two INMOS IMS1620S55 ICs. The other card has an IMST800D-G20S chip and has the following on the board: VYTAL VTM 301 Copyright VYTAL LTD 1989 On the underside, it has a socket for another transputer chip (maybe??). Oh, there is another board too. It is also a size 4 tram and has a T805-G30S and the board is >from INMOS. There is a label on one of the IC chips (written using a pen, so might not be reliable) "B417-17 SE006". Also, the B020 graphics card has no SIMMs on it. Does anyone know what type of SIMMs I can use. Finally, I got an ethernet tram without any cables. What type of cable to I need to use it. It is an IMSB421 tram. The SCSI trams would probably use standard SCSI cables. Am I right. Thanks for you help. Ram _________________________________________________________________ MSN 8 helps eliminate e-mail viruses. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/virus

23 years, 1 month

1
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Nova 2 Front Panel Bulbs

by univac2＠earthlink.net

Well, I finally got around to working on my Novas again, and the first thing on my list was to replace the burnt out bulbs on the front panels. I started with my Nova 2. Several months ago I bought a bulb at Radio Shack to try out and today I soldered it on to the Nova 2 front panel PCB. It worked, the light lit up very brightly when the machine was in the RUN state (it was the RUN light that I replaced). The light is *very* bright. It also gets warmer that the others do, but it is a smaller bulb. It also seems that all the other lights dim when it comes on, but IIRC, they always did that when the machine was in the RUN state, before I replaced any bulbs. Anyway, I wanted to double check before I replaced all the lights and make sure of the voltage level. Does anyone know what that is? I don't have much Nova 2 documentation, and the Nova 1200 documentation I have doesn't list that information. -- Owen Robertson

23 years, 1 month

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QBUS SCSI controller for RT-11

by healyzh＠aracnet.com

> I tested a Viking QDT with RT-11 and a 1 gig HD. Of course, I could only use > the first 30 megs. This one is destined for a BSD machine anyhow. The Viking QDT and RT-11 can address a lot more of a HD than 30Mb. For example V5.3 supports 8 partitions (8 * 30 = 240MB), newer versions support more. I can't remember off the top of my head how much as I'm running a newer version, but I'm using 100Mb and 200Mb HD's under RT-11. The QDT is a great board, on my /73 I've got a Plextor 8x CD-ROM, DEC TLZ06, and two PC Removable disk trays (for easy swapping of HD's) hooked to one. I've successfully run RT-11, RSX-11M, RSX-11M+, and RSTS/E on this setup. I was originally using 100MB and 200MB SCSI disks, I now use 2GB 7200RPM Seagate Barracuda's. > I got the QDT for $45 on eBay. Someone put it up with a buy-it-now of $45. > Someone tipped me off, and I got there first. It pays to keep a sharp eye on > eBay. I just bought a KDJ11-SD off eBay for $5. This is a nice one: rev -09 > CPU, 18 MHz, 1.5 megs RAM. Other recent eBay steals: RQDX3 for $10, DESQA > for $8.50. Nice, it shows I've not been keeping a close enough eye on eBay. Zane

23 years, 1 month

3
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WTD: AMD or Intel 80387 Math Coprocessor IC

by mhstein＠canada.com

----------------Original Message----------------- From: "Philip Pemberton" <philpem(a)dsl.pipex.com> Subject: WTD: AMD or Intel 80387 Math Coprocessor IC Hi all, I'm trying to track down a 387 math coprocessor IC for an old 386-based Linux box that's going to be doing a bit of numbercrunching for me. Has anyone here got an AMD or Intel (AMD preferred) 387 coprocessor rated at 40MHz (-40 part number suffix) that would work correctly with an AMD Am386DX-40? No, before you ask, the 386DX does *not* have a built in mathco - the 486DX was (IIRC) the first DX-series chip with a built-in coprocessor. Thanks. ----------------------------------------------------------------- If you're not in a hurry, I've got a couple here; as noted elsewhere, I don't think Intel made any at that speed in the good old days and IIRC they were all second-sourced. The two that I have are a ULSI and a Cyrix, both 40Mhz, and both on boards using the AMD 386 DX-40.. I think you were also looking for a riser board to allow mounting ISA cards horizontally; might be able to help you out there as well, but would need exact dimensions. Finally, I haven't forgotten about the other stuff you & I were talking about, the PPT punch, reader and tape and the small footprint 386 boards, have just been dealing with a lot of other crap in the last while. Will be in touch ASAP, mike

23 years, 1 month

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Cromemco 68k System 100 on eBay

by mhstein＠canada.com

----------------Original Message---------------- From: "Steve Jones" <classiccmp(a)crash.com> Subject: Cromemco 68k System 100 on eBay Looks like most of a 68k-based Cromemco on eBay. ... I hadn't realized anyone had put a 68020 on the S-100 bus... ---------------------------- Sho 'nuff, but don't feel bad; lots of people only think of 64K Z80 CP/M systems like the classic Z-2 when they think of Cromemco, not the professional UNIX-V systems that gave DEC et al a run for their money in the later days, especially after Cromemco merged with Dynatech in December 1986. To quote from one of their ads listing their technical contributions, they: -Named the S-100 bus -Developed the first micro that used the Z-80 -Developed the first multi-user micro -Developed the first UNIX-like OS for a micro -Developed the first micro using a Winchester HD -Developed the first micro with 16MB RAM and 50MB HD for less than $50,000 -Developed the first colour graphics micro -Developed the first micro addressing >64 KB RAM -Developed the first UNIX V micro -Developed the first micro capable of IBM RJE -Developed the first intelligent I/O interfaces with separate microprocessors on the I/O boards -First adapted mainframe I/O channel processor concept to a micro -Developed the first micro that could auto-boot from ROM -Developed first micro with auto-baud console -Developed first micro capable of self-programming an EPROM -Developed first micro with error correcting RAM -Developed first computer capable of sync'ing to a TV signal and overlaying computer & TV images Considering all that, I'm surprised how rarely I read about them here. Sorry to say we scrapped a number of CS-100/300/400's a few years ago before I discovered this site (and considering the time I've wasted scrolling through the garbage lately in digest mode there are times I've regretted that I did find it). Mind you, when I offered some of the older CS-1/CS-3 and Z-2's here a while ago, no one wanted to pay the shipping from Toronto, so it probably wouldn't have made any difference; fortunately Dan Cohoe, another crazy Canuck, is going to take them off my hands. However, I might still be able to lay my hands on some documentation and software for the 100/300/400 models, so if someone here grabs the one on eBay, I *might* be able to help (no promises, though). mike in Toronto

23 years, 1 month

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DECUS 12 bit SIG newsletters?

by erd_6502＠yahoo.com

Are any of the DECUS 12 bit SIG newsletters online? I just found parts of two of them in my attic (#39 - March 1980 and #40 - Summer-Fall-Winter 1980) and they have some interesting comments about TU-58s and 12-bit machines. It's interesting considering the recent activity regarding TU-58s and emulators. According to (I think) Jim Van Zee, formerly of Laboratory Data Systems of Seattle), being able to send a break is critical for reliable operation of a TU-58 (and gives the exact reasons). The M707 and the M8650 cannot do this without modifications (but he does describe the mod to the M707 and says that it can be done to the KL8E (M8650) but not the KL8EJ (M8655) or KL8A). The author goes on to describe a handler he wrote for OS/8 - a non- system handler. It adds "DTU0" and "DTU1" of 682 OS/8 blocks. He also writes that it is impossible to write a system handler without an external circuit or ROM code (a-la 8K TD8E + ROM) to calculate checksums. His hardware solution is 4 chips grafted onto an M8650 (one of which is an Intel 8748 microcontroller!) Additionally, he mentions a virtual TU-58 server written for the VAX by Jim Gladden, and describes a submission to DECUS of a non-TU58 serial line device handler for the VAX (ASCII files only) that *may* be submission number 8-921 (my handwritten notes in the margin). So... if anyone wants to hang a TU-58 (physical or virtual) off of a PDP-8, we have somewhere to start. -ethan

23 years, 1 month

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TS2068

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: acme(a)ao.net > > > But, as-is it wouldn't pass FCC regulations. > > Not to doubt your word, but what is your source for > that information? I've had several conversations > with George Grimm (President of Timex Computer > Corp.) and he never mentioned a problem with the > FCC. I have to say that it was anecdotal and repeated in every review of the machine I have ever read. In that day, FCC regs were the big talk about all sorts of computer equipment. It was also said that one of the reasons the TRS-80 Model III was created was because the Model I wouldn't pass FCC regulations as a home computer. Many PC Clones had problems with the FCC also. Used to be when you bought a clone you asked: Does it have an FCC ID? Does it run Lotus 1-2-3? Does it run Flight Simulator? Usually, in that order. So no, I have no hard data to back that up. But, the inside of the TS-2068 is shielded and the Spectrum isn't. > I would be interested to see photos of the > prototype. Do you have any Web space you can post > photos to? Yes, but they'd be diappointing. Basically, it looks exactly like a British Spectrum but it has an American RF converter in it. No discernable difference on the outside. > Mind if I ask the company name? Not at all, it was: Zebra Systems, Inc. www.zebrasystems.inc I did most of the tech support, and wrote most of the manuals and some of the advertising. It was a fun job... We did Timex, Coco (I also worked for Specrrum Projects before coming to Zebra), Amiga and Atari-ST. Zebra was a sister company to Alpha Products and Colorware (Tim Jenison of Amiga Video Toaster fame. In fact, he prototyped the toaster on a Coco.) Regards, Al

23 years, 1 month

1
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Floppy drive for Zenith 100

by Innfogra＠aol.com

In a message dated 2/26/03 7:21:26 AM Pacific Standard Time, rigdonj(a)cfl.rr.com writes: > Correct, XEROX made a model 8/16 that had two CPUs, one 8 bit and 16 bit. I > THINK one was a Z-80 and the other was a 8086 but I'm not sure any more. I > used to have the docs for an 8/16 and I've been looking for one but haven't > managed to find one yet. > > Xerox made a couple of 8/16s. I have one of the 8086 second CPU boards for my Xerox 820-II. I was going to install it till a house fire melted the 820. The original 820 came with dual 8" floppies or an 8" floppy and an 8" harddrive and ran CPM. It was a spendy little computer for its time. Then they fit Dual 5 1/4" floppies in an external case, came out with a low profile keyboard and the add on 8086 Board. They called it the Xerox 820II-8/16. IIRC the design was taken from the Z80 Big Board which was a popular kit at the time. It was mounted flat, underneath the CRT and looked much like a terminal. At the time the IBM PC came out the Xerox design was hopelessly outdated. They redesigned the case to a rectangular shape with a separate monitor ala the IBM PC. They used dual 5 1/2" half height floppies oriented horizontally. I never saw an actual one but IIRC they used the same Big Board coupled with the 8086 board that was in the 820 and sold it as the Xerox 8/16. It ran CPM, CPM-86 and MS-DOS ( IIRC to 2.11). However it was not IBM Compatible, and did not have IBM graphics. By the time it was ready the bottom had fallen out of the crossover market. I don't think Xerox sold any commercially. A liquidation company sold the remainder for about three years. I doubt they sold many, I bet most were scrapped for the drives. The Xerox 820 II was my second computer system and still one of my favorites. (The first was State Surplus Litton 1251 that I bought for $25.00) I have had almost all of the various models of the 820 go through my hands over the years. Besides my original melted one I still have another packed away with all it's SW. Someday it will run again. Paxton Astoria, OR

23 years, 1 month

3
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TRS-80 Model 4 help requested

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: Patrick Finnegan <pat(a)purdueriots.com> > > > Umm, actually, 'no'. The cable has pins removed to > change drive selects, and the drives don't have any > method of setting the drive selects. So, > swapping the position of the drives changes what > drive they are. The LED on the front of the drive > confirms that. If you're that sure. It sounds like you just have bad boot disks. Remember, a Model IV needs a boot disk with the Model IV ROM file on it or else it won't boot properly. It will only boot CP/M+ for the Model IV without this. This *MAY* be why you're having a problem booting stuff.. > Is there an easy couple line program I could type up > in basic that using INP() and OUT() to test the > drive controller to see if it can read from > the disk? I _could_ read the tech manual I have, > but I tend to be lazy when it comes to re-inventing > things that other people already have done. I don't think so. It might be possible, but I don't know how to do that. > One last thing, if it matters... it seems my machine > was upgraded to 128kB RAM. Is is possible that the > machine has bad memory that shows up when booting > from a disk but not when starting up basic? If the problem is in the first bank, maybe... I used to use a simple program to test RAM in the old days... I think this will work (If I remember it correctly) 10 A = Mem (0) 20 Print A;" "; 30 gosub 10 What happens here is that the program puts the return for the gosub on the stack and reduces the RAM by a few bytes each iteration. If there is bad ram, the computer will crash. If not, it will eventually end with an out of memory error. Contact me off list. Maybe I can somehow make you a disk you can boot. I could probably set up my Coco with a Disk Copy program to copy the disk. If my Model I were working, I could use SuperUtility to make you a bootable disk. I'm looking for a Model III or IV locally to play with. Anyone in Philly have one they'd part with? I'd certainly use it to help Pat out as a start... I might have something to trade for it you'd want (like a 56k Modem for a PC or a low capacity PC IDE Drive?) Regards, Al

23 years, 1 month

2
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TRS-80 Model 4 help requested

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: Patrick Finnegan <pat(a)purdueriots.com> > > I recently picked up a TRS-80 model 4, that seems to > have problems with its floppy drives. > <Snipped> > > I tried swapping the floppy drives, and that time I > got a "Diskette?" prompt if there was no disk in > the drive, and pressing any keys didn't cause > anything to happen. If I put a disk in the > drive, the machine never displays anything, and > then after 10-20 seconds, the drive light goes out. > > I tried connecting only one drive at a time, with > the same results. If I connected a 1.2MB floppy > that I had laying around (a Teac FD-55GFR-149-U), > it did the same thing as if the drives were swapped. Ok, a quick primer about TRS-80's and Floppy drives: Unlike IBM Drives, TRS-80 drives are usually hard jumpered for specific positions (Not always, but internal drives are..) What most people in the PC world don't know is that floppy drives have an addressing scheme similar to Master/Slave jumpers on hard drives. They can be set to positions 0, 1 ,2 or 3. And the last drive in the chain needs to be terminated (like SCSI Drives). For external drives, the drives are set to all selects, and pins are pulled from the drive cable to determine what position they are in. If you notice on IBM Floppy drive cables, there is a twist between the A: and B: connector. That twist brings the select from the 0 drive to the 1 select pin. All IBM drives are set to position 1 (second position). I don't think a 1.2 mb FDD will work properly on a TRS-80 Model IV for two reasons. The 1.2mb drive is much more like an 8in drive than a 5.25in drive. And transfers data at a higher rate. Unless the drive can autoswitch to the slower 360k data rate, it won't work on the controller. And if you did get it to work, it has a different Tracks per inch capability than 360k / 180k drives. However, assuming your problem is with the floppy drives, and not the diskette you are trying to boot... A 360k XT Style floppy will work fine, and once you get it booted, a modern OS like Newdos 80, L-DOS, MultiDos, etc... Will allow you to use both sides of the drive for 360k storage. You can even use 720k 3.5 drives in the same way. I know for the Model I, LNW made a Disk Doubler Board that worked with 8in drives, and so would accomodate 1.2mb drives. I don't know if such a disk controller was ever made for the Model IV. If you have a PC with 360k Drive, you should be able to run a TRS-80 Emulator and use a disk image of an OS to make a bootable floppy in 180k or 360k format. Let me know if I can help you in any way with this. The Model I/III/IV was my first machine, and I'm pretty sure I can remember a lot of info regarding it. And I still have all my books and disks in my closet. Regards, Al Hartman http://www.geocities.com/alhartman Join the Macintosh Emulation List... http://www.topica.com/lists/Macemulist "It is the soldier, not the reporter who has given us the freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us the freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who gives us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag." -Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, Sergeant, USMC

23 years, 1 month

4
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TRS-80 Model 4 help requested

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: "Fred Cisin (XenoSoft)" <cisin(a)xenosoft.com> > > Yep > The earliest 1.2M drive that I saw (before the AT) > was a Mitsubishi 4854? I was told that it had had > been designed for the explicit purpose of replacing > 8" drives. It did NOT also have a "360K" > mode. > > I also heard a rumor (probably not true) that "When > Microsoft was writing the DOS and AT BIOS support > for 1.2M drives, they thought that IBM had > decided to release a model with 8" drives". Cool info! Thanks! > Hmmm. mixing single density sectors and double > density sectors on the same track? No, but one could replace the boot sector with the correct density boot sector when copying the disk to make it boot on one system or another. It may have been Vernon Hestor's other OS. V-DOS I think it was called. It was a cut-down Multidos he wanted to market to game manufacturers. > This'll make your day,... > I had an LNW. (also a Lobo expansion interface, a > PMC81, etc.) I never saw a Lobo Max-80, though I had a few friends who bought the Mapper board from them to run CP/M on their Model I's. > Most of that stuff, I sold cheap at VCF (which is > run by your buddy Sellam). He made a comment to me a month or so ago that indicated he at least KNEW what an LNW-80 was... Oh well.. An ex-employer (and former LNW Dealer) had several that he trashed. I found out when I called him to ask if he would sell or trade any away... Bummer!!! Thanks for the cool info! Regards, Al

23 years, 1 month

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TRS-80 Model 4 help requested

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: ard(a)p850ug1.demon.co.uk (Tony Duell) > > Try re-seating the 'ribbon cable' between the CPU > board and the disk controller PCB _at both ends_. I > would estimate that over 50% or disk problems on > M3s and M4s come from this cable! You're right about this. It all starts to come back to me... *Grin!* This was one of the first things I'd do when a machine came in with disk controller problems. I'd also remove the cable totally and clean the connections with a pencil eraser and possibly some alcohol. Mostly, I'd just use the eraser. Tin to Tin connections would often get oxidation. Jerry Pournelle used to talk about something called Stabilant-21 that worked well to keep this from happening. This stuff worked great on Model I keyboard to E/I cables (I soldered on the infamous Gold Plugs on mine. and made a gold and shielded cable besides) and floppy cables. But since the behavior changes when he moves the drives, it sounds like his "0:" drive is bad. Regards, Al Hartman

23 years, 1 month

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decserver 550 in Kansas City

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Feb 27, 16:50, Megan wrote: > >I'd remove the CXA16-M serial > >multiplexers, which I don't think any normal PDP-11 OSs support, > > I believe the CXA16s are DHV-like interfaces, RT supports DHVs. Wel, that would make sense. Easy enough to check by running RT11 with the correct driver. If so, I stand corrected. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 1 month

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A & J Microdrive

by acme＠ao.net

From: Robert Borsuk <rborsuk(a)colourfull.com> Date: 02/27/2003 10:39 AM > Woohoo, > Timex guys on the list. I can ask a Timex (sort of ) question now. Hmmph. I've been on this list for years :>) > I have an A&J MicroDrive (Stringy Floppy - The next big thing to rule > the world) that I don't have any information on. I would love to use > it with my T1000. It was almost complete in the box. Interface, drive, > cable, even some new stringy floppies still sealed. Does anyone have a > manual for this thing? I've poked around online but haven't seen too > much. Okay, I have the manual and will be gled to scan it and send it to you. HOWEVER -- there are some things you should know . . . First, it will never work with a TS1000 -- only a TS2068. Second, these things came in two versions -- "A" and "B" -- and the different versions use physically different tapes, so make sure you have the proper tapes before wasting any time with it. Third, these things are the most unreliable form a data storage I have ever encountered (see the classiccmp thread a couple of years back titled "World's Crappiest Mass Storage Device" or similar name). Typically, the tapes have a useable lifespan of less than five hours. Then they break. (This is not due to my having one faulty drive -- I've owned several and seen more and they ALL suck!). If you do find a tape that lasts, inevitably the media goes south (no longer readable) and your data goes with it. The drives are "cute," and nice for a collector to have, but completely unreliable. Later -- Glen 0/0

23 years, 1 month

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More stuff rolling into my place ...

by gunther＠aurora.regenstrief.org

Hi, I got a call to rescue not too old yet classic equipment. DEC AXP 3000 and 2600 (?) systems. And some HP9000 K class thing. Plus StorageWorks RAID stuff. 3 full height cabinets and 3 half height cabinets, 4-8 monitors and some tape backup boxes. It sounds like there will be nice stuff among it, yet I am getting into trouble with my garage space. I have an MTI StingRay cabinet to kill for making space. This is a storage system with CI connectors. MTI make. I have taken all the functional parts out of the cabinet, but the cabinet needs to go soon. Since I am probably getting blessed with StorageWorks stuff, I may be have some leftovers. Need to check when I see the new stuff. Anyone have a HP9000 K class and runs NetBSD, or one of those Mach kernel based BSD lite systems? That's what I'd like to try with the HP9000. It seems quite cute. Although I may part with it for a VAX 4000-500 or better side-table VAX. cheers, -Gunther -- Gunther Schadow, M.D., Ph.D. gschadow(a)regenstrief.org Medical Information Scientist Regenstrief Institute for Health Care Adjunct Assistant Professor Indiana University School of Medicine tel:1(317)630-7960 http://aurora.regenstrief.org

23 years, 1 month

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TS2068

by acme＠ao.net

From: Al Hartman <alhartman(a)yahoo.com> Subject: Re: Check out this TI99/4 on eBay Date: 02/26/2003 7:42 PM > > From: "TeoZ" <teoz(a)neo.rr.com> > > > > My first computer was a timex 2068 and learning to > > program on chicklet keyboards sucks. > > But.. Those were pretty nice computers... Still are :>) > Originally, it was intended to be an American Version > of the 48k ZX-Spectrum Computer. > > But, as-is it wouldn't pass FCC regulations. Not to doubt your word, but what is your source for that information? I've had several conversations with George Grimm (President of Timex Computer Corp.) and he never mentioned a problem with the FCC. > I have a U.S. Prototype of the Spectrum, a Microdrive I would be interested to see photos of the prototype. Do you have any Web space you can post photos to? > The company I worked for in the 80's even made a > drawing program similar to MacPaint for it, called > TechDraw, A Spectrum Emulator Cartridge, Disk System, > Terminal Software (for the Timex Modem), and lots > more... Mind if I ask the company name? Later -- Glen 0/0

23 years, 1 month

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ASR-33 vital poop

by gil＠vauxelectronics.com

Hi folks: This is a summary of input from many people, manuals, and prior notes of mine. The initial question was of the differences between the standard Teletype 33, and the version provided for DEC systems. But I have also added some sundy stuff as well. Let me know of any corrections/additions. Standard Teletype "Private-wire" ASR-33 (aka M33-asr): ------------------------------------------------------ - The right side module is the CCU (Call-Control-Unit). The "private-wire" version is for current-loop operation, and has a blank top plate. It is normally configured for 20-mA (but can be jumpered for 60-mA). - The paper tape reader is also called a TD (Transmitter-Distributor), a legacy term from early Teletype days. - The "standard" tape reader has a 3-position lever: START/STOP/FREE. - An optional "auto" tape reader has a 4-position lever: START/AUTO/STOP/FREE. In the AUTO position, the reader can be commanded on/off remotely. The DC1 (XON) and DC3 (XOFF) control characters are used as start/stop commands for the auto tape reader. Since XON/XOFF chars are used today as software-handshaking flow-control characters, you want to disable software handshaking if you are connecting to a PC. - There is a little circuit board mounted in the pedestal stand which provides power for the tape reader. In later 3300-series machines, this was finally built into the CCU. - from Jack Hart: The Model 33ASR with the "Auto" TD feature had a different TD control/power board underneath the machine in the back. It had a relay that was controlled by either the momentary "AUTO" switch or a stuntbox contact on the printer. There was another feature controlling the TD when the 33 was configured for TWX. When a connection to the the other end was established, the distant machine's answerback would trip and then send an "X-ON" to start the tape at the calling machine. The X-ON was actually programmed onto the end of the answerback drum sequence. Sometimes the modem itself would send the contact closure to trip the TD based upon seeing the RS232 Carrier Detect and/or the RTS/CTS leads change states. DEC LT33 (DEC-modified ASR-33): ------------------------------- - The CCU is a standard private-wire current-loop (blank plate). - Has an 8-position connector (mate-n-lock/molex?) with 6 pins populated. Two wires for transmit loop, two for receive loop, and two for reader control. Can be wired for full-duplex (two loops), or half-duplex (rx and tx wired in series to one loop). - Uses the standard tape-reader (3-position lever: START/STOP/FREE) - The pedestal has a small circuit board with the control relay . (and reader power supply as well?) (and DEC interface cable?) There are a couple of cables connecting it to the CCU. - from Jim Haynes: There was a 6-wire cord and they were full duplex; two wires for transmit, two for receive, and two for reader control. They didn't use the X-on X-off characters for reader control. The CCU was just a plain private line blank plate. What I can't remember for sure is how the reader worked. I'm pretty sure they let the distributor step the reader, and just had a relay to enable/disable it. Seems like I remember a reed type relay. I guess there was a power supply in the base for the reader step magnet in any kind of ASR. No doubt the printer loop current was 20ma - no reason to use 60 when you can use 20. I don't know if the keyboard used a 20ma loop or if it just used the thing as a dry switch. But you'd probably want 20ma or so in it to be sure the contacts are kept clean. - from Jack Hart: The DEC Model 33's has a simple circuit board attached to the Call Control which was operated by the computer (I think the computer would send a contact closure to the board on two leads or maybe it sent a voltage to the relay...I never used it). That board had a reed relay which was in series (or was it parallel?) with the switch on the (standard) TD. It couldn't use the "auto" TD since it wouldn't be able to stop the TD. The computer actually turned the TD on and off with the contact closure. The Model 33 usually had a six-wire straight Molex-type of connector for the DEC interface. I think the keyboard contacts were on one pair, the selector magnet driver input on the next pair and then the TD control relay on the third pair. - John Francini provided this: http://www.chd.dyndns.org/pdp8/ It includes: - Teletype Model 33 Line Set wiring printouts - DEC LT33 Teletype Modifications Print Set - some scanned 33 manuals are at: http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/pdp8/ Gil's Random M33 notes: ======================= CCU (Call-Control-Unit) ----------------------- The right side module is the CCU (Call-Control-Unit). Here is my limited knowledge on the interfaces available; the 33s all have some version of CCU, it's just a matter of which one. The most common CCU (I presume) was the simple interface to a 20-milliamp dc loop (or 60-mA) for "Private Wire Service." This one had a blank panel on top and a LINE/LOCAL knob sticking out the front of the case. This is the model that usually got hooked up to computers or to dedicated lines. Then there was a "Computer-I/O" CCU, which had six square buttons sticking out the top (at the front), plus a power button above those. It had a bunch of TTL-logic-level signals as well as a current loop, I believe. One of my 33 manuals discusses this one (others do not) -- it says it has a 20-pin connector, with a bunch of signals that look to be TTL-level. I have not heard of anyone owning one of these computer-i/o units. The "TWX" (Teletypewriter Exchange) machines had a CCU for "Switched-Network Service," which used an external "dataset" (modem) that mounted in the stand, and connected to a conventional telephone line, using FSK tones for communication. These had either a rotary dialer or touch-tone keypad for dialing the phone number, a speaker at the front, six round buttons sticking out the top at the front, four more button/lights up in the middle of the panel, and an optional way-cool auto-dialing card reader. My M33 is a Western-Union-branded TWX machine that has a UCC-3 CCU, with the touch-tone dialer and a 101D modem in the stand. I think almost all computer modems can talk to this M33 modem, when they fall back to the lowest standard (Bell 103?). I think these may have been a moderately-common machine. There was also a UCC-39 CCU which had a built-in modem (but still connected to an external line interface of some sort), and had six square buttons sticking out the top. I think this was used for TWX service also. I don't know how common these were. Then there was a CCU for "Circuit-Switching Service," which apparently refers to "Telex" service, which used a network of private lines. This CCU had a rotary dialer and four round buttons. This is found in Model 32 (baudot) sets, not Model 33 (ascii) machines. The dialer is not for telephone calling -- the unit connects to a special neutral or polarized DC wire line system, and the dialer pulses the line to call a station. It is operationally similar to TWX machines (that used a modem on the phone lines), but it used a special dc line network and central switching system. Interfacing -- Data Format -------------------------- Baud: 110 Data bits: 7 Parity: Even, or Mark Stop bits: 2 Flow-ctrl: None As I understand it, most 33 keyboards generated even parity (but early ones used bit-8 always marking). If you have a terminal emulator set for 8-data/no-parity, the chars will have bit-8 high when the parity bit is marking (for half the chars typed on the 33 keyboard) -- bit-8 high is non-standard ascii, and the terminal may display ibm-extended chars or something else. I believe bit-8 is ignored by the 33 printer, so you should be able to send chars to the 33 when the terminal is set to 7-data/any-parity, or 8-data/no-parity. However, 1-stop bit may be a problem for the 33 to keep up with streaming data. Also, you don't want flow control set to xon/xoff if your 33 has the special option for an auto-tape-reader (it would have the 4-position lever, not 3-pos). Interfacing -- Private-Wire current loop ---------------------------------------- The transmitter loop output is effectively a series connection of the keyboard and tape reader sections (via the rotating distributor). Electrically the TX loop looks just like series switch contacts. The receiver loop input connects to the an electronic circuit, and is polarity-sensitive. It is usually configured for 20-mA, but can be jumpered intenally for 60-mA operation. I have used it with a 30V loop supply, and am told it runs fine down to a 12V loop. The max voltage for the loop is unclear -- I have seen 45V and 70V listed as the max (I'll stay at 30V to be safe). For full-duplex operation, the TX and RX lines connect to two externally-powered loops. For half-duplex operation, the TX and RX lines connect in series to one externally-powered loop. There is an internal loop supply, but it is used in local mode only, so that the keyboard can drive the receiver. I have some schematics for rs-232-to-current-loop converters at: http://www.vauxelectronics.com/gil/tty232/ Interfacing -- TWX dataset (modem) ---------------------------------- For TWX machines with a dataset (modem), you should be able to connect to it (at 110-baud) using a 300-baud computer modem. 300 may be the lowest rated modem standard, but they pass anything up to 300-baud, as they are a simple fsk (freq-shift-key) design, using two tones for tx (mark/space), and two tones for rx (mark/space). The definition of which freq-pair is tx, and which is rx, determines which end is "originate" and which is "answer." Paper Tape Readers ------------------ The "standard" tape reader has a 3-position lever, labeled START/STOP/FREE. An optional "auto" tape reader has a 4-position lever, labeled START/AUTO/STOP/FREE. In the AUTO position, the reader can be commanded on/off remotely. The DC1 (XON) and DC3 (XOFF) control characters are used as start/stop commands for the auto tape reader. Since XON/XOFF chars are used today as software-handshaking flow-control characters, you want to disable software handshaking if you are connecting to a PC. There is a little circuit board mounted in the pedestal stand which provides power for the tape reader. In later 3300-series machines, this was built into the CCU. 3300-Series typewheel/keyboard for "latest" ASCII code, variable customer-activated options (auto/manual tape punch, auto CR/LF function, even-parity keyboard...), and included, as standard, various features that were previous options (paper-low/out sense, DC1/DC2/ENQ/EOT function contacts, end-of-line space suppression...). My manual shows that they have a one-piece cover, so the tape reader/punch didn't look added-on -- but I think early 3300 units had original covers (separate covers for the reader and punch, like the classic asr). The 3300 CCU (Call-Control-Unit) for "private-wire" service (20-mil loop) also included the power supply for the tape reader. Earlier 33s had this little board mounted in the stand. Longevity ---------- The M33 (and the baudot M32) were designed for light-duty use. They did not heat-treat parts, adjusted some things by bending parts... The 33/32 just seems to wear out after a while -- someone said about 1500 hours of runtime will be about it. The elapsed-hour counter in my 33 says 1495, so I should have a good 5 hours left! Your unit may or may not have an elapsed-hour meter, since it was an option. Before you spend big bucks on ebay ---------------------------------- A Model 33 has a four-row keyboard (not including the space bar). A Model 32 has a three-row keyboard (not including the space bar). The 33 is ascii, and the 32 is baudot. You cannot (prctically) modify a 32 into a 33. Documentation ------------- There is a 2-volume desciption/adjustments manual set, and a third parts manual -- the three manuals are often on ebay for $20-$40. Schematics are harder to find. Also check these sites (scroll down): http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/pdp8/ http://www.chd.dyndns.org/pdp8/ Lubrication ------------ **DO NOT** use WD-40, since it gums up over time. I use 3-in-1 oil for light lubing, 30W motor oil for heavier needs, and lithium grease for gears and cams. Some folks don't even like 3-in-1, and will use a 10W for light stuff. Supplies -------- For paper tape, check out ebay or: http://www.westnc.com/teletype.html Note that the paper-tape for the ASR-33 should be 1" wide, oiled paper. Non-oiled paper or mylar tape will wear your punch pins (so I'm told). The 7/8" or 11/16" paper tape for baudot machines will not work at all. For standard roll paper, check out ebay or: http://www.westnc.com/teletype.html For sprocket-feed paper, you have to special order paper that is 8.5" wide, with the holes on 8" centers. Sprocket-feed machines are pain in the ass, since standard teletype roll paper (or letter sheets) will not feed through, nor will the commonly-available "continuous-form tractor-feed" computer paper which is 9.5" wide, with tear-off sprocket holes. I have located a special-order paper at Office-Max, which is indeed 8.5" wide sprocket-feed, 3500 fan-fold sheets to a box. But this is a "green-bar" computer paper -- I have not found white or buff. I did find an unusal ROLL of sprocket-feed paper once. For platen refinishing, check out: http://www.techspray.com/1612info.htm Teletype used the same ribbon for most of their machines, apparently the same one used in old Underwood manual typewriters. Newer replacement ribbons are nylon and only lightly inked so they don't last as long, but they work fine. I found a decent $3 black ribbon at Staples: Dataproducts #R3300 (replacement for Okidata ML80/82/84/90 printers). SMD (Selector Magnet Driver) Board ---------------------------------- I found un-soldered power resistors on the selector-magnet-driver board in my 33 -- it's a shi**y pcb design, with no thermal considerations at all. I have run across another fellow with the same problem. I repaired it with heavy buss wire and solder. This board amplifies the 20-mA input to 500-mA, for driving the typing mechanism magnet (solenoid). I took some large gauge non-insulated buss wire, and tack soldered several sections of it to the traces from the hot resistor pads (to the next component along the trace). After it was tacked in place, I twisted the wire around the power resistor leads and soldered it, then soldered all along the trace to bond the wire -- this left a nice big mound of solder/wire extending away from each of the power resistor pads. This beefed up the mechanical strength, and added some thermal mass to help pull the heat away from the big frickin' resistor leads. Stuff I need ------------ My 33 is a sprocket-feed machine that uses 8.5" wide paper, with the holes on 8" centers. I'd like to find fan-fold paper in white, buff, or even green-bar. I'd also be interested in rolls of sprocket paper. I could use a copy stand for a 33 (or 32). Also, this TWX machine uses a touch-tone dialer and dataset (modem). It has the UCC-3 version of the 33's CCU (call-control unit), with a touch-tone keypad, and connects to an external 101D dataset. I need to fix the dataset. I have the standard 33 manuals, which have simplified schematics and some theory on the UCC-3 CCU. But, full schematics would let me check things properly. Does anyone have a manual/schematic on the UCC-3? Does anyone have a manual/schematic on the 101D? How about the more-common 101C? Does anyone know the difference between a 101D and a 101C? thanks, gil ;----------------------------------------------------------- ; vaux electronics, inc. 480-354-5556 ; http://www.vauxelectronics.com (fax: 480-354-5558) ;-----------------------------------------------------------

23 years, 1 month

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TRS-80 Model 4 help requested

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

From: "Fred Cisin (XenoSoft)" <cisin(a)xenosoft.com> > A minor complication with using DS drives, at least > as external, . . . > Didn't Radio Shack used pin 32 for drive select 3? > Isn't that "side select"? Yes, they did. I don't remember for sure, but I think that on a Model I, you could only use 3 drives if you decided to use Double Sided Drives. On a Model III/4, it didn't matter as you could use two internal and two external double sided drives without problems (I think...). It's been a while, and my memory is fuzzy on this one. I used to use one DS/DD 40tk as Drive 0:, and two DS/DD 80tk drives as 1 and 2 on my Model I when it ran my BBS. I had an LNDoubler in it, and always meant to get 8" drives to get 1.2mb each instead of 720k. I never did do that. Now, I could put 1.2mb drives on with that, I guess. You could boot from any size media that the controller would support, you'd just have to make a boot floppy on the correct media, as the drive settings were contained in the boot sector of the disk. On a Model I, the boot sector ALWAYS had to be Single Density, no matter what the rest of the disk was. That was the main difference between the Model I and III. While they both had DD capability (the Model I equipped with a Doubler), the Model III required a Double Density Boot Sector. I think that one of Dos'es (MultiDOS I think) would boot on both machines as long as the Boot sector was the correct type. I know one of the Dos'es could do that. I REALLY have to find my dream machine... A complete LNW Model I or Model II (Team) computer... Regards, Al Hartman

23 years, 1 month

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Anyone have Chips & Technologies Super386 documentation?

by vcf＠siconic.com

I need some manuals for the Chips & Technologies Super386 chipset for a client. I am aware of the Programmer's Reference Manual from a web site of the company that produced it, but I have not found any title for the hardware reference. Either would do, the hardware manual would be preferable. Anyone have the manual(s), or at least a title? Any dated reference would be good. This is for a client so there will be money involved if you find it for me ;) -- 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, 1 month

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Let the witch trials begin! Re: OT: Re: Going OT Re: (no s ubject)

by Edward.Tillman＠valero.com

What the government can and will do is contained in two phrases: "Manifest Destiny," and "Eminent Domain." The first, Manifest Destiny, was the political doctrine which told everyone it was God's Will that we (Americans) posess, occupy and exploit all the lands between the two native shores of the North American continent. (Canada: ya lucked-out!). The second, Eminent Domain, says that, if you have it, and the government wants it (usually land, but has been applied to inventions as well), they *can* offer you a 'fair price' (usually a paltry pitance), but they can otherwise take what they want from you "in the name of the greater good" -- or, how I lost my farm to an unused interstate freeway (San Jose, Ca). > If the local police can do it, I would guess the federal government > must have some provision that allows them to do what they must, > when they must, also. [demime 1.01a removed an attachment of type application/ms-tnef]

23 years, 1 month

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resurrecting a PDP-11/10

by iamvirtual＠hotmail.com

>From: Ethan Dicks <erd_6502(a)yahoo.com> >Reply-To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org >To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org >Subject: Re: resurrecting a PDP-11/10 >Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2003 10:20:54 -0800 (PST) > >--- Fred Flintstone <iamvirtual(a)hotmail.com> wrote: > > Thanks for the assistance to date! > > > > Actually, I have a second M7800 card installed on the PDP-11/10 machine. > >That's handy (and it ends the speculation if you have two SLUs or not ;-) > > > As far as memory, there are two 16kw core systems installed on this > > machine. > >Nice. That should serve nicely. Wish my 11/05 was that well equipped >(but it's in the short box). Yes, I guess I should call it a 11/05. despite what is clearly printed on the console. > > I am needing to know what I am looking for to get RT-11 running. What > > did DEC call their install tapes? eg. Is the > > "RT-11 V03B BIN MT9 1/2" tape the boot/install tape? > >It certainly seems like the distribution tape, but it's not clear to >me that you have a bootable tape there. If your TS03 is working >and you enter in the TS bootstrap and you get text, then it is >bootable. Dunno where you'd find install instructions for v3, though. >It's *possible* that there is a second tape that you boot first, one >with either an MS or MT boot block on it. It's also possible that there >is a boot papertape. Again, that's before my time (I got started with >RT-11 v4 on floppy). This tape is actually the first of two tapes. At this point, I don't know if I have any bootable media. > > Is RT-11 the easiest O/S to get installed? > >Yes! > > > I want to get to a point where I > > can verify the hardware is all running. > >RT-11 or XXDP (DEC's low-level diagnostic monitor) are the way to go >for that. With 28KW of core (not all of the upper card can be used >due to the I/O page, you don't have a lot of OS options. 2BSD is >out, as are recent versions of RSTS and RSX-11. Don't remember what >the requirements for older OSes are off the top of my head. > > > As far as media devices, I have 3 x RK05, 1 x TS03, 2 x RX01, 1 x TU58. > >Nice assortment. Have you checked any of your diskettes or disk packs >for labels that suggest they might be bootable? Both systems have RK05J disks in addition to the three RK05 drives. I presume the disk packs contained within the RK05J drives are most certainly bootable, but I have no idea how they were generated, etc. The drives and disk packs are dusty and I am learning what I need to do and at the same time, not destroy the hardware along the way! I have read the recent thread on cleaning RK05 and disk packs and I will be attempting this. If I get the RK05J disk cleaned and ready to go, and toggle in the bootstrap and the disk loads, do I need to manually start the O/S at some location? I believe the M873YA Bootstram ROM is capable of booting the RK05, but I don't know what would need to be done next (I believe 773010 will boot the RK05) > > I am trying to decide what will be moved to the PDP-11/10 from the >11/20. > > The goal is to have the PDP-11/20 up and running. Getting the PDP-11/10 > > is just a step along the way. > >Are you trying to get something historically accurate or just something >runnning well enough to be interesting? How much core do you have in >your 11/20? That might help drive the answer. If you want to run RT-11, >you'll need a storage device on the 11/20. It could be the RX01. If >you want to toggle in a long bootstrap, it could be the TU-58 (but floppies >are easier to find than TU-58 cartridges, and can be reformatted for the >RX01 with an 8" drive and modern to semi-modern computers). > >-ethan I want the PDP-11/20 to eventually be historically correct but with a full load of options :-) The ultimate goal is to run adventure and Star Trek on it using the LA36 terminal. ie. the quintessential time-wasting use of a mini-computer ;-) Of course the blinkenlights and tape operating has to be part of it too! It is interesting that my 10 year-old son asks to play Star Trek on my MicroPDP-11 rather than the full-motion flight simulator on the PC. _________________________________________________________________ Help STOP SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

23 years, 1 month

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Just for the sake of asking... (was - RE: Trivia Question)

by Edward.Tillman＠valero.com

Just for the sake of asking: What is a "real computer?" What are its power requirements? What are Its space requirements? What is its storage capacity? How? How many calculations per second? What I/O processes? What I/O media? Y'see... I once met a "real computer" -- I think, and used the darned thing for over two years. It was in a big concrete building, way up north (almost to Santa Claus). It occupied the entire basement of a large, windowless, cubical concrete building, and generated enough heat to warm the whole place during some pretty harsh winters. Its power requirements on a day-to-day basis kinda rivalled Spokane... Its base mainframe measured 60' x 120', had 30 dumb-terminal workstations in its ops center, serviced 120 remote terminals in the building, networked 35 outlying remote stations, but could boast only 1MB of memory, and could handle maybe 3000 calculations per second while in pre-emptive time-sharing. It was idiosyncratic: Though end users tended to interact with it via attached light pens and keyboards, it also had some of the very first "touch" screens -- it only gave up the time-slice when it wanted to... You talked to it through both mag tapes and punch cards. If you fed it a nice, neat stack of punch cards, it literally vomited "hash" back at you. If you attempted the same program with 18" 'high-speed' reel-to-reel mag tapes, it fed you back spaghetti. There was often electrical arcing between user screens and light pens, and I hate to think of the number of monitor screens replaced on the 'touch screens' when some user thought calibration, or 'a little harder' meant putting a knuckle or two through the screen... And we won't even go into the horrid monsters at the end of each corridor know as "batch printers..." It that a "real computer?" > -----Original Message----- > From: cctalk-admin@classiccmp.org@PEUSA On Behalf Of > vance(a)neurotica.com > Sent: Friday, February 21, 2003 5:42 PM > To: Philip Pemberton > Cc: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Trivia Question > > On Fri, 21 Feb 2003, Philip Pemberton wrote: > > > Eric Smith wrote: > > > That's quite a sad definition of "real computer". Any one of my > > > PDP-8 or PDP-11 systems, even the wimpiest, is much more of a "real > > > computer" than any PC compatible will ever be. > > > > What, even if said PC is a K6-II/400 running Linux? I've got two PCs > running > > A PC running Linux is not a real computer. > > Peace... Sridhar [demime 1.01a removed an attachment of type application/ms-tnef]

23 years, 1 month

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QBUS SCSI controller for RT-11

by stuart＠stuartsjohnsonfamily.net

I noticed an auction on eBay for a KZQSA-SA SCSI controller and I was wondering (silly me) if it could be used with RT-11. I know that RT-11 is much older than this board, but I was hoping someone had written a driver for it. If the KZQSA isn't compatible, I'm open to suggestions as to what SCSI QBUS board to get to use in an 11/53 (similar to the machine described on Johnathan Engdahl's site), and if known, where I might get such, hopefully at a decent price - not $799 like on eBay! Thanks, Stuart Johnson

23 years, 1 month

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Timex/Sinclair 2068

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: "TeoZ" <teoz(a)neo.rr.com> > > Do you still have a 2068 and addons for it? No. Nothing that I'd like to sell... Check www.zebrasystems.com Stewart still has printers, some books and maybe some 2068 software. Otherwise, check eBay and flea markets. Sorry. Regards, Al

23 years, 1 month

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decserver 550 in Kansas City

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Feb 27, 9:35, McFadden, Mike wrote: > Wandering through the local surplus I found a decserver 550 in a full height > rack. > > It had the following boards in it. > > 4 X CXA16-M M3118 > 1 X M3127 > 1 X KDJ11-SD M7554 > > Bulkheads, power supply, and cables > > I read somewhere that it could be converted to a 11/53 with a minimal > effort. How much trouble? Well, it will never be exactly an 11/53, since it's in the wrong box, but you can make it effectively equivalent. I'd remove the CXA16-M serial multiplexers, which I don't think any normal PDP-11 OSs support, but the DESQA should be OK; it'll look to any OS just like a DELQA. You'll need to change the two boot EPROMs on the KDJ11 board. The standard boot ROMs for a microPDP-11/53 are 23-261E5 and 23-262E5. You might get lucky if you type either of those numbers into Google ;-) -- Pete Peter Turnbull Network Manager University of York

23 years, 1 month

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Timex Computer Corporation

by acme＠ao.net

From: TeoZ <teoz(a)neo.rr.com> Date: 02/26/2003 5:02 PM > Too bad Timex dropped out of the computer buisiness, I liked the 2068. Still > the C64 owned the game market and I ended up getting one a few years later. > At least I learned to program on the 2068 since I had only a few titles for > it. Timex made some really bad choices when pursuing the US computer market. Instead of simply producing a US version of the Spectrum (for which there was already a ton of hardware and software available) they redesigned the TS2068 (nee TS2000). The resultant machine was (IMHO) far superior to the Spectrum, but the delays, R&D expenses, and incompatibilities put Timex Computer Corp. out of business. The *up* side of all this was that an entire cottage industry was spawned to support the orphaned TS2068. Users had their choice of several robust FDD interfaces, serial and parallel i/o, tape storage devices, and other peripherals, some of which is still sold and supported by the original manufacturers. Just last night I obtained a TS2068 with a full size keyboard, CGA video output, and RS-232 all built into the unit. So, while I agree that it's a shame Timex didn't hang in there, I've gotten a lot of benefit from all the creative juices that were flowing around the TS2068 during the mid-eighties. Later -- Glen 0/0

23 years, 1 month

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Data General stuff, Nova 2/10 on ebay

by xds_sigma7＠hotmail.com

Holy ugly 70's colors, Batman! _________________________________________________________________ Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com

23 years, 1 month

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History Channel - The Internet: Behind the Web

by daw＠yalepress3.unipress.yale.edu

Just curious... did anybody else watch the History Channel last night, 7:00PM Eastern Time. The Modern Marvels episode was about the creation of the internet. Rather fascinating to me (who learned some things), and kinda neat to put faces to names... Not to mention the pictures of the old, err, classic computers and terminals... -- --- David A. Woyciesjes --- C & IS Support Specialist --- Yale University Press --- (203) 432-0953 --- ICQ # - 905818

23 years, 1 month

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TRS-80 Model 4 help requested

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: Patrick Finnegan <pat(a)purdueriots.com> > > Aparently, the Drive 0: is bad. Replacing it with > the 1: or an IBM-branded Tandon drive from an IBM > 5150 PC, it seems to try to boot from the disk. No > disk in the drive (or the disk upside down) yields a > "Diskette?" message on the display. A disk placed > right-side up, which should be bootable, gives no > messages on the display after power-up or reset. > However, with a disk inserted, the drive light (and > motor) turn> off after approx 7 seconds. Ok.. Take a look at your "1:" drive. Near the connector you should see a socket with something that looks kind of like a chip in it. But, it will have 4 metal bridges and three will be broken. On your "0:" drive the first one will be in place and 2 - 4 will be broken. On the "1:" drive, the first, third and fourth should be broken and the second bridged. If you swap these between the two drives, you ought to be able to turn the "1:" drive to a "0:" drive. As for your IBM drive, it is probably jumpered for DS1 ("1:" drive). If you can find the jumpers on the logic board, move the jumper from DS1 to DS0 if you'd like to try to use that as the "0:" drive (leaving the "1:" drive as-is). Let me know if that helps you. > I tried using a boot disk that I got with the > machine, and a fresh one from a .dsk file of LS-DOS > 6.3.1H from Tim Mann's web site, using Tony's > trsfmt and diskdmp. The image works with xtrs too, > so I'm fairly confident that it should work when > stuck on a floppy. Sounds ok to me... Regards, Al

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Commodore and PET computers in the Philadelphia area.

by classiccmp＠vulcanjedi.com

Greetings Programs. The time has come to unload the few CBM and PET machines I forced them to save. There is a Philadelphia PA USA area project that takes donated computers and fixes them up for needy families. In the process we have collected some "old computer stuff" Beyond the 700 old 386 computers I talked them in to throwing out they still have some other oldies tucked away. There are several CBM and PET computers as well as Apple + bell and howell black apples and some TI peripheral expansion units waiting for someone to take them away and make a donation to the project. Please see our website for details on the project. www.teamchildren.com and please direct any email relating to this offer to childrensproject(a)go.com and if you are anywhere near the Philadelphia area you might want to stop by to take a look around. My 4 year volunteering with the project has put PILES of classic stuff in my basement. Please check out the website. Take a trip with a Uhaul if you want a few hundred 486's :) end of line.

23 years, 1 month

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Timex/Sinclair 2068

by alhartman＠yahoo.com

> From: "TeoZ" <teoz(a)neo.rr.com> > > Their improvements included more memory, a sound > chip (yamaha?) that was incorperated into the later > spectrums anyway (just different location) and > built in joystick ports. Yes, as well as Composite Video Out available on the expansion port. And don't forget the Cartridge slot! > It was more bang for the buck compared to what the > c64 costs during the same time. Timex also was > going to make a disk system addon, did make a 1200 > baud modem, and some other stuff before they pulled > the plug. No software meant a dead system. The Spectrum was actually a bigger system in Britain than anywhere else, being a home-grown system. A disk system WAS made, but Timex in the U.S. never marketed it. We got a number of them from Timex in Portugal at Zebra Systems and sold them for awhile. They were very nice, and styled just like the 2068. Timex Portugal sold 2068's a while longer (as they had a lot of them in stock). I really wanted us to sell them with 5.25 or 3.5 drives. But Timex was stuck with tons of 3" Amdek drives and made it so attractive for us that we went with those. The bad thing for our users was that media was scarce and expensive. Though nothing stopped them from adding on their own external drives of any type. (not 1.2 or 1.44mb) > Even if they didnt make the 2068 non compatible with > the spectrum the british market and US market were 2 different thing. Yes, but there was so much more cool software for the Spectrum, and as you note... Very little for the 2068. A Spectrum emulator solved that, however. And people would call us constantly about the Twister card so they could run ZX-Spectrum Microdrives. The Interface One for the Spectrum also added serial ports, which helped people run faster modems than the 1200 baud Timex Modem. > Not having a disk drive available, and limited > graphics and sound limited how usefull the machine > was for games. Yes. And not having a standard parallel port for printers other than the 4" thermal printer wasn't so good either. But, who really wanted to type long documents on that keyboard anyway.. > I think they only made 20,000 units or so, and they > get close to $100 on ebay for one. Mine is here > somewhere and I did keep the original box (20 > years of dust and all) I don't know how many were made. Your number sounds like a good ballpark. Though Timex Portugal kept making them. The made a 2048 and a TX-2068 which was more like a Spectrum. We were working on our own "Twister Card" at Zebra Systems. It would have incorporated the Spectrum expansion bus, a Spectrum Emulator, a Kempston compatible Joystick port, Composite Interface, and an RGB Interface. We never got it to work properly though. Which was a shame. If we had completed it, I think it would have been the best expansion item in the US market. Regards, Al Hartman

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Shugart 8" model 801 drives Kansas City

by mmcfadden＠cmh.edu

Wandering through the local surplus I found 2 Shugart full height 8" model 801 floppy drives. They look pretty dusty. They are not in an enclosure. Does anybody want me to pick they up, you tell me the price I should offer and you pay shipping. I'll pack them for free. Thanks Mike McFadden m m c f a d d e n @ c m h . e d u

23 years, 1 month

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Check out this TI99/4 on eBay

by Robert_Feldman＠jdedwards.com

Right. Went up almost $350 in the last 25 seconds. As to the 2 bids by the same guy, he was probing (albeit rather strongly) the winner's higher proxy bid -- you can see this if you look at the times the bids were placed. -----Original Message----- From: Brian Mahoney [mailto:brianmahoney@look.ca] Sent: Wednesday, February 26, 2003 9:06 PM To: cctech(a)classiccmp.org Subject: Re: Check out this TI99/4 on eBay bidding history is a tad suspicious. 163 to 400 to 500 (last two by the same guy).

23 years, 1 month

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Let the witch trials begin! Re: OT: Re: Going OT Re: (no subject)

by Edward.Tillman＠valero.com

If we were to address human rights abuses, we're one of the tops when it comes to abusing, and rationalizing and perpetuating (almost said "defending") those abuses. Its core to our government, core to our economy, and core to our infrastructure. We Americans are reared to be the most amazingly arrogant, sanctimonious, and prudish creatures on the planet, even after repeated bloody noses on the global stage have shown us that isn't the way to go. Sure, we have superb resources, technology and production. However, at the core, we're still human -- no one of us innately better than a Kurdish shepherd. We still want to think we are though, but where does that kind of attitude get us? Cheers... Ed San Antonio, Tx, USA > -----Original Message----- > From: cctalk-admin@classiccmp.org@PEUSA On Behalf Of > vance(a)neurotica.com > Sent: Friday, February 21, 2003 11:40 PM > To: Chad Fernandez > Cc: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Let the witch trials begin! Re: OT: Re: Going OT Re: (no > subject) > > On Sat, 22 Feb 2003, Chad Fernandez wrote: > > > > It *is* about oil. If it were about human rights and "weapons of mass > > > destruction" (most of which aren't), why aren't we going after > > > mainland China, North Korea, some of Europe, and *ourselves*? [demime 1.01a removed an attachment of type application/ms-tnef]

23 years, 1 month

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ISIS-II command summary?

by melamy＠earthlink.net

I only cut my teeth on these back in the 70s... I kept boxes of disks from that era. Thanks to Eric and you for chiming in with some information. The conversation is reminding me of what I used to know off the top of my head... The connector is probably a DC37. I guess I didn't pay enough attention to it when I was looking earlier. If someone has a file available that would be great. I can spend the time to ohm it out, but I had hoped the doc existed in a ready format. Erir reminded me of the SD controller on the I/O board and I will connect a drive to that one tomorrow and see if I can at least kluge something together just to test the SD section. I know the rest of the system is fine. I have the Ball Brothers display doc if anyone is interested and I am in the process of picking up some more of the hardware data. A copy of Kermit for both SD Intel and SD CP/M would probably be my best bet. Can I send disks to you Dave to get copies and include money for costs? Let me know. Thanks. regards, Steve >--- Original Message --- >From: Dave Mabry <dmabry(a)mich.com> >To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org >Date: 2/26/03 5:57:31 PM > Oh boy! Hey Joe! Another one! > >Hi Steve, > >Welcome to the Intel Development System adiction. > >If you have a double density drive in your 225, that would normally mean >you have the double density controller board set plugged into the >Multibus and cabled internally to the built-in Shugart 801 drive. While >the drive is capable of reading/writing single density, the double >density boardset from Intel is NOT. For the MDS Intel only made >single-density boardsets and double-density boardsets. There wasn't >anything that Intel made, supported under ISIS-II, that could read both >densities on one drive. It was possible to have both single and double >density drives in one MDS, but they were separate drives and separate >controllers. > >Check again on the external connector. I seem to remember it being 37 >pin D-type connector. But I can check again. I have the documentation >for what signals are where and can type them in, but I'm hoping that >someone (Tony, Joe?) might already have that in a file. > >I can help you with software if you need anything for ISIS-II and/or >CPM-80 for that machine. I have Kermit configured so that makes it easy >to transfer files to/from a PC and then send them in e-mails. > >Let me know what you might want. > >Dave > >Steve Thatcher wrote: >> Hi all, I got my Intel MDS225 working today, but I only have >> a single double density drive on it. I seem to recall that it >> would read single density, but you accessed by a different drive >> specifier. I can't seem to find one bit of documentation on the >> ISIS command at home. Does anyone have a summary page they could >> scan and send? >> >> I am also looking for the 50 pin connection wiring so I can connect >> a drive externally. >> >> It was fun booting up ISIS-II version 4.2 and seeing the prompt >> come up. I also had a CP/M 2.2 version that booted perfectly! >> >> best regards, Steve Thatcher >> >> . >> > > >-- >Dave Mabry dmabry(a)mich.com >Dossin Museum Underwater Research Team >NACD #2093

23 years, 1 month

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UNSUBSCRIBE dweebgeek@yahoo.com

by dweebgeek＠yahoo.com

__________________________________________________

23 years, 1 month

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Trivia Question

by Edward.Tillman＠valero.com

Und vy shut ve uz zis "Blowfish?" I sot zat PGP vas ze better enkriptshun, nicht war? Cheers! Ed San Antonio, Tx, USA > -----Original Message----- > From: cctalk-admin@classiccmp.org@PEUSA On Behalf Of "Philip > Pemberton" <philpem(a)dsl.pipex.com> > Sent: Friday, February 21, 2003 4:52 PM > To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Trivia Question > > Jim Battle wrote: > > I've had the discussion with workmates about the following scenario. > > If the German forces had access to a single 5150 IBM PC back in 1940, > > would the war have ended very differently? I think it would have. > "Who needs zis Enigma vee haff developed? Vee shall use Blowfish to > encrypt > our messages!" > > Later. > -- > Phil. > philpem(a)dsl.pipex.com > http://www.philpem.dsl.pipex.com/ [demime 1.01a removed an attachment of type application/ms-tnef]

23 years, 1 month

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Trivia Question

by Edward.Tillman＠valero.com

Oh? I thought their only major drawback was in their heavy water experiments. A nice scientific CAD setup for modelling the molecule might have put them years ahead of us... > -----Original Message----- > From: cctalk-admin@classiccmp.org@PEUSA On Behalf Of "Eric > Smith" <eric(a)brouhaha.com> > Sent: Friday, February 21, 2003 5:19 PM > To: cctalk(a)classiccmp.org > Subject: Re: Trivia Question > > Jim Battle wrote: > > I was thinking more along the lines of computing ballistics, > > Computing ballistics would have been some help, but nowhere near enough > to change the outcome. > > > and advancing their nuclear program. > > Their "nuclear program" had serious defficiencies that wouldn't have > been solved by more computing power. [demime 1.01a removed an attachment of type application/ms-tnef]

23 years, 1 month

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QBUS SCSI controller for RT-11

by mbg＠TheWorld.com

>I noticed an auction on eBay for a KZQSA-SA SCSI controller and I was >wondering (silly me) if it could be used with RT-11. I know that RT-11 is >much older than this board, but I was hoping someone had written a driver >for it. There never was a driver written for it, at least not by DEC. If I had had the documentation, I probably would probably have tried it, since I did lots of handler work. In fact, if someone has clear and complete documentation for it, and a board to play with, I would not be adverse at trying my hand at it. Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | email: mbg at world.std.com | | | | | "this space | (s/ at /@/) | | unavoidably left blank" | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (DEC '77-'98) | required." - mbg KB1FCA | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

23 years, 1 month

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