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

by allisonp＠world.std.com

<disks did the trick. Other empirical evidence was accumulated when the <demagnetizer shut itself off while I was using it near the disk, (thermal <shutdown to prevent meltdown I guess). That disk was unusable until the <demagnetizer reset and I could use it more carefully. When the thermal cutout opened there was a momentary spike. At that point rather than radom magnitisation you nailed the disk with a fixed field and really magnetized it. The powered demaggers whould be moved in a circular patter from surface contact to about arms length befor powering off to avoid that. FYI when wiping disks I use a ceramic magnet and move it uniformly over the surface in a circular pattern ten move it away while continuing to move it. works just as well as a line powered demagnetizer. Allison

27 years, 2 months

1
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Fun with degaussers

by edick＠idcomm.com

Another pass through the bulk-erase procedure should do it. I've had lots of diskettes and tapes which were rejuvenated by a serious bulk-erase. Dick -----Original Message----- From: Charles E. Fox <foxvideo(a)wincom.net> To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers <classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu> Date: Sunday, May 02, 1999 5:30 AM Subject: Re: Fun with degaussers >At 07:18 PM 5/1/1999 -0700, you wrote: >>At 09:50 PM 5/1/99 -0400, Tim wrote: >>>That said, 12 (or even 6) is way too many errors for a floppy disk. >>>Cleaning the heads, re-aligning, or buying new media (there are lots >>>of places that still sell 8" floppies) may be the real solution. >> >>The issue isn't with the disk I don't believe (I don't have an alignment >>disk to prove it so I can't be sure). The goal of demagnetizing is to >>recreate a uniform state of non-magnetism on the media. >> > Yesterday one of our local industries was selling off some equipment to >benefit Jr Acheivment, so I went down, found a 5 1/4" disk file with a >bunch of disks, and was told I could have it for $ 2.00. The lady on the >desk, however was determined no data could leave. I came home, returned >with a bulk tape eraser and demagnitized them on the spot. > However when I tried to format them with my trusty XT it spit them out as >"can't read track 0" on both A and B drives. I formatted the disks >successfully on a Compaq clone and a Commodore PC10, and now the XT will >read them. Any ideas? > > Regards > > Charlie Fox > > > Charles E. Fox > Chas E. Fox Video Productions > 793 Argyle Rd. Windsor N8Y 3J8 Ont. Canada > email foxvideo(a)wincom.net Homepage http://www.wincom.net/foxvideo >

27 years, 2 months

1
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Sony CD Rom Drive

by jolminkh＠nsw.bigpond.net.au

I have found a Sony CDU 6100 external CDRom drove with interface card and cable. Circa 1988. Does anyone know where I could find a driver for this? Thanks, Hans

27 years, 2 months

2
1
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16 x HP1000 A-series systems

by guerney＠uq.net.au

The state (Qld, Australia) main roads department are selling a job lot of 16 x HP1000 A-series systems. http://www.qits.net.au/hp1000/ Are these the same HP 1000's that are listed in the Comprehensive Computer Catalog as being introduced in 1976? The pictures on the Main Roads Web page do not look that old. Phil in Brisbane, Australia - just a few km from that stash of HP1000's, but they are way out of my league.

27 years, 2 months

1
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VAX 8600 added to the VCF Archives

by allisonp＠world.std.com

<Bah, it's a VAX, it should be running VMS. I totally fail to understand <why, especially now that licenses are free for hobbyist use, anyone would <want to run UNIX on a VAX! A system like that should be part of a nice VM <cluster! Here, here! The OS (VMS) is a classic too! Allison

27 years, 2 months

1
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RT-11 SJ vs FB

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Ok, so on my distribution disk if I boot it up it comes up as RT-11 V20B >SJ but if I boot DXMNTFB.SYS it comes up RT-11 V20B FB. What's the >difference? Floating point? SJ is the single-job monitor. One job is all you have, period. FB is the foreground-background monitor. You have two jobs. The foreground job is the higher-priority job. When it blocks, the background job gets a chance to run (actually, completion routines for the jobs are slightly higher than the jobs themselves). So, you can run a data collection program in the foreground, and the data reduction or storage program in the background. If you need to direct terminal input to the foreground, you type <Control-F> first, then type... To then have terminal input go to the background job, type <Control-B>. Later versions of RT-11 had foreground/background and up to 6 system jobs (with priorities in between background the foreground). Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

1
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RT-11 SJ vs FB

by cmcmanis＠mcmanis.com

Ok, so on my distribution disk if I boot it up it comes up as RT-11 V20B SJ but if I boot DXMNTFB.SYS it comes up RT-11 V20B FB. What's the difference? Floating point? --Chuck

27 years, 2 months

1
0
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VAX 8600 added to the VCF Archives

by jimw＠agora.rdrop.com

At 06:39 PM 4/30/99 -0700, you wrote: > >This one will NOT be converted into a bar: > >http://www.vintage.org/crap/vax1.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/vax2.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/vax3.jpg Most cool! Congrats! >Look at the size of that power connector!!! Yeah, and your point would be??? So... what do you plan to be the first thing to boot up on it? B^} -jim --- jimw(a)computergarage.org The Computer Garage - http://www.computergarage.org Computer Garage Fax - (503) 646-0174

27 years, 2 months

3
4
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Getting RT-11 source to disk

by cmcmanis＠freegate.com

Ok, it looks like the only way I have of getting source code from the 'net on to the disks is to use EDIT and the "stuff text down the serial line" hack in hyperterm. Assuming that I set hyperterm to send text slowly. What are the minimum commands in EDIT to: 1) Open a new file. 2) Go into Insert Mode 3) Exit insert mode and save the file. --Chuck

27 years, 2 months

2
1
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RQDX3 break out board?

by cmcmanis＠freegate.com

Ok, does anyone have an extra RQDX3 breakout board? This is the board that connects to the controller and then it has connectors for an RX50 and MFM hard drive(s). --Chuck

27 years, 2 months

2
1
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RT/HT-11 results

by cmcmanis＠mcmanis.com

Executive Summary: Very Cool. Ok, the adventure is nearly complete, the solutions are found, all that is left is to collect the crystals at the back of the cave. Recapping the RT/HT-11 saga ... Overview, I've been recussitating an H-11 with dual H27 8" floppy drives into working condition. This constitutes the first complete working example of a PDP-11 in my collection. The system consists of a M7270 w/FIS, M8044-Dx, H-11-5 serial, H-11-2 parallel, and H-11-Z floppy card. This system was picked up at a local auction in two lots (one the H11 the other the H27), the cable to the H27 had been cut off. After taking apart the system, verifying the operation of the PSU, I put together the minimum system (CPU, memory, and serial card) and powered it up. I got the ODT prompt and that was cool. But I had no software for the machine. I then saw an advertisement for an H-11 with software that was near by and asked if I could copy his disks. He said ok, and off I went box of disks in hand. Only to find they were the wrong type. I scrounged a couple of mangy disks and managed to get the HT-11B distribution disk and a disk called "DCOPY" copied. The disk labelled DCOPY also included FORMAT so this was the disk to have. Next I got hold of the correct format disks from a fellow list member, and formatted them on my system. After formatting I tried to Dcopy them and sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't. I suspected my drives. Round 2 with the H-11 software owner and I format 10 disks at his place and dcopy 10 volumes of software. One of which is the HT-11 distribution (RT-11V10A). Encountering problems I tried the PIP command "/K" which Megan's note described as a bad block scan. When I did this I found _lots_ of bad blocks on the disks. Very weird! The disk surfaces looked fine but I doubted Control Data Corp was going to honor their 5-year warranty :-) So I came home again late. At home I took the worst disk and used a tape/video demagnetizer on it and then tried to reformat it. Half the bad blocks went away! (now down to 12). A few more rounds of this and I finally got the technique perfectly. Disk Demagnetization: Take a stack of 1 or more but not more than 5 disks and place them on a flat surface. Run a demagnetizer horizontally and vertically over the disks starting beyond the edge of the disk, crossing the disk, and then passing over the opposite edge. Hold the Demagnetizer about 1/4" above the disks and move it around clockwise and anti-clockwise several times, then while moving it in circles, slowly lift it up until it is about 12" above the disks and turn it off. The whole operation should take about 20 - 30 seconds. Once I did this, the disks would format and scan with zero bad blocks and zero retrys (no marginal blocks either). To initialize a disk in RT/HT-11 (ver A or B) the following steps are used: 1) Format the disk. 2) Run PIP and type "DX1:/Z" (this will ask for confirmation) 3) From PIP type "DX1:/K" (this will scan for bad blocks) If you get through step 3 with no bad blocks and no retries you have a solidly formatted disk and it is ready for use. Another mystery was some of the programs on the disk, in particular: MACRO.SAV ASEMBL.SAV EXPAND.SAV Because on my disk MACRO quit into ODT and ASEMBL failed to interpret the macros correctly. In the DOC file for DCOPY that the author wrote, he gave the steps to reassemble DCOPY.MAC and they were: .R EXPAND *DCOPY=DCOPY .R ASEMBLE *DCOPY=DCOPY .R LINK *DCOPY=DCOPY It turns out that EXPAND is the "macro" part of the macro assembler, and MACRO is the RT-11 MACRO-11 assembler from V02 (it crashed on the V01 disk) Now with good media in hand, I make one more pilgrammage and I should have everything I need to really enjoy this system. Thank you everyone for your help, it has been invaluable! --Chuck

27 years, 2 months

2
1
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Fwd: decmate II

by cfandt＠netsync.net

Hey DEC DECMATE folks! The fellow whose msg is copied below is looking for some advice on re-belting a DECMATE II. As I have neither experience nor manual on the machine, I feel some of you may help instead as you're the types who really could. Email directly to Bill. The machine is somewhere in Minnesota. Thanks muchly! Regards, Chris -- -- >Date: Thu, 29 Apr 1999 21:42:58 -0500 >From: wdoherty <wdoherty(a)uswest.net> >To: cfandt(a)netsync.net >Subject: decmateII > >My mother-in-law (you can see why this is important to me!) has a >DECMATEII Cira 1983. The belt on the printer broke. DEC will sell her >the belt but nobody knows how to put it on. can you recommend sites, >collectors, or hobbyiests who may have this knowledge? She is also >willing to sell to a collector. > >Thank you, >Bill Doherty > > -- -- Christian Fandt, Electronic/Electrical Historian Jamestown, NY USA cfandt(a)netsync.net Member of Antique Wireless Association URL: http://www.ggw.org/awa

27 years, 2 months

4
4
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Indy keyboard?

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On May 1, 5:07, R. Stricklin (kjaeros) wrote: > Oops, you're right of course. The Indigos use keyboards that only pretend > to be PS/2 compatible. My R4400 Indigo does not use an actual PS/2 > keyboard. I thought it did, but double-checking reveals my mistake. > > Sorry for the mis-information. Easy mistake to make :-) I had to think for a few minutes to be sure that an R4400 Indigo wasn't PS/2, because Indigo^2 keyboards etc are, and the keyboard connector is on the same board as the R4400. -- Pete Peter Turnbull Dept. of Computer Science University of York

27 years, 2 months

1
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Great find

by jrkeys＠concentric.net

I picked up a Rockwell Aim65 today for zero cost and seems to be in great shape. It looks like a large calculator and the housing is in very good condition. Also picked up a few HP cables for no charge.

27 years, 2 months

7
8
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Apollo Guidance Computer manual details

by jlewczyk＠his.com

Someone posted a few pages from the Lunar Module software (called "Luminary") on a web page at: http://www.pacifier.com/~garyn. If interested, grab it soon, as it won't be there for long. Its about 1800 pages long! Its written in assembler and dated 12/19/1969 Neat!

27 years, 2 months

1
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Fwd: decmate II

by allisonp＠world.std.com

<It would help rather more to know what kind of printer it is. The fact <that it's a DECmate narrows down the range of possible printers somewhat, <but really isn't enough. there were three common ones used with it. LQP02 (daisy wheel), LA50 and the LA75. Are we sure the failed belt is not the RX50? <Although I'd strongly recommend that anyone still using a DECmate for real <work give some serious consideration to moving to something a bit more DECmate II/IIIs are common enough a spare could be found. More likely the RX50 fails and they can be found. An DMIII is a more modern substitute and they tend to have long lives. What is missed is that a DM with all the other packages also has far more than word processing capability. Those are not easily duplicated on a PC running wordstar. Allison

27 years, 2 months

1
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Help! Univac punch card machines ....

by kstumpf＠unusual.on.ca

>Just taking the keyboard and nametag is not preservation, but trophying. >But while I discourage the wanton disregard for the actual hardware, which >is really the part that's worth preserving, I realize not everyone has the >facilities to store such a large artifact. I suggest you try to find >someone in your area who is capable of and willing to store the beasts. > Two things please: 1..Alex posted this message since he doesn't want to canabalilize so we need not give him that advice and more importantly, 2..Alex found it, he is a collector not a preservationist, so he can do what he wants. We should appreciate the notice without, what I read as, criticism. p.s. sorry for the original half-done post. Yours in good faith. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------- Kevin Stumpf * Unusual systems * www.unusual.on.ca +1.519.744.2900 * EST/EDT GMT - 5 Collector - Commercial Mainframes & Minicomputers from the 50s, 60s, & 70s and control panels and consoles. Author & Publisher - A Guide to Collecting Computers & Computer Collectibles * ISBN 0-9684244-0-6 .

27 years, 2 months

1
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Help! Univac punch card machines ....

by kstumpf＠unusual.on.ca

>Just taking the keyboard and nametag is not preservation, but trophying. >But while I discourage the wanton disregard for the actual hardware, which >is really the part that's worth preserving, I realize not everyone has the >facilities to store such a large artifact. I suggest you try to find >someone in your area who is capable of and willing to store the beasts. > Two things please: 1..Alex posted this message since he wan ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------- Kevin Stumpf * Unusual systems * www.unusual.on.ca +1.519.744.2900 * EST/EDT GMT - 5 Collector - Commercial Mainframes & Minicomputers from the 50s, 60s, & 70s and control panels and consoles. Author & Publisher - A Guide to Collecting Computers & Computer Collectibles * ISBN 0-9684244-0-6 .

27 years, 2 months

1
0
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Indy keyboard?

by pete＠dunnington.u-net.com

On Apr 30, 15:49, Mike Ford wrote: > One of my friends picked up a SGI Indigo (he calls it a purple), and he > doesn't have a keyboard for it (or mouse I suspect), what will work? He > tried a PC keyboard I think, and got "keyboard error". The keyboards used on Indigos and Personal IRIS machines are custom keyboards -- you need the right one. They use custom 3-button mice as well, which plug into the keyboard. The Indigo versions use a 6-pin miniDIN connector which looks like a PS/2 connector, but the pinout, voltages, and protocols are completely different. Indys and later machines use a standard PS/2 keyboard and PS/2 mouse. A good source is Greg Douglas at Reputable Systems: http://www.reputable.com/ A useful source of information is the "This Old SGI" document, at http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Pines/2258/4dfaq.html -- Pete Peter Turnbull Dept. of Computer Science University of York

27 years, 2 months

2
1
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Cosmac ELF article in Popular Electronics

by fauradon＠mn.mediaone.net

It's all your fault, plus I had the July 1977 issue of PE on my desk: I scanned the graphic interface article for the Elf it's under the schematics section at: http://people.mn.mediaone.net/fauradon/schematics.htm By the way this is supposed to be part IV what was part III? Francois > >I scanned the two-part Cosmac "ELF" article from the August and September >1976 issues of Popular Electronics for someone and stuck them on the VCF >website. Although they aren't the best scans (72dpi, greyscale) they are >legible. However there are some parts that may not be readable. Anyway, >they are avaialble at the following URLs: > >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf1.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf2.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf3.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf4.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf5.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf6.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf7.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf8.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf9.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf10.jpg >http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf11.jpg > >These are fairly big files (~350K - 500K each). > >Sellam Alternate e-mail: dastar(a)siconic.com >--------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- >Don't rub the lamp if you don't want the genie to come out. > > Coming this October 2-3: Vintage Computer Festival 3.0! > See http://www.vintage.org/vcf for details! > [Last web site update: 04/03/99] > >

27 years, 2 months

2
1
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VAX 8600 added to the VCF Archives

by dastar＠ncal.verio.com

This one will NOT be converted into a bar: http://www.vintage.org/crap/vax1.jpg (the gap on the right is caused by an uneven floor in the warehouse) http://www.vintage.org/crap/vax2.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/vax3.jpg Look at the size of that power connector!!! Sellam Alternate e-mail: dastar(a)siconic.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Don't rub the lamp if you don't want the genie to come out. Coming this October 2-3: Vintage Computer Festival 3.0! See http://www.vintage.org/vcf for details! [Last web site update: 04/03/99]

27 years, 2 months

1
0
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Cosmac ELF article in Popular Electronics

by dastar＠ncal.verio.com

I scanned the two-part Cosmac "ELF" article from the August and September 1976 issues of Popular Electronics for someone and stuck them on the VCF website. Although they aren't the best scans (72dpi, greyscale) they are legible. However there are some parts that may not be readable. Anyway, they are avaialble at the following URLs: http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf1.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf2.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf3.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf4.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf5.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf6.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf7.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf8.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf9.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf10.jpg http://www.vintage.org/crap/elf11.jpg These are fairly big files (~350K - 500K each). Sellam Alternate e-mail: dastar(a)siconic.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Don't rub the lamp if you don't want the genie to come out. Coming this October 2-3: Vintage Computer Festival 3.0! See http://www.vintage.org/vcf for details! [Last web site update: 04/03/99]

27 years, 2 months

1
0
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Apollo Guidance Computer manual details

by dpeschel＠u.washington.edu

I've dug out my copy of the manual for the Apollo Guidance Computer. The files total about 165K; I don't think it's appropriate to mail them to the list. But if you want a copy: * Ask me and I'll send you one. * Maybe DejaNews has the posts. * Rich Drushel (who typed in the whole manual!) has a home page at: http://junior.apk.net/~drushel I didn't see the manual there but maybe I missed it. If anyone e-mails Rich and finds he has a later version, please tell me. I also have a separate 24K file (by Rich) with a giant picture of some of the keypads and a bit of extra detail about the AGC. I'm not sure the picture wasn't copied from the manual. The message below was Rich's "foreword" to his posting of the manual. It's fascinating, it's not too long, and Rich can explain the subject better than I can. BTW, I had forgotten the fact that the computer changed over time, each Apollo spacecraft had a few slightly-different "terminals", and the LEM had its own version(s) of the computer. If you want to write a simulator, your work is cut out for you. -- Derek Article 131741 of alt.folklore.computers: Path: news.u.washington.edu!uw-beaver!cornellcs!rochester!udel!delmarva.com!news.internetMCI.com!newsfeed.internetmci.com!howland.reston.ans.net!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!wariat.org!junior.wariat.org!drushel From: drushel(a)junior.wariat.org (Richard Drushel) Newsgroups: alt.folklore.computers Subject: Apollo Guidance Computer (Block I) [0/4] Date: 14 Jan 1996 14:48:02 GMT Organization: Akademia Pana Kleksa, Public Access Uni* Site Lines: 69 Message-ID: <4db532$if8(a)wariat.wariat.org> NNTP-Posting-Host: junior.wariat.org X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2] The Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) revised 9601.14 by Richard F. Drushel (drushel(a)apk.net) Periodically there are questions on alt.folklore.computers about what kind of computers were used on board the spacecraft in the Apollo moon program. Here are the definitive answers, reproduced directly from the Apollo Operations Handbook for spacecraft SC 012--better known as Apollo 1. After the fire on 27 January 1967 which killed astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee, NASA began a massive investigation into the accident. Its 3-volume report, "Investigation into the Apollo 204 Accident", published 10 April 1967, contains not only the accident report, but also a wealth of supplementary data documenting the Apollo Command and Service Modules. Included is the complete Apollo Operations Handbook, which gives blueprints, block diagrams, schematics, theory of operations, how-to-fly-it instructions, you name it--including the computer system. I have broken Section 2, Subsection 2 (Guidance and Navigation System (G&N)) into 4 parts for ease of posting. This is pages 2.2-1 to 2.2-48 of the Apollo Operations Handbook SM2A-03-SC012, or pages 443-488 of Volume II, Part 1 of the Apollo 204 Accident Report. Two of the four figures in this section I reproduce as ASCII art; I've tried to keep it to 80 columns, but in a couple places it spills over, so don't read this with your word wrap on. Of the other two figures, one is a beautiful line drawing, and the other is a 4-page foldout block diagram. If I get around to it, I'll put the text up on my WWW home page and make .GIFs of the artwork. This description of the Apollo Guidance Computer is only absolutely correct for SC 012. A sister ship, SC 014, was completely dismantled during the accident investigation, and some changes were made in the ship design. Also, since SC 012 was a Block I spacecraft, it was never intended to dock with a lunar module--it had no docking probe and tunnel--so any computer programs dealing with translunar injection and lunar orbit rendezvous are absent. As for hardware changes, I don't know if it was due to the fire, but at some point before the manned lunar missions, the Bus A and B voltages were increased from +28 VDC to +65 VDC. This had grave implications for Apollo 13: the thermostatic switch for the heater in the oxygen tanks was never upgraded >from +28 VDC, it shorted out during a manufacturing test using +65 VDC, causing the heater to fail on for 8 hours, baking the inside at 1000 degrees F and exposing the bare wires which shorted out so explosively in space. Other changes from the state of SC 012 include the main hatch (changed after Apollo 1) and the plumbing for the oxygen tanks (changed after Apollo 13). The museum-quality sets in the 1995 Ron Howard film "Apollo 13" show that the Block II computer keyboard was different from that of Block I. I hope to add some ASCII art pictures of this sometime soon. The Lunar Module computer was evidently similar to the AGC. At least it shared the 1201 and 1202 error codes (which occurred during the lunar descent on Apollo 11, nearly causing the landing to be aborted). I have not found documentation similar to the Apollo Operations Handbook for the LM. I've tried to catch all the typos, but some may remain. If you find any, please let me know. Enjoy! I did when I read it; that's why I was motivated to type it all in :-) *Rich* -- Richard F. Drushel, B.A., Ph.D.| ColecoVision AA DDDDD AA M M ===============================| Family A A D D A A MM MM Come to ADAMcon VIII | Computer AAAAAA D D AAAAAA M M M M Cleveland, Ohio U.S.A. | System A A DDDDD A A M M M 5-8 September 1996 |============================================== See the ADAMcon VIII Home Page | http://junior.apk.net/~drushel/adamcon8.html

27 years, 2 months

3
2
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New stuff posted

by rcini＠email.msn.com

Hello, all: Last night, I finished uploading the final AIM65 book; the AIM65 User's Guide. The next projects: First Book of KIM, and PC/AT Tech Ref. [ Rich Cini/WUGNET [ ClubWin!/CW7 [ MCP Windows 95/Windows Networking [ Collector of "classic" computers [ http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/classiccmp/ [ http://highgate.comm.sfu.ca/~rcini/pdp11/ <---------------------------- reply separator

27 years, 2 months

1
0
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More RT-11 questions

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Wow! That is a lot of functionality packed into the PIP command! And here >I thought it was only for copying files :-) RT utilities are deceptively simple and yet powerful. I have a copy of the RT-11 System reference card here in front of me, so if you need anything else, just ask... >Now I'm dying to go home and try these out. Thanks Megan. Any time... Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

1
0
0 0

PC question

by roblwill＠usaor.net

To tell the truth, I can't think of ANY IBM that had a factory reset switch. My L40sx laptop has a place on the mother board for one, but no actual external switch. -- -Jason Willgruber (roblwill(a)usaor.net) ICQ#: 1730318 <http://members.tripod.com/general_1> -----Original Message----- From: Max Eskin <max82(a)surfree.com> To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers <classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu> Date: Monday, April 26, 1999 5:07 PM Subject: Re: PC question >On Mon, 26 Apr 1999, Fred Cisin (XenoSoft) wrote: >>NO!!!!! >>Any responsible computer manufacturer of the time included a reset switch. >>But we are talking about IBM. >>THERE WAS NO RESET SWITCH ON A REAL UNMODIFIED IBM AT. > >Well, the C-64 had no reset switch...or are we talking only about business >systems? My DECMate III has no reset switch. > >--Max Eskin (max82(a)surfree.com) > http://scivault.hypermart.net: Ignorance is Impotence - Knowledge is Power > >

27 years, 2 months

5
5
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More RT-11 questions

by mbg＠world.std.com

>MY first guess (assuming the physical format is identical, which isn't >absolutely certain) is that there are extra words at the end of each >directory entry. An RT11 directory entry consists of the filename, date, >status and number of blocks that it corresponds to (note that the >starting block is _not_ stored - you have to count the blocks used by all >previous entries to figure that out). But it's possible at format-time to >specify that each entry contains a number of extra words for the user to >make use of. The PERQ interchange disk, while nominally an RT11 format, >has 1 extra word in each directory entry that stores the number of bits >used in the last block of the file, for example. >Maybe early versions of RT11 choke if given disks which contain extra >words in the directory entries... But V2C definitely has the support for extra directory entry words. The number of extra words for an entry is part of the directory header (at the beginning of each directory segment). >Most likely the result of someone PIPing to TT rather than TT: Yep... Remember, TT and TT: are different... the first is a file called TT, the second is a device called TT... The device block used for file operations is 4 words long, with the first word being the device name (in rad50), the next two words being the 6 character file name (in rad50), and the last word is the file typ (extension, in rad50). If you type TT, the CSI (the Command String Interpreter) will build the following dblk (as it is called): .rad50 /DK/ .rad50 /TT / .rad50 / / whereas if you type TT:, the CSI creates the following dblk: .rad50 /TT / .rad50 / / .rad50 / / Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

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Getting RT-11 source to disk

by mbg＠world.std.com

>The EDIT.SAV executable you have is probably a rather vanilla version >of TECO. Just to verify, try this (I use the convention that $ is >ESCAPE or ALTMODE): As far as I know, EDIT was never a vanilla version of TECO... EDIT was EDIT, TECO was TECO. EDIT did, however, look sort of like TECO in that it had single-character and double-character commands with arguments, ending with <ESCAPE>. But where, in TECO, you would do 'LT', in EDIT you do 'AL'. They are NOT the same program. >Later versions of RT-11 have an EDIT.SAV that is *not* TECO. (For >a long time, TECO.SAV didn't come with the distribution media - at >least as an immediately obvious file - but as of 5.7 it's back.)

27 years, 2 months

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Other RT-11 boots

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Ok, and putting what I believe are 2 and 2 together, >In a previous message I listed the contents of a two disk set that claims >to be RT-11V2C. On those disks were files of the form: > xxMNTFB.sys >So to create a bootable volume, you find the one for your device, then >copy it using PIP onto freshly formatted media as MONITR.SYS and then >write the boot block using /U. Am I close? "By George, I think he's got it..." I seem to remember that you don't even have to rename the file to MONITR.SYS, but that's typically what we did. Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

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Getting RT-11 source to disk

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Ok, it looks like the only way I have of getting source code from the >'net on to the disks is to use EDIT and the "stuff text down the serial >line" hack in hyperterm. Assuming that I set hyperterm to send text >slowly. What are the minimum commands in EDIT to: > > 1) Open a new file. > 2) Go into Insert Mode > 3) Exit insert mode and save the file. There is another way... .R PIP *file.typ=TT: <- at this point you stuff the characters down the line... when done, type ^Z <CTRL-Z> Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

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RQDX3 break out board?

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Ok, does anyone have an extra RQDX3 breakout board? This is the board >that connects to the controller and then it has connectors for an RX50 >and MFM hard drive(s). The one which goes into the BA123? Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

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Leaky nicad battery

by clintw＠colorado.cirrus.com

> > > > > Cleaning the board didn't solve the problem that this PC has. On power on, it > > says (something like) 2A Keyboard failure. I can boot the machine and get into > > the setup menu by pressing Alt-Esc. However, the cursor keys and space bar do > > not work. At the DOS prompt, typing letter keys causes them to print twice > > (ddiirr, and so on). This is using a known good keyboard to test with. > > > > Does anyone have an idea as to what the problem might be? If it's in some > > custom-programmed keyboard controller or other custom chip, obviously the > A "standard" PC keyboard outputs two messages for each key. One for the key-down, and a second for the key-up. The key-up code is the same as the key-down code with 0xF0 in front of it. This could be the cause of the double letters. clint

27 years, 2 months

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More RT-11 questions

by CLASSICCMP＠trailing-edge.com

>Maybe early versions of RT11 choke if given disks which contain extra >words in the directory entries... No, *shouldn't* happen. This is said about PIP in the first version of RT-11: "The /Z switch clears and initializes the directory... the form of the command is: /Z:n where n is an octal number specifying the number of extra words per directory entry." All the RT-11 utilities have always gone to great pains to be compliant with directory entries that have extra words. On the other hand, some third party software hasn't been so kind, and my experience with HT-11 has been that there are some intentional and some unintentional incompatibilities. -- Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa(a)trailing-edge.com Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/ 7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917 Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927

27 years, 2 months

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Getting RT-11 source to disk

by CLASSICCMP＠trailing-edge.com

>Ok, it looks like the only way I have of getting source code from the 'net >on to the disks is to use EDIT and the "stuff text down the serial line" >hack in hyperterm. Well, that's not the only way. There are a number of ways to get a PDP-11 directly on the net, and there's a wide variety of network- connectible machines that can read and write 8" floppies. > 1) Open a new file. > 2) Go into Insert Mode > 3) Exit insert mode and save the file. Seeing as how you'll be "stuffing text down the serial line", the easier way is probably to use PIP to make the source file. For example: .R PIP *MYSORC.MAC=TT: (at this point you stuff the text down the serial line, probably with a delay between characters and lines) <Control-Z> *<Control-C> You now have the text you want in MYSORC.MAC. The EDIT.SAV executable you have is probably a rather vanilla version of TECO. Just to verify, try this (I use the convention that $ is ESCAPE or ALTMODE): .R EDIT *EWTEST.MAC$$ (this opens TEST.MAC for output) *I This is some text.$$ *V$$ This is some text.* EX$$ .R PIP *TT:=TEST.MAC This is some text. *^C Later versions of RT-11 have an EDIT.SAV that is *not* TECO. (For a long time, TECO.SAV didn't come with the distribution media - at least as an immediately obvious file - but as of 5.7 it's back.) -- Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa(a)trailing-edge.com Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/ 7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917 Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927

27 years, 2 months

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More RT-11 questions

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Using a DEC RX01/02? if not RT-11 format will NOT owrk on the H11 disk. >You must use the heath H11 formatter (or I think the switch must be in >RX01 mode). In either case the H11 disk system is very different from >the DEC save for RX01 media compatability. Good point... >Alsi did you "init" the disks? the didks need to be init'd to establish >the RT-11 directory. The command in .INIT DXn: As we've been mentioning, V2C was too early in RTs life to have either CCL or DCL, so there is no init command (which would run DUP, but there is no DUP). Running PIP and issuing 'ddn:/Z[/N:n]' is the correct way to lay down an RT file structure on a volume which has been formatted. Aha... found the problem with the boot command I gave earlier... it should have been .R PIP *DX1:A=DX1:MONITR.SYS/U *This* writes the bootstrap... /O actually does a boot. Just for completeness, the options for V2C PIP (and I would suspect V2B as well) are: /A Ascii file transfer /B Formatted binary /C Only include files with current date /D delete specified file /E list directory, include empty space /F list directory, short form (filenames only) /G Ignore input errors during file transfer /I Image mode (default) /K For bad block scan, list absolute block numbers /L list directory /M:n File position for magtape or cassette tape /N:n Number of segments (used with /Z) /O Bootstrap the specified device /R Rename file (new=old) /S Compress (squeeze) device - not the same as a file compress, which encodes the file, this simply moves the files to the beginning of a volume, and all the empty space toward the end (remember, RT-11 file structure uses contiguous files) /T Extend number of blocks allocated for a file /U Write bootstrap to volume /V Print version number of PIP /W Include absolute starting block number for directory listings /X copy files individually without combining... /Y Must be used to perform operations on .SYS and .BAD files /Z[:n] Zero directory (with 'n' extra words per directory entry) Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

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Inquiry

by Philip.Belben＠pgen.com

Hi Stephanie! > I have a lot of the kid's computers, (Atari, Commodore, CoCo, etc), which > I am trying to keep alive. Does anyone know if I can substitute high > quality music tapes in place of computer tapes? Or where I can still > find computer cassette tapes for sale? My recollections are that the tape decks used for home computers were all fairly cheap. Even the Commodore ones, which you had to buy specially at vast cost, were quite cheap decks inside. (For commercial software production a friend and I used the deck from my hi-fi, but that's another story). The important thing is that very few of these decks could handle chromium dioxide or metal tapes properly. Ferric oxide tapes will give you the best results. Other than that, use any half-way decent brand. The really top brands will give the best results, but like many other contributors to this list, I never had any problems with cheap tapes (I couldn't afford decent ones when I was using home computers regularly). I have since tried the compact-cassette-sized "digital tapes" that were popular for backups and things a few years ago, but ordinary audio tapes work better. After all, the home computer market had to get quite big before "computer tapes" became readily available in small-town electronics shops and places. As far as I can tell, the only distinguishing feature of these tapes was the short length. Philip. PS Do I also have to say "Welcome to the list"? This is your first post isn't it?

27 years, 2 months

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Tandy Color Computer available in UK

by mark_k＠iname.com

Hi, I have a working Tandy Color Computer (PAL version, as sold in the UK) to dispose of. From memory it comes with a user manual and little else. The previous owner seems to have added a DIN plug to the rear. Perhaps this provides composite video & audio output which the unmodified machine does not (RF output only). I'd like to swap it for an old PC base unit (386SX or better) which has at least three ISA slots. These are virtually worthless nowadays, right? Regards, -- Mark

27 years, 2 months

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Leaky nicad battery

by mark_k＠iname.com

Hi, A few days ago I posted about an old PC board which had a leaky battery. I followed Allison's advice and neutralised the stuff with lemon juice. The fizzing/bubbling that happened when I did this suggests that cleaning with alcohol alone (say) is not really adequate. Anyway, after cleaning it up I checked all affected PCB traces with a multimeter. It turns out that none of them were corroded all the way through, so repairs weren't necessary. Cleaning the board didn't solve the problem that this PC has. On power on, it says (something like) 2A Keyboard failure. I can boot the machine and get into the setup menu by pressing Alt-Esc. However, the cursor keys and space bar do not work. At the DOS prompt, typing letter keys causes them to print twice (ddiirr, and so on). This is using a known good keyboard to test with. Does anyone have an idea as to what the problem might be? If it's in some custom-programmed keyboard controller or other custom chip, obviously the prospect of repair is slim. But the majority of chips on the PCB look fairly standard (PC is made in 1989 or 1990). -- Mark

27 years, 2 months

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Chicago warehouse sale

by ware＠interaccess.com

Michael Soloma of Sol's Computer Works (from whom I have acquired quite a bit of classic gear) will be having a warehouse sale tomorrow (Saturday, May 1) here in Chicago. More information and a general list of items for sale or free (including data books, IBM XT/AT/PS2 systems, 286-486 clones, terminals, Apple IIs, Macs, drives, and boards) is available from his web site at http://www.chicweb.com/scw/ and http://www.chicweb.com/scw/4sale-details.htm The warehouse is located at 2650 W. Belden in Chicago, and his e-mail address is msoloma(a)megsinet.net. -- Scott Ware ware(a)interaccess.com

27 years, 2 months

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HT-11 bit bi bit

by cmcmanis＠mcmanis.com

Ok, so another clue discovered: 1) Typing DX1:/Z "zeros" the directory on a floppy. 2) Trying this on drive 1 leaves the floppy scrambled, doing it on drive 0 seems to work. Trying DX0:A=DX1:MONITR.SYS/O does not write the boot block A disk formatted and zeroed is not mbootable. Since the source to FORMAT was included I thought I'd take a peek. It tells the controller that is embedded in the drive "format that disk." and it does. There is a slim changce I've got a "spare" 8" drive that I can use to check the alignment on my drive 1. Are all 8" drives the same on their connector? (actually there are the NEC drives in the Chrislin box that aren't being used at the moment. What the heck is used for "delete" on RT-11? backspace doesn't work nor does DEL apparently. If anyone remembers how to actually assemble something I'd appreciate it. WHen I run assembl it gives a '*' prompt, to which I can type DX0:SAMPLE.MAC and it will assemble it except that it doesn't recognize any of the macro definitions because it apparently hasn't included "SYSTEM.MLM" or whatever it is. --Chuck

27 years, 2 months

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GRiD disks

by mark_k＠iname.com

Hi, Ages ago I picked up some disks that would have come with GRiD computers. The labels are as follows: ---- MS-DOS Version 3.21 11/87 103856-00 Copyright ? 1987 GRID Systems Corporation Mountain View, California 94043 ---- GRiDMaster (MS-DOS Format) Version 3.1.7 10/86 103816-00 Copyright ? 1986 GRiD Systems Corporation Mountain View, California 94043 ---- InteGRiD GRiDCase Family Version 3.2 11/86 103814-00 Copyright ? 1986 GRiD Systems Corporation Mountain View, California 94043 ---- INTEGRiD MS-DOS Format Version 3.3.0 11/87 103857-00 Copyright ? 1987 GRiD Systems Corporation Fremont, California 94538 ---- Does anyone need copies of these? And what exactly are InteGRiD and GRiDMaster? -- Mark

27 years, 2 months

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More RT-11 questions

by mbg＠world.std.com

>Ok, so when I boot the disk labelled RT-11V02C on my H-11 it seems to >work except if I try to use PIP to copy a file to a disk I formatted with >HT-11 it doesn't work (gives me DIR-RD-ERR). It's possible that HT11 had some slight variation in the directory structure which causes real RT-11 to throw up its hands in disgust. >I realize DEC was "famous" for not providing formatting software but is >there a FORMAT program for this version? Interestingly PIP on the HT-11 >DISK can read the disks just not the "official" RT11 Not so much that there is no software for it, some devices had no capability to format... You cannot format an 8" floppy on an RX01. Even on the RX02, all you can do (with true DEC hardware) is change a single-density RX01 to a double-density RX02 or vice versa. If the disk has no formatting to begin with, RX02s can't help it. The only machine, strangely enough, which could truly format RX01s was the PDT-11/150... It writes the low-level format whenever it writes a block... I had a RX01 attached to one of my file cabinets at work, using a magnet ring from an RK05... but I regularly used it on the PDT just to show people it could be done... BTW - a side effect of this is that only those sectors actually written by the PDT-11/150 will have single-density formatting... if the disk is otherwise a double-density disk, the unwritten sectors remain double-density... strange, eh? >Contents of Disk 1: Contents of Disk 2: >MONITR.SYS 46 5-JAN-78 RKMNSJ.SYS 46 5-JAN-78 typically, MONITR.SYS was RT-11 SJ monitor for RK05 what the bootable monitor was called. >DXMNFB.SYS 58 5-JAN-78 RKMNFB.SYS 58 5-JAN-78 RT-11 FB monitor for RX01 RT-11 FB monitor for RK05 >DP .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 RFMNSJ.SYS 46 5-JAN-78 SJ/FB RP02/03 disk handler RT-11 SJ monitor for RF11 (fixed head disk) >RK .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 RFMNFB.SYS 58 5-JAN-78 SJ/FB RK05 disk handler RT-11 FB Monitor for RF11 >RF .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 DPMNSJ.SYS 46 5-JAN-78 SJ/FB RF11 disk handler RT-11 SJ monitor for RP02/03 >TT .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 DPMNFB.SYS 58 5-JAN-78 SJ/FB TT handler RT-11 FB monitor for RP02/03 >LP .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 DT .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 SJ/FB Parallel Line printer SJ/FB Dectape (TU56) handler handler >BA .SYS 7 5-JAN-78 DX .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 SJ/FB Batch handler SJ/FB RX01 disk handler >SYSMAC.SML 18 5-JAN-78 CR .SYS 3 5-JAN-78 System Macro Library SJ/FB Card reader handler >SYSMAC.8K 25 5-JAN-78 MT .SYS 6 5-JAN-78 System Macro Library SJ/FB Magtape handler >BATCH .SAV 25 5-JAN-78 MM .SYS 6 5-JAN-78 Batch processor SJ/FB Magtape handler >EDIT .SAV 19 5-JAN-78 PR .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 Text editor, uses commands SJ/FB Paper tape reader handler kind of like TECO, but different >MACRO .SAV 31 5-JAN-78 PP .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 Assembler SJ/FB paper tape punch handler >ASEMBL.SAV 21 5-JAN-78 CT .SYS 5 5-JAN-78 Assembler (?) I never used SJ/FB TU60 cassette handler this one... >EXPAND.SAV 12 5-JAN-78 DS .SYS 2 5-JAN-78 I've forgotten... SJ/FB RJS04 disk handler >CREF .SAV 5 5-JAN-78 FILEX .SAV 11 5-JAN-78 Cross-referencer File Exchange utility (knows about RSTS file structure as well as interchange floppies and TOPS-10 volumes. >LINK .SAV 25 5-JAN-78 SRCCOM.SAV 11 5-JAN-78 Linker Source file comparison utility >PIP .SAV 14 5-JAN-78 DUMP .SAV 5 5-JAN-78 Peripheral Interchange Program DUMP utility >PATCH .SAV 5 5-JAN-78 PATCHO.SAV 33 5-JAN-78 Utility for patching image Utility for patching object files files >ODT .OBJ 9 5-JAN-78 VTMAC .MAC 7 5-JAN-78 'Octal Debugging Technique' VT11 macro definition file I always had a problem with the name. I always thought it should have been 'Octal Debugging Tool'. >VTHDLR.OBJ 8 5-JAN-78 SYSF4 .OBJ 33 5-JAN-78 VT11 display handler object I don't know... library >DEMOFG.MAC 5 5-JAN-78 KB .MAC 33 5-JAN-78 Demo foreground program, SJ/FB keyboard handler, allowed communicates with... input from keyboard (the way TT handled device output) >DEMOBG.MAC 4 5-JAN-78 Demo background program >LIBR .SAV 15 5-JAN-78 Librarian utility, used to build object libraries >TT 1 5-JAN-78 This is not a standard RT file... >LOAD .SAV 7 5-JAN-78 This is not a standard RT file, it may be part of what is executed at boot time...? Thanks for the walk down memory lane... Megan Gentry Former RT-11 Developer +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+ | Megan Gentry, EMT/B, PP-ASEL | Internet (work): gentry!zk3.dec.com | | Unix Support Engineering Group | (home): mbg!world.std.com | | Compaq Computer Corporation | addresses need '@' in place of '!' | | 110 Spitbrook Rd. ZK03-2/T43 | URL: http://world.std.com/~mbg/ | | Nashua, NH 03062 | "pdp-11 programmer - some assembler | | (603) 884 1055 | required." - mbg | +--------------------------------+-------------------------------------+

27 years, 2 months

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Leaky nicad battery

by edick＠idcomm.com

did you try out this PC with a KNOWN working keyboard? I've had a few experiences with keyboards which would work with some systems and not others. I've got one, for example, which works fine, except . . . it is not recognized on power-up. I don't know why this is, but since it's the only problem I've encountered with it, it's on the server, which doesn't go through power cycles that often. Dick -----Original Message----- From: Mark <mark_k(a)iname.com> To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers <classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu> Date: Friday, April 30, 1999 11:35 AM Subject: Re: Leaky nicad battery >Hi, > >A few days ago I posted about an old PC board which had a leaky battery. I >followed Allison's advice and neutralised the stuff with lemon juice. The >fizzing/bubbling that happened when I did this suggests that cleaning with >alcohol alone (say) is not really adequate. > >Anyway, after cleaning it up I checked all affected PCB traces with a >multimeter. It turns out that none of them were corroded all the way through, >so repairs weren't necessary. > >Cleaning the board didn't solve the problem that this PC has. On power on, it >says (something like) 2A Keyboard failure. I can boot the machine and get into >the setup menu by pressing Alt-Esc. However, the cursor keys and space bar do >not work. At the DOS prompt, typing letter keys causes them to print twice >(ddiirr, and so on). This is using a known good keyboard to test with. > >Does anyone have an idea as to what the problem might be? If it's in some >custom-programmed keyboard controller or other custom chip, obviously the >prospect of repair is slim. But the majority of chips on the PCB look fairly >standard (PC is made in 1989 or 1990). > > >-- Mark >

27 years, 2 months

1
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HP 9845 and space schuttle program

by steverob＠hotoffice.com

> >I actually used the 9845B (Model T) for Space Shuttle flight support > >(STS-2 through STS-24). I worked at Rockwell International Space Systems > >Division in Downey, California (now owned by Boeing). I started out in > >1979 doing bean-counting work. I wrote BASIC programs that create bar > >charts, plots, and tabulated data for the Flight Systems Design and > >Performance department. My manager, Bill Schleich, was the one who > >developed the shuttle's roll maneuver shortly after lift-off. <CLIP> Fascinating! Thanks Joe. Steve Robertson - <steverob(a)hotoffice.com>

27 years, 2 months

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Seeking: EDUSystem software...

by jimw＠agora.rdrop.com

Ok, someone has this stuff filed in the closet somewhere... B^} I'd (and some others around) like to find copies of one or more the various versions of the EDUSystem (timeshared BASIC) series of software for the PDP-8. (does anyone besides me see a VCF III demo coming on?) B^} The one source (pun intended) that I've located on the 'net for EDUSystem-25 is partially corrupted (in the math/init section), and so is of marginal use... Does someone have archives of this stuff hiding on some disk/tape/paper/etc. somewhere? Thanks! -jim --- jimw(a)computergarage.org The Computer Garage - http://www.computergarage.org Computer Garage Fax - (503) 646-0174 >>> Coming soon to www.computergarage.org - the CBBS/NW on-line archives >>> Coming to VCF III (2-3 October 1999) - CBBS/NW live!

27 years, 2 months

1
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A collection of odd questions about a i386 machine...

by arfonrg＠texas.net

I have finally gotten my GRiD 1530 laptop going!!! WHOO HOO!!! But, I have several questions... The processor problem... It's a i386... I'd like to get one of those 386 to 486 upgrade processors but, they seem to not be available. Can anyone tell me what I have to do to rig a 486 in there? The Hard drive oddity... Part I The laptop came with a Conner 3104 (100Mb) hard drive... I put this drive into my pentium desk top and used the segate software to verify the disk, then I formatted & did a scandisk, and loaded DOS. When it went to write COMMAND.COM and a few final files, it gave me a bunch of write errors... I took the same drive and put it in my old 486 desk top (with a NON-EIDE) controller and everything loaded fine!!!! Why did this happen??? Part II I have a 420Mb Conner drive that mates to the laptop's interface card. I loaded DOS and what not on it and then used the GRiD setup program to set the bios to the correct parameters and it still gives me a disc boot error! Why won't this drive work? ---------------------------------------- Tired of Micro$oft??? Move up to a REAL OS... ######__ __ ____ __ __ _ __ # #####/ / / / / __ | / / / / | |/ /## ####/ / / / / / / / / / / / | /### ###/ /__ / / / / / / / /_/ / / |#### ##/____/ /_/ /_/ /_/ /_____/ /_/|_|#### # ###### ("LINUX" for those of you without fixed-width fonts) ---------------------------------------- Be a Slacker! http://www.slackware.com Slackware Mailing List: http://www.digitalslackers.net/linux/list.html

27 years, 2 months

1
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SYM-1

by edick＠idcomm.com

Synertek, by the way, was the earliest of several companies to produce really high-speed 650x family members. Their 4 MHz parts, which I routinely used at nearly 5 MHz in order to support async serial comm's, were the cat's pajamas back in 1980-81. Dick -----Original Message----- From: Sellam Ismail <dastar(a)ncal.verio.com> To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers <classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu> Date: Thursday, April 29, 1999 3:20 PM Subject: SYM-1 >On Thu, 29 Apr 1999, Dwight Elvey wrote: > >> I can't understand why anyone would expect too high >> a price for these, though. Although not common, many >> were just tossed out. > >Such is the incomprehensible ebay market for vintage computer items these >days. It indeed makes no sense. > >Anyway, Ray Holt, the same guy that designed the F14 CADC, also designed >the SYM-1. Synertek was his company before it was bought out by >Honeywell. He'll probably be at VCF 3.0 if you'd like to speak with him. > >Sellam Alternate e-mail: dastar(a)siconic.com >--------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- >Don't rub the lamp if you don't want the genie to come out. > > Coming this October 2-3: Vintage Computer Festival 3.0! > See http://www.vintage.org/vcf for details! > [Last web site update: 04/03/99] >

27 years, 2 months

4
4
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pip help

by CLASSICCMP＠trailing-edge.com

>Hi Tim, > >At 10:58 PM 4/29/99 -0400, you wrote: >>.R PIP >>*DY1:FILE.OUT=DY0:FILE.IN >> >>wildcarding works, too. > >would wildcarding be *.* ? or some other characters? and is it >DX1:*.*=DX0:*.* > >My pip just responds ?OUT FIL? >and DX1:=DX0:*.* responds with : ?ILL DEV? Stretching my brain here, but I think you want: DX1:*.*=DX0:*.*/X/Y The "/X" means to copy the files individually, without concatenation The "/Y" means to copy the *.SYS files (without this, you'd get some ?NO SYS ACTION? messages). >>You also have to put a bootblock on the resulting disk to make it >>bootable, but I don't know how to do this (off the top of my head) >>in HT-11 (or RT-11 V2B). > >I'm guessing that the version of FORMAT does this because if I FORMAT a >disk and then DCOPY the HT-11B Distribution to it, it boots. DCOPY almost certainly does a block-by-block copy ("image mode"), not a file-by-file copy. So you'd naturally get the boot block. -- Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa(a)trailing-edge.com Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/ 7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917 Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927

27 years, 2 months

1
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Can you identify these cards?

by CLASSICCMP＠trailing-edge.COM

> I went scrounging today and found some interesting cards. A picture of >the first one is at "http://www.intellistar.net/~rigdonj/card1.jpg" and a >picture of the second is at "http://www.intellistar.net/~rigdonj/card2.jpg". > The first one is interesting because it has a list on the right side that >appears to be a list of memory locations and op codes. It's hard to see in >the photo but the first column is labeled CNT. (count?). Most of the ICs >are dated 1972. The only other markings on the card is "TERADYNE A 794" and >"Made in USA". Looks like a ROM built out of a diode array. I'd make a WAG that it's a bootstrap for some computer, but I don't know what. Judging by the content list, I'd say it's a 18-bit computer of some sort, but I don't recognize the board form factor or the opcodes. > The second one is a core memory board that I *think* may be for a Data >General computer. I picked up several of these and they're all made by >Dataram Corporation and appear to date from 1972. Their part number is >3010290. I took the cover off of one. Man, the cores in these are tiny! They don't plug directly into a Nova's bus, at least. It's very likely that these core cards plugged into a dedicated array backplane - note the lack of bus interface circuitry near the edge connector, but obvious core drivers. The array backplane would've contained other card(s) forming the bus interface to the actual computer that used these core planes. If you can give us the X by Y count of the cores, and tell us if the cores are obviously divided into sections (12? 16? 18?), maybe we can make more WAG's about where it plugs into :-). -- Tim Shoppa Email: shoppa(a)trailing-edge.com Trailing Edge Technology WWW: http://www.trailing-edge.com/ 7328 Bradley Blvd Voice: 301-767-5917 Bethesda, MD, USA 20817 Fax: 301-767-5927

27 years, 2 months

2
1
0 0

FREE: RS232 card for Data Printer

by jott＠mastif.ee.nd.edu

Hello - This is free for the shipping. RS232 I/O adapter p/n 42086G4 for a Data Printer Corp. band printer. This is a complete kit and has never been used. john -- *********************************************************************** * John Ott * Email: jott(a)saturn.ee.nd.edu * * Dept. Electrical Engineering * * * 275 Fitzpatrick Hall * * * University of Notre Dame * Phone: (219) 631-7752 * * Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA * * ***********************************************************************

27 years, 2 months

1
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