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

dell2000

by useddec＠gmail.com

I saw a dell 2000 (if memory is working) this morning, and know nothing about it other than it's big. Any interest?

12 years

1
0
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Travan TR5 data tape recovery HEADERQIC113

by keithvz＠verizon.net

I'm trying to recover some data stored on an HP SureStore T20 SCSI tape drive on a Travan TR5 tape. The tape is a QIC-3220-MC format. The data was written using either HP's Colorado Backup II software or Yosemite Technologies TapeWare 6.20 SP3B, or even Backup Exec. I believe it was TapeWare. It was done on either a Win98 machine or a Windows 2000 machine. When I pull the header information off the tape, I see this http://pastebin.com/xn837e0w HEADERQIC113 volume name of Disaster Recovery 00001, Arcada Software, INC. vendor. I'm attempting the recovery in linux, using ddrescue on the /dev/nst0 device. The first 660MB is readable but of course the files still need extracted from the raw tape dump. Once an error is encountered, the HP's firmware takes the SCSI device basically off-line, and tries multiple passes, resync's the tape, tries again, and basically goes unresponsive. I'd love to go "raw" and just have the drive report a straight-up error, and move past it on the tape, because there could be more readable data stored later. Even if I'm able to extract a large portion of the data, there's still the issue of how to handle this format. I've found the QIC113 spec online, and it doesn't seem impossible, but obviously it might be nice if there were pre-made tools out there to deal with this. Anyone familiar with any tools that can manipulate this file format? Is it possible to disable the "intelligent" error handling of the drive to just read it in a raw manner? Thanks, Keith

12 years

2
3
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DG Nova 3 Bulb Number?

by nf6x＠nf6x.net

Do any of y'all know the bulb number for the fragile little wire-leaded bulbs used in the Data General Nova's switch console? I have at least one burned out, and a couple have snapped off. I measure about 15V across the bulbs on my machine, but I don't know yet whether that's the correct voltage, nor do I know the nominal voltage, current or brightness ratings of the correct bulbs. Picture: https://twitter.com/nf6x/status/477846674543362048/photo/1 -- Mark J. Blair, NF6X <nf6x at nf6x.net> http://www.nf6x.net/

12 years

6
9
0 0

SLT/386 XENIX on boot drive

by brain＠jbrain.com

I am working on bringing up a COMPAQ SLT/386, and the unit has a bad HDD (120MB CONNER). I swapped in a 340MB CONNER from a spare SLT/286 parts machine, and fdisk shows the volume as XENIX. When I try to boot it, it says: NO OS I was going to repartition it and install something else, but I thought I'd consider other options, if any make sense. Don't have XENIX knowledge here... Jim -- Jim Brain brain at jbrain.com www.jbrain.com

12 years

2
3
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FS: Amiga 2000 Cards

by slandon110＠gmail.com

Just upgraded my A2k looking to find homes for the following cards SupraRam 2000 allows up to 8mb of Fast RAM on a Zorro II Card- Has 2MB installed $75 shipped A2091 SCSI Card- Works Fine Latest Revision ROMS, 2MB RAM on the card $75 shipped

12 years

1
0
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Any interest in... Micro Channel cards?

by scaron＠umich.edu

Hi all, I'm doing some housekeeping and I seem to have a pile of IBM MCA-bus cards here, but no longer any MCA-bus computers that might take them. If anyone on-list is interested in them please follow up with me and we can work something out. Here's what I got; it's all for PS/2: 3Com Etherlink/MC 10Base2+AUI (qty 3) 3Com Etherlink/MC 10BaseT+AUI (qty 3) IBM SCSI (FRU 15F6551) (qty 1; sorry, no proprietary internal cable) IBM "RAM EXPANSION CARD" (qty 1; 2 out of 4 SIMM slots filled) I'm pretty sure this stuff is all Linux-compatible. The SCSI card and memory card are 32-bit; the NICs are all 16-bit. They probably all work great but obviously no promises with stuff this old. Best, Sean

12 years

6
8
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any "preferred" disk format for CP/M on 8-inch double-density floppy?

by spacewar＠gmail.com

As far as I know there wasn't any "standard" CP/M 8-inch double-density disk format, with many vendors doing their own, incompatible formats, but was there any reason to prefer any one of those formats over any other? If I hack my own BIOS, I can obviously do it however I want, but it seems like it might be nice to be compatible with something. The Quay boot ROM wants track 0 head 0 to contain eight 1KB sectors, but since I'm hacking my own boot ROM anyhow, I'm not necessarily tied to that.

12 years

5
15
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cctalk Digest, Vol 130, Issue 26

by earl＠baugh.org

> > Hoping to bring some knowledge out of the woodwork here...I have > acquired what is, in any case, quite a relic, but I suspect there is > much more to learn about it: > > http://silent700.blogspot.com/2014/06/leads-always-follow-them.html > > In short, I stumbled upon a Sun-1. It's the rackmount version, the > 1/150, but it has a strange model name on the ID plate which appears > to be "RM-CC" or "RM-0C." It has a very early serial number but I > can't determine if that was its first number or the result of an > upgrade or refurb. It appears to contain a Sun-2 CPU board so, > according to what I've read, should be ID'd as a 1/150U. I've read > nothing about re-assigning a serial, however. > > I was told that Sun-1 serial numbers began at 013, due to there being > 12 employees at the time. Again, I have no idea if this machine's > serial number is original or not. It was sold to the University of > Chicago, who I believe were among the first purchasers of Sun > products. They are said to still have S/N 13 (in theory the "first" > Sun made) in their posession but I have no first-hand knowledge. > > I am supposed to be put in touch with the original curator of this > machine, from which I hope to learn a lot more about its history. For > now, enjoy the pics and please share whatever info you may have... > > - jht > > > Well after the obligatory "you suck" :-), I'd have to say a big CONGRATS on that find! I've been looking for a Sun 1 for over 20 years. According to all of the info I have found (and early experience with Sun 3's when they were "new") it's not uncommon for Sun-2 boards to be in Sun 1's. Sun sold upgrades to their 1's, 2's, 3's which resulted in you finding a previous generation system with newer generation boards (depending on compatibility.. you might just find a CPU board had been upgraded.. maybe I/O cards, etc.). There are MultiBus to VME adapters as well (got some boards mounted that way). It was also common to find some Sun's with upgraded CPUs from the same generation (i.e. a Sun 3/110 board in a Sun 3/140 chassis). So, going from just serial numbers, and/or part numbers, the best I'd say you'd find would be what generation the various components came from. That's where I normally start. Then the job is to see if you have enough parts to reconstruct an "original" of a particular model. For example, I've not found an original Sun 3/110 chassis, but do have a 3/140... which had a 3/110 board in it. A 3/110 was the first Sun I used, and I've been looking for a chassis a long time as well. Parts for the Sun 2 and earlier seem to be few and far between. It took me 8 years to find a front panel for my 2/120. And it wasn't until earlier this year that I got enough spare parts to begin the restoration.... but now I have 2 sets of boards, 2 power supplies, 3 backplanes, etc., where some are known bad. But I expect to end up with some spare parts... I've not decoded all of the part numbers I have to determine where they all originally came from....but if I have Sun 1 spares, we can chat :-) I also have Sun FEH handbook info that goes back to the Sun 1 generation. I can't say I have complete docs on the Sun 1, but given I got these from a long time and fairly early Sun tech, I suspect I have relatively good coverage. In some areas they were obviously updated by "update" docs which throw off page numbers, etc. But they've definitely been useful for me as I work on my older Suns. Earl

12 years

1
0
0 0

HP 2113e I/O

by pdaguytom＠gmail.com

Hello all, Just picked up a HP 1000e series, it came loaded with 640k in memory but not a single I/O card. I've been reading up on what might be a good set up for a terminal and paper tape I/O (to hook an emulator to) but there seems to be a dizzying number of serial and drive boards that I'm a bit lost on it all. Any suggestions as to what might be a good set up to run a terminal and have some way to push programs to it? I've been reading Terry Newton's site and his hp IPL/OS looks very interesting, especially with the USB drive emulator he's put together. Also, any sources for for boards other than eBay? Tom

12 years

4
5
0 0

Solaris binaries, Tadpole machines

by theodric＠gmail.com

> Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2014 08:53:23 -0500 > From: "A. P. Garcia" <a.phillip.garcia at gmail.com (mailto:a.phillip.garcia at gmail.com)> > To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts" > <cctalk at classiccmp.org (mailto:cctalk at classiccmp.org)> > Subject: Re: Solaris binaries, Tadpole machines > Message-ID: > <CAFCBnZub9nKi25hLE6Ns8p-DM2S2GMpJ8eyhXDfLoX7c8OGgJg at mail.gmail.com (mailto:CAFCBnZub9nKi25hLE6Ns8p-DM2S2GMpJ8eyhXDfLoX7c8OGgJg at mail.gmail.com)> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8 > > On Mon, Jun 16, 2014 at 5:26 AM, jwsmobile <jws at jwsss.com (mailto:jws at jwsss.com)> wrote: > > Does anyone know of a stash of Solaris binaries since the sunfreesoftware > > site went pay for? > > > > I can't figure out their licensing, it seems really expensive, unless I > > misread it. A dollar a download is what I read now, which is more than I'd > > hope to pay, but I guess they need to generate revenue. > > > > I am interested in sparc solaris gnu tools, 10 and 11. also have some > > systems that I need 2.6, 2.7, or 2.8 as well. > > > > I have the installs, just want to get the gnu tools updated for these > > releases if anyone has them somewhere. > > thanks > > jim > > > > > see http://www.opencsw.org/ > I think OpenCSW only supports Solaris 8+ now. Older packages from sunfreeware for Solaris 2.5-2.7 (and up) are here...until they inevitably disappear some day: ftp://sunfreeware.saix.net/pub/solaris-freeware/sparc/

12 years

1
0
0 0

UNIX Posters

by silent700＠gmail.com

Has anyone seen the source files for the two posters in this ad? http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/bks/4476206354.html Cool artifacts but I suspent someone just framed some printouts sometime in the early 80s. - jht

12 years

18
46
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Dutch oranisation is butchering computer heritage

by simski＠dds.nl

Hello all, Sad news. the dutch organisation "Fenix Design" is actually butchering the museum collection from former museum "Scryption" https://www.facebook.com/fenixhergebruik they sold off the valuable pieces and are now in the process of taking apart and throwing away the remaining parts. we as hack42 tried to take over the remaining stuff, but they asked way to much. feel free to post a comment on their facebook page. -- Met vriendelijke Groet, Simon Claessen drukknop.nl

12 years

14
21
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Solaris binaries, Tadpole machines

by jws＠jwsss.com

Does anyone know of a stash of Solaris binaries since the sunfreesoftware site went pay for? I can't figure out their licensing, it seems really expensive, unless I misread it. A dollar a download is what I read now, which is more than I'd hope to pay, but I guess they need to generate revenue. I am interested in sparc solaris gnu tools, 10 and 11. also have some systems that I need 2.6, 2.7, or 2.8 as well. I have the installs, just want to get the gnu tools updated for these releases if anyone has them somewhere. thanks jim

12 years

3
2
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DG Nova 3 Bulb Number?

by marvin＠west.net

When I was looking around for the DG3 front panel bulb part number, I found the bulbs are 28V, 0.04A. I have a bunch (60?) GE 2174D bulbs that are identical except they are 12V, 0.04A. They might work with a properly sized series resistor although the color temperature might not match exactly with the lower voltage bulb. Let me know if you these will work for you. I didn't pursue actually finding or buying the actual part number since I was just trying to sell off the front panel with some missing (broken off) bulbs. On 14/06/14 12:21 PM, Mark J. Blair wrote: > Do any of y'all know the bulb number for the fragile little > wire-leaded bulbs used in the Data General Nova's switch console? I > have at least one burned out, and a couple have snapped off. I > measure about 15V across the bulbs on my machine, but I don't know > yet whether that's the correct voltage, nor do I know the nominal > voltage, current or brightness ratings of the correct bulbs.

12 years

1
0
0 0

Alpha Micro AM-919 Backplane Schematic

by brian＠marstella.net

Several years ago, my wife purchased an Alpha Micro AM-919 backplane for me that she thought looked a great deal like it would work with some of my vintage systems. As I've been working with some S-100 boards, I've been eying the AM board and wondering about its usefulness with S-100. I've heard that some AM products will work, some must be modified, and some are not really useful. Does anyone have a set of schematics available, either PDF or hardcopy? I've checked with the Alpha Micro Phun Machine web site, bitsavers, and even contacted Alpha Micro directly (they no longer have information available on that type of system). Thanks! Brian.

12 years

1
0
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TE16

by useddec＠gmail.com

Hi Jason, If you are in the Chicago area, I can have it picked up, or possible pick it up in my van, not that I can really pick up (lift) much these days. I was really looking for a TU 10 in an H960, but why not. I should have some spares for it and maybe an entire field service kit. I even have a loose untested RX02 replacement drive here somewhere. I'm in the Champaign area, but have a brother and nephew in the Joliet area who might be able to grab it soon and store it till I can get it. Thanks, Paul

12 years

1
0
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Available: TE16 Tape Drive

by silent700＠gmail.com

I have in my garage one DEC wide Corporate rack (approx 26" exterior width due to extra cable channel on the side) containing a DEC TE16 9-track tape drive. The rack does not have side panels. This is one rack of a system that was stored in another garage for many years. Condition will be less than optimal. Mice have almost certainly been inside any hole large enough (and that's not large.) Assume the worst and be potentially surprised. In any condition, this drive is not for the faint of heart or poor of space and time. I have not powered it on because I lack the necessary current to do so. Posting this tonight to gauge interest. I will be able to take photos of the rack and drive soon, after other items are moved to allow access. I cannot ship the rack, unless "shipping" means "a truck backs into my driveway and large men muscle the rack out of my garage." I am in the 60070 ZIP. There is no deadline but priority will be given to whoever can make it go away soonest. The price is free, although I could use a working RX02 drive if you happen to have spares.

12 years

1
0
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More from my OSI haul

by terry＠webweavers.co.nz

Yesterday I had fun checking out some OSI boards. http://www.classic-computers.org.nz/blog/2014-06-14-osi-boards-checkout.htm Tez

12 years

1
0
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DRI Text Formatter "TEX" Version 2

by wwarthen＠gmail.com

I am looking for documentation or binaries for DRI's TEX version 2. I have seen some references to version 2, but never seen a copy of the programs or doc. I have the version 1 program and doc, but am interested in processing some TEX source files that use "dot" commands beyond version 1. Thanks, Wayne

12 years

1
0
0 0

CP/M BIOS auto detect disk format?

by spacewar＠gmail.com

I'm told that some vendors shipped CP/M systems that would auto-detect between several disk formats, e.g., 8-inch single density vs double density, but I've never used one. Obviously the BIOS would change the values in the disk parameter block. At what point is it safe for the BIOS to do that? Obviously you wouldn't want to do format detection every time the BIOS SELDSK function is called, but is it reasonable to do it whenever READ or WRITER are called after a SELDSK of a changed drive number? Or is there a way the BIOS can figure out specifically when the BDOS is trying to log in a new disk?

12 years

3
4
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StorageTek 1960 tape drive engineering manuals needed

by colineby＠isallthat.com

Hi all, I have a colleague doing a bit of restoration work and fault finding. He could really use access to engineering manuals for the StorageTek 1960 drive. Does anyone have physical or electronic copies of those? -Colin Eby

12 years

2
1
0 0

DEC VT1XX, VR parts

by useddec＠gmail.com

found a few of the following: 54-14185-01 VT102 logic $50 54-14185-02 VT131 logic $50 70-19584-00 VR201 PS? $50 I should have the 101 and 132 boards here somewhere. Shipping from around 61853. Please contact me off list if you are interested. Thanks, Paul

12 years

1
0
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FS: Amiga A1000 Rejuvenator

by derschjo＠gmail.com

Thought I'd post this here before sending it out to the world/eBay, I know there are a few Amiga acolytes here :). I have a "Rejuvenator," an expansion for the original A1000, and one of very few serious upgrades for the system. You can read more about it here: http://www.bigbookofamigahardware.com/bboah/product.aspx?id=1775 My understanding is that these are pretty rare. It's currently installed (and operational) in a rather beat up looking A1000 system (no KB, Mouse, or monitor). Since installation is quite tricky (there are approximately a million pins that need to connect to various places on the A1000's motherboard, along with a few clips that attach in various places) I'd prefer to include the A1000 with the Rejuvenator, since I don't want to be responsible for detaching it :). No extra charge :). I can post pictures if anyone's interested, please feel free to ask if you have any specific questions. I've really got no idea what these are worth, feel free to make me an offer I can't refuse. Thanks, Josh

12 years

3
2
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Very large Estate sale where there seems to be a lot of vintage tech

by christian_liendo＠yahoo.com

I came across this upcoming Estate sale and while I don't see any vintage computers, this person had lots and lots of electronics and components.? http://www.estatesales.net/estate-sales/CT/Wolcott/06716/635097 http://mechanicalcurios.com/harmon-estate-sale/ I have never seen so many tubes.? If you want to see photos of all this stuff check here: www.mechanicalcurios.com I figured someone here might be interested in this.?

12 years

2
1
0 0

DDV11

by useddec＠gmail.com

Does anyone remember where this was used? It's a hex 9 slot backplane that I think is Q-bus. Paul

12 years

5
5
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DEC LP32 line printer?

by nf6x＠nf6x.net

It's not easy being obsessive. I just can't stand it when my gear has a connector and I don't have the thing that plugs in to that connector. So, does anybody (preferably near southern California) have a DEC LP32 series printer sitting around for my VAX-11/730 to talk to? -- Mark J. Blair, NF6X <nf6x at nf6x.net> http://www.nf6x.net/

12 years

1
0
0 0

DEC Comet extender board- L9101

by useddec＠gmail.com

My workers came across this today and I can't remember which system was the comet. The 750 or 730? Any ideas? Thanks, Paul

12 years

4
5
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cctalk Digest, Vol 130, Issue 20

by FRED＠miser.misernet.net

>Message: 2 >Date: Wed, 11 Jun 2014 09:15:02 -0700 >From: "Rick Bensene" <rickb at bensene.com> [cut] >When he showed the IMSAIs to me, he said "They are yours, take them home >with you". I was stunned, but also extremely happy and thankful. [cut] I really enjoyed reading this story. This is one (of the) reason(s) I really enjoy this list. I could almost feel some of your enthusiasm when you were offered the two IMSAIs. Fred

12 years

1
0
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Amazing Score

by rickb＠bensene.com

The week before last, my wife and I took a trip to the Missoula, Montana area to do some dog-related activities (my wife competes with our German Shepherds in Canine Agility and Sheep Herding). Along with that, I had recently re-connected with my old High School computer science teacher, whom I hadn't seen since 1978 (I graduated in '77), who lives in the Missoula vicinity. When we arrived at my teacher's home, it was like we picked up right where we left off, even though many years had passed. It was so wonderful to see him again. After we'd settled in and visited for a while, he took me down to his basement, and there sitting on a table were two IMSAI 8080 computers! Back in my junior year of high school, I pestered my teacher to purchase a computer kit to be built by the advanced computer class as an educational project. I researched the available 8080-based computer kits (Altair and IMSAI) and was convinced that the IMSAI was a better choice due to its more robust design. My teacher didn't have the money in his budget to buy the kit, so instead, he bought it with his own money - a clear indication of his commitment to education. He was an amazing teacher, and I credit him for stirring up, then cultivating my interest in computers. We received the kit late in the school year, and got started on building it, with the cardinal rule being that anything that was done had to be explained and understood by our teacher. We got through building the power supply, chassis, and front panel, but didn't complete the CPU and memory board (ROM/1K RAM) during my junior year. The machine was finished up early in my senior year, and with a few minor issues (LED installed backwards, a couple of resistors that were swapped, and a few bad solder joints) it worked. It was a great learning experience for the team of five kids, including myself, that built it. The school year after I graduated, a second kit was purchased, and the same process followed to build it, as well as a some additional boards (memory, video) purchased for the original machine to augment it. The two machines sitting on the table were those two machines from the school. My teacher had rescued them and took them home when he left the school district, , and kept them all these years. The machines were obsoleted in short order when the school district purchased a bunch of Apple II's for a more standardized computer curriculum across the district. When he showed the IMSAIs to me, he said "They are yours, take them home with you". I was stunned, but also extremely happy and thankful. The machines were a bit hodge-podged. One was stuffed with boards, and the other was minimalist. The first machine, the one that I was involved with building, had a the original CPU, ROM/RAM, Front Panel, and 3P+S I/O board, along with a Processor Technology (PT) Video Board, PT CUTS cassette interface, a 32K DRAM board, and two 16K RAM boards. The second machine had only the Front Panel, original CPU board, and a 64K DRAM board. The first machine was in nice shape, but three front panel toggles were missing. The second machine had some scuffs on the front panel, but all of the switch toggles were there and in good shape. Along with the computers, there was a big stack of original documentation for them. When I got home with these treasures, I focused on getting the machine that I'd help build running. I first went through the power supply, and found that even after all of these years, the big caps were still good, and it was delivering clean unregulated voltages within specifications. Then the front panel, CPU, and the ROM/RAM board were installed, and it was slowly powered up with a variac. It came up properly, and after a RESET, it was clear that there were some issues. The front panel was "twitchy", operating erratically. Setting an address in the front panel switches and operating EXAMINE would result in some bits being on where the switches were off. The problems were fixed by reseating all of the ICs on the front panel in their sockets...they were all secure, but the sockets were not the best quality, and there was probably a little oxidation here and there that caused some problems. A couple of the switches were also a little flakey, which were traced to "less than optimal" solder joints that were easily cleaned up. After a little tinkering, I could reliably deposit data into the 1K memory, and examine it back accurately. A little memory test program verified that the memory was working well, and that the CPU was working as it should. I then added more memory, first installing the 32K DRAM board and verifying it worked, then adding another 16K board and making sure that it worked. I then put the PT video board in, and could poke data into the display memory from the front panel, and it too worked great. Given that three switch toggles were missing, I tried putting the front panel from the other machine in, but it was quite messed up, so I just stole three of the toggles from that front panel to make the original front panel complete. I have yet to get the CUTS board installed and checked out, as well as getting the 3P+S board reconfigured to use RS-232, as it was configured to use current loop for an ASR-33 teletype that was used on the system originally. Then, I am going to dig into the second system and see if I can get it running, and find some kind of serial I/O board. Needless to say, I'm really happy to have these great old machines. It is really special to me that I'm reunited with the system that I instigated and helped to build so many years ago. Rick Bensene The Old Calculator Museum (along with some old computers, too) http://oldcalculatormuseum.com

12 years

7
6
0 0

The DoT

by nf6x＠nf6x.net

I've had this silly idea stuck in my head for the last day or so, and I figured I might as well share it in case anybody else gets a chuckle out of it. Or even takes it seriously, for that matter. There's been a lot of buzz lately about the Internet of Things (IoT). I don't personally care about connecting my thermostat or clothes dryer to the Internet, but if something that's like X10 remote control but without the sucking comes out of this, then maybe it's worth the effort. That's all fine and good, but what if you want to control and monitor your environment with a classic machine like my VAX-11/730? That VAX doesn't know anything about JSON, XML, XMPP or such similar new-fangled protocols, but it does know how to talk to remote hardware. And thus, I present my silly idea: The DECNET of Things! I envision it looking something like this at the console: $ SET HOST STEREO $ SET VOLUME 15 $ LOGOUT $ SET HOST LAMP07 $ SET DIMMER 07 $ LOGOUT Perhaps the most counter-intuitive aspect of this silly idea is that I came up with it without the benefit of any mind-altering substances. So, when do you suppose I'll be able to buy embeddable DoT modules at SparkFun? :) -- Mark J. Blair, NF6X <nf6x at nf6x.net> http://www.nf6x.net/

12 years

9
17
0 0

Film documenting the origins of the CT scanner

by starbase89＠gmail.com

Hey, I found this on Youtube. Its a film done in the late 70's by EMI (the inventor if the CT scanner) about the early history of the machine. There is some neat on-topic hardware in there, plus the depiction of the pneumoencephalograph machine (think The Exorcist.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_R47LDdlZM --Joe

12 years

2
1
0 0

Least PC-Compatible MS-DOS machines?

by derschjo＠gmail.com

Got my GRiD Compass 1101 working this week (got distracted from my ASR-33 repair, what can I say, I'm easily distracted) -- replaced a couple of bad RAM chips and it's up and running again. It boots to the GRiD version of MS-DOS 2.00 from the internal bubble memory, so I've been playing around with that a bit, digging through my old DOS archives looking for stuff to run on it. I can't find a single non-trivial DOS program that runs successfully on it. This isn't altogether surprising as the Compass was never intended to be a PC compatible machine, the MS-DOS port was an afterthought. Still, it seems considerably less than useful. Which leads me to the question -- what was the least PC-Compatible "MS-DOS" machine out there back before "100% PC Compatible" was a thing? The Compass has a lot going against it, as the only thing making it close to PC compatible is the 8086 CPU -- everything else is completely different (bitmapped display with no character modes, bubble memory for internal storage, GPIB disk interface, a 70-something key keyboard missing a lot of PC standard keys... I'm not sure about more esoteric things like interrupt controllers, etc.) At least the disk controller uses a standard 360K format compatible with the PC, so data interchange was fairly straightforward... What say you? - Josh

12 years

29
105
0 0

Looking for VAX spares

by rodsmallwood52＠btinternet.com

Hi ? ? My two biggest VAXes have both developed problems. The 4000-200 no longer talks to the network ?and the 4000-500 has a PSU problem. I'm looking for the following:? 1. ?KA660 CPU card and Bulkhead for a VAX 4000-200 2 ? An H7874-00 plug in PSU for a VAX 4000-500 I have a reasonable stock of DEC disks and boards so a swap might be on. Rod Smallwood

12 years

3
4
0 0

I really dislike the sound of that!

by p.gebhardt＠ymail.com

Hopefully, the seller of that ebay-auction 251553591196 won't actually do what he's threathing with! It hurts me when reading that! Maybe somebody in the US might be interested in that disk drive from the 70's. The price seems a bit high though. I wonder, if he would really get that amount of money via his alternative solution.... Cheers, Pierre ? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pierre's collection of classic computers moved to: http://www.digitalheritage.de

12 years

2
1
0 0

dec mouse compatibility

by roe＠liveblockauctions.com

I'd like to find a mouse for my DEC vt330 terminal; the spec calls for a VSXXX-AA roller mouse. Does anyone out there know if the VSXXX-GA is compatible? Thanks.

12 years

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DEC Parts

by useddec＠gmail.com

I have some high school students on summer break working for me again. Today they found the following, among other things. Please contact me off list if you are interested. Shipping is from Illinois, 61853, or close. M7800, M7800-YA $50 each, $5 off if no BR or crystal. Not all frequencies are here. 54-13009 VT100 logic board $50 54-13097-01 VT100 AVO $45 54-14260 VT100 PPO $50 H210 H215 M8357 RX8E make offer More to follow soon. Thanks, Paul

12 years

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Datapoint 1800 schematics?

by derschjo＠gmail.com

Snagged a Datapoint 1800 this week, and in my brief examination the power supply's going to need some work -- the -5V and -12V rails are dead. Before I get too far into this, does anyone happen to have any schematics for this thing? There's some decent stuff on Bitsavers (as per usual) but nothing service-manual level. Looks like a neat machine, much like the earlier 2200; an 8-bit CPU built from discrete TTL. I'm missing the external 8" drive unit, unfortunately, (and it has a custom bus interface) so I may never get it to do anything too interesting but I'd love to get the main unit running. Meanwhile, time to clean this thing out from head to toe, it's quite filthy... - Josh

12 years

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oops...please ignore that

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

I just realized that I'd sent that "holes w/o thermals" email to this list instead of the list for which it was actually destined. Sorry for the noise. (I'm actually still not on *this* list, it's filtered out here, so flame away if you feel you must! ;)) -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA

12 years

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holes w/o thermals?

by mcguire＠neurotica.com

Hey folks. I've been noodling on this for a bit and it may be obvious, but I'm completely missing it. Is it possible in PCB to make a plated-through hole, in contact with copper planes on both the top and bottom of a board, without a thermal? Thanks, -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA

12 years

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Large collection of items available

by a50mhzham＠gmail.com

These would be ASCII /Serial TERMINALS rather than computers, in the functional sense, yes? >11 ADDS (Applied Digital Data Systems, Inc.) Regent 25 Computer > > 21 Wyse Wyse Computer Terminal Serial No. 0080000332 689 . [Experts] Expert: An ordinary man away from home giving advice. --Oscar Wilde a50mhzham at gmail.com ? N9QQB (amateur radio) "HEY YOU" (loud shouting) ? Second Tops (Set Dancing) ? FIND ME ON FACEBOOK 43? 7' 17.2" N by 88? 6' 28.9" W ? Elevation 815' ? Grid Square EN53wc LAN/Telecom Analyst ? Open-source Dude ? Musician ? Registered Linux User 385531

12 years

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Uninstall DECet-Plus, replace with DECnet Phase IV?

by scaron＠umich.edu

Hi all, I have two VAX machines here running VMS under the hobbyist program; it's been a whlie since I messed with OpenVMS seriously and in my haste to get going, I foolishly installed DECnet Plus rather than DECnet Phase IV. Now I have a two-node cluster, but the nodes don't seem to be aware of each other outside of "SHOW CLUSTER". I can't perform network operations including PHONE, SET HOST, etc. It just always tells me that "the remote node is not currently reachable". Is there a quick way I can uninstall DECnet Plus and replace with Phase IV without having to take all the time out to reload both of these machines >from scratch? I know there's gotta be at least a few folks on here that are conversant in VMS :) Thanks, Sean

12 years

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MAI Basic Four 510 610 730

by ad＠ardiehl.de

Hi Jim, thanks for the answer, my comments inline: On 06/08/2014 03:45 AM, jim s wrote: > Armin, > I'm looping Al Kossow in on this and will put the data aside > somewhere, since I want to get names and dates of the history of Basic > 4, and have him have it for the CHM records. > > further comments inline below > thanks > jim > On 6/7/2014 3:08 PM, Armin Diehl wrote: >> Hi Jim, >> >> i have not yet picked up the cpu, until now i have the 2 drives, 3 >> terminals, docs and the printer. Plan to get the CPU end of next week. > The disk drives look to be CDC like the 80mb used on the DEc systems. > SMD They are in fact Century Data T80 (80 MB) but the MAI manual states 20MB ? I have scanned the service manual, this as well as the manual from Century Data is available on bitsavers >> In case the power supply is as simple as shown in the microdata >> schematics, that should not be a big deal (in case the problem is >> within the PSU). > let me look at the manual up uploaded. See below on the PSU. >> I have uploaded a few pictures here: >> >> http://www.ardiehl.de/basicfour/mai510/pics/small/ >> > The guys at b4 did their own hardware after buying 1600's thru about > 1976 or into 77. I think this (in fact I know) this is their own doing. I will take more photos when the machine is here, may take 2 weeks because i will be vacation for a few days. > > I interviewed with B4 for a position doing the design of some of the > I/O since I had had 3 years working with the 1600 in school. Microdata > was having a rocky road, and at the time was not treating us well. > > Phil Ramazina? I think was the director of Engineering and was not > too happy with me to turn him down at the time. My heart was in > firmware, and not in the hardware, and they had two firmware gurus at > the time. > > We later hired the main one, Peter something who got pissed off at > them at microdata, and he actually went into the mainframe software > business and made a company that sold out for millions. I need to ask > a buddy who worked with him his name and history and get it written > down somewhere. interesting >> don't know if it is a 20 or 40 Amps PSU, i will see when i have the >> cpu here. The PSU is mounted on the back of the CPU. >> >> Btw, do you know what microcode basic four used ? Do they have there >> own version or some of the ones supplied by microdata ? >> > By this time they may have gone to Pioneer or other switchers. i > doubt it has the MD linear, but you can send a photo. > > You will probably need to load it if you can pull it from the cpu and > bring it up. > > The supply voltages I rattled off, +5, +12, -12, -16.75 may also have > a -5 depending on the Cmos parts used for the memory. If you have > occasion to pull the mos memory board, get the part and check. I > suspect you may have a -5 rail if it is the common parts out then. > > You can use your own judgment on whether you need to be that cautious. At least the schematics of the 200/410 32K memory board shows -5 V (on page 6.73) connected to the memory IC's. They are shown as 2107B, have not yet found a datasheet for these. Both machines are from around 1980 so they should be similar, when not identical. The larger machine has another disk controller containing an additional CPU, will see if the large one arrives. >> The CPU's i have are with CMOS memory as well as CMOS microcode >> proms, i have scanned one service manual containing the CPU schematics: >> > I appreciate that, I will take a look at the scan and see what it > looks like. That would help, thanks. >> http://bitsavers.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/pdf/mai/BFISD8035_System200_41… >> >> >> I assume these are further developments based on the 1600. >> > might be. The processor you sent photos of are certainly a follow on. > > I'll write up and send a description of the history of the firmware. > IT turns out it was an upgraded version of the original firmware I > used in college, the 1621. Appreciate that. Thre is not much information available for these machine, i have started some small description some years ago (http://www.ardiehl.de/basicfour), maybe i can add some information you provide. >> >> On 06/03/2014 01:38 AM, jim stephens wrote: >>> Armin, >>> the power supply info for this system is in the back pages of the >>> Logic manual. Though it claims to be the "logic" it is actually >>> the main manual for the whole system >>> >>> I think the regulator was the same for both the 20 and 40 amp >>> systems, with the actual logic to regulate the power being separate >>> from the board which regulated the voltages. I don't have systems >>> handy to check this. >>> >>> all of my 1600's have internal power supplies which fit into the >>> left end of the backplane and use a shorter backplane. You probably >>> have a system with a power supply which is either about 8" or about >>> 14 or 15" high rack mounted on the back. If it is rack mounted on >>> the back, the smaller of the two is the 20 amp, and the larger is 40 >>> amp. >>> >>> This refers to the rating of the 5v supply. the -16.75, -12, and >>> +12 are all the same rating, only the 5v to supply increased amount >>> of TTL logic was upgraded. If you used the other voltages, you had >>> to supply the extra power from a separate supply, and the Basic 4 >>> systems didn't have any such need. >>> >>> thanks >>> Jim >>> >>> http://bitsavers.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/pdf/microdata/1600/1600_Logic_… >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> On Thu, May 29, 2014 at 6:13 AM, Armin Diehl <ad at ardiehl.de >>> <mailto:ad at ardiehl.de>> wrote: >>> >>> Hi, >>> >>> yesterday i got a complete MAI Basic Four 510, similar to the >>> 610/730 including 2 14" removable disk drives including a lot of >>> disk packs. Due to the size i have yet transported one drive, the >>> printer, terminals, disk packs and the documentation only. I have >>> to pick up the CPU, the 2nd drive and the remaining stuff over the >>> next weeks. >>> Now i'm looking for the service manual since there seems to be a >>> defect in the cpu power supply, the main fuse is blowed: >>> >>> M8001XX System 610/730 Service Manual >>> >>> Anyone out there having these or similar manuals ? >>> >>> These ones would also be very interesting: >>> >>> M80651A System 1350 Service Manual, Vol I >>> M80652A System 1350 Service Manual, Vol II >>> M80781A System 1600 Service Manual, Vol I >>> M80782A System 1600 Service Manual, Vol II >>> >>> The new ones i got (Disk service manual and owners manual for the >>> 610/730) will be scanned and send to Al within the next weeks. >>> >>> Thanks >>> >>> ---------------- >>> Gr?sse >>> Armin Diehl >>> ad at ardiehl.de <mailto:ad at ardiehl.de> >>> >>> >> >>

12 years

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MAI Basic Four 510 610 730

by michael.99.thompson＠gmail.com

> From: Michael Lee <mikelee at tdh.com> > Date: Fri, 06 Jun 2014 14:23:25 -0500 > >> Anyone out there having these or similar manuals ? > > I have no manuals, software or documentation, but I was told the system was operational when shut off. There is very little out there about these machines. > > Would love to hear from anyone who knows about these, let alone perhaps has run one in the past or still has one. The Rhode Island Computer Museum has several MAI Basic Four systems. None have been powered on for a long time. I can check if there is any documentation. http://www.ricomputermuseum.org/Home/equipment/mai-basic-four-model-8000 http://www.ricomputermuseum.org/Home/equipment/mai-basic-four-model-4102 -- Michael Thompson

12 years

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MAI Basic Four 510 610 730

by ad＠ardiehl.de

Hi, yesterday i got a complete MAI Basic Four 510, similar to the 610/730 including 2 14" removable disk drives including a lot of disk packs. Due to the size i have yet transported one drive, the printer, terminals, disk packs and the documentation only. I have to pick up the CPU, the 2nd drive and the remaining stuff over the next weeks. Now i'm looking for the service manual since there seems to be a defect in the cpu power supply, the main fuse is blowed: M8001XX System 610/730 Service Manual Anyone out there having these or similar manuals ? These ones would also be very interesting: M80651A System 1350 Service Manual, Vol I M80652A System 1350 Service Manual, Vol II M80781A System 1600 Service Manual, Vol I M80782A System 1600 Service Manual, Vol II The new ones i got (Disk service manual and owners manual for the 610/730) will be scanned and send to Al within the next weeks. Thanks ---------------- Gr?sse Armin Diehl ad at ardiehl.de

12 years

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WANTED: NS boot disks and spare hard-sectored disks

by dgriffi＠cs.csubak.edu

I have a Northstar Horizon that almost has a buyer and I would like to send him some disks to use with it. Would one of you Northstar users please contact me privately? I would like to get boot media and some spare hard sectored disks. -- David Griffith dgriffi at cs.csubak.edu A: Because it fouls the order in which people normally read text. Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing? A: Top-posting. Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?

12 years

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KA630 emulator: minor milestone!

by mouse＠Rodents-Montreal.ORG

A few of you may recall that I was, some years ago, working on a KA630 emulator and was stuck getting the ROM code to like the console SLU. (I want to eventually get it to the point of running NetBSD/vax and possibly other VAX OSes.) I now have it passing POST! It gets to the point of KA630-A.V1.3 Performing normal system tests. 7..6..5..4..3.. Tests completed. >>> It can't go any further yet, both because I haven't implemented any potentially bootable peripherals and because I haven't implemented console serial input (and thus can't type any commands at the prompt). But, progress is being made! /~\ The ASCII Mouse \ / Ribbon Campaign X Against HTML mouse at rodents-montreal.org / \ Email! 7D C8 61 52 5D E7 2D 39 4E F1 31 3E E8 B3 27 4B

12 years

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Heathkit Analog computer on eBay.

by jws＠jwsss.com

Hopefully someone can save this from some horrible "steampunk" fate. Way too nice for that. Hopefully the price will keep it from such a fate. Thanks Jim Heathkit-EC-1-Analog-Computer-1960-Vintage-Working-/ http://www.ebay.com/itm/181432358892

12 years

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Large collection of items available

by mmaginnis＠gmail.com

Delurking for a brief announcement: I was recently contacted by an individual whose deceased relative was a long-time computer professional, as well as hobbyist. The individual asked me to help disseminate the bulk of the relative?s collection, which numbers in the hundreds of items, including CPUs, software, documentation and associated peripherals. I've been helping the individual catalog and list everything. A small sampling of the items: a Hero Jr. robot Kaypro 2000 an AT&T PC that she describes as a "UNIX computer" stuff from Cromemco, Apple, Wang, Microsoft, DEC (manuals only), Tandy, Texas Instruments, etc. I know this isn't very specific, but there's too much to list here individually. Here's a link to a Microsoft Word document on my Dropbox of everything available. The individual is looking to sell, rather than donate: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/12135838/Available%20Items%203-3-14.docx Please contact me off list and I'll put you in touch with the seller and you can negotiate privately. Thanks.

12 years

5
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MPI 9406 drives (was Re: docs or software for Quay 900 (uses Quay 90F/MPS board))

by spacewar＠gmail.com

I wrote: > The drives are MPI part no. 77618022, apparently a 9406 variant but not > listed in the drive manual on Bitsavers. I suspect the pinout is close to > the SA800/850 pinout (industry standard), but I was surprised to find that > none of the variants in the 9406 manual have a pinout similar to that. > I figured out how to extract the drives. The chassis is not designed to make it easy; you have to remove the key switch and "Quay" faceplate, which extends downward just enough to block sliding the drive out the front. Both drives are the 77618022 variant, with PWA (PCB) P/N 77615454, which is not described in the manual. It has a few less ICs and several more potentiometers than the PWAs in the manual. The drives appear to have been manufactured in late 1979, so it seems odd that they wouldn't be in the mid-1982 9406 manual.

12 years

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speaking of 6800's

by jws＠jwsss.com

This is a nice heathkit which is at 50 bucks now on the usual auction site. Heathkit ET-3400 6800 Trainer Microprocessor Learning System with Course Books http://www.ebay.com/itm/281354271100 I don't plan to bid, have at it. thanks jim

12 years

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