17 May
2014
17 May
'14
8:35 a.m.
Well having started in 1971 with a paper tape PDP8/e and just retired after forty years in
the IT industry I think I have seen a lot if not everything. In the beginning there were
few or no old systems to collect.
If you don't like the term museum, then lets call them public collections.?
As with many things the road to hell is paved with good intentions. The idea that you
could retain important items and add to your hoard whilst passing it off as for the public
good must have taken awhile to emerge.
But undeniably these organisations do acquire items and simply store them with no
intention of restoring or displaying them. This one way traffic does nothing to document
modern industrial history.
So I say give to these pathetic squirrels if you must but make sure they confirm in
writing what they intend to do with the item.
Rod
________________________________
From: Jason Scott <jason at textfiles.com>
To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Friday, 16 May 2014, 11:29
Subject: Re: Buying something from a museum (was Re: Whats in a straight 8 PDP-8)
Adorably bitter, Smallwood.
The term "museum" is kind of like the term "company" or
"charity". It has a
lot of organizations that have the term, with different approaches,
different rules, and different experiences dealing with them.
Talking like an ebay seller who once got jagged on shipping doesn't really
capture the spectrum of what's out there. I deal with museums and archives
constantly - some are good and get my attention (and items) and some are
not so good and get neither.
It's a big world, take a walk in it.
On Thu, May 15, 2014 at 9:19 AM, R SMALLWOOD
<rodsmallwood52 at btinternet.com>wrote:
You have to look at the motivations behind those who
run museums.
Firstly only a small fraction of what they have is ever seen.
They are hoarders and misers of the worst kind.
They want the satisfaction of having access to what others do not.
They are often narrow minded and self seeking.
The excuse of saving or preserving for the future doesn't hold water if
its only for themselves.
Don't fall for the old 'we don't sell donated items' routine. I suppose
they don't spend donated money either.
Visitors are only shown what the people behind the scenes want them to see
not what the visitors would like.
Have a look at the problems at Bletchley Park.
The government gave them money and the vultures moved in.
What's required is a system where stored items are re-homed if they can be
moved and brought
back to life insitu by those with the knowledge if not.
________________________________
? From: John Many Jars <john at yoyodyne-propulsion.net>
To: General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts <
cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Thursday, 15 May 2014, 12:39
Subject: Re: Buying something from a museum (was Re: Whats in a straight 8
PDP-8)
Or donate it to said museum...
On 14 May 2014 16:54, Jason Scott <jason at textfiles.com> wrote:
If the part you're missing is only in
museums, and a tiny handful of
museum
at that, it's probably time to pay for
fabricating a new part, or stop
keeping the machine up.
On Wed, May 14, 2014 at 11:22 AM, Philipp Hachtmann <hachti at hachti.de
wrote:
>
>? And just to make it clear, the Computer History Museum has a policy
that
>> NOTHING offered or in our
>> collection is EVER sold.
>>
> That means? Everything that ever arrives at CHM will never leave again?
> I personally do not like "black hole policies". They mean that the CHM
> wouldn't even help out a collector like me with a spare part it would
never
> need again...
>
> Or did I get it wrong? (Would be cool)
>
> Kind regards
>
> Philipp
>
--
Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems:? "The Future Begins Tomorrow"
Visit us at: http://www.yoyodyne-propulsion.net
--------
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