23 Aug
1999
23 Aug
'99
8:08 a.m.
On Mon, 23 Aug 1999, Tony Duell wrote:
I suspect the reason why fakes of old computers
don't exist is that in almost
all cases it would cost more to make the fake than the machine is worth.
If custom silicon is involved, then there's no way of making a perfect
copy without a lot of cash/resources (yes, you could put the same
functionality into an FPGA or something, and the machine would work the
same way, but it would look totally different inside). Even when all the
parts are standard and available, it's not financially sensible to fake
an old machine.
Well, an Apple-1 could be faked for a reasonably moderate amount of effort
for a rather large return ($5K+). I know there are some parts no logner
available, like (was it the) shift register? But still, enough searching
in electronics surplus shops would eventually turn those parts up. A
couple or three or four replicas could be produced and someone could end
up with between $20K and $40K.
The exception may be for things like the Apple 1,
which is fairly simple,
almost all standard (and easy-to-get) parts (the major problem being the
MOS shift registers in the video system), and which attracts a very high
price. I am suprised that nobody has started making reproductions (or
even fakes) of that machine.
I really should read the entire message before I add my comment :)
Consider that a Mark-8 is probably very simple to re-produce (save for the
8008 chip) but could sell for upwards of $1K each on the current ebay
market frenzy. The original PCB layouts are still available too. Same
goes for a Scelbi.
Sellam Alternate e-mail: dastar(a)siconic.com
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