27 Mar
2005
27 Mar
'05
10 a.m.
On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 18:50:21 +0100, Jim Leonard <trixter at oldskool.org>
wrote:
Has anyone ever wired up a reset button/switch for
their IBM PCs? I
find myself powering down-then-up my 5150 three times a day when all it
needs is a hard reset to reboot a hung machine. I've searched the web
and usenet archives for such a design or specs but haven't found
anything. If I could soldier a few wires to a pushbutton, I feel like I
would less harsh to the machine...
I have a number of reset devices which I made for a special application
(keyboardless PCs), but they only work like a keyboard reset. It is,
actually, a Z8 which pretends to be a keyboard. The early PCs did not like
to start without a keyboard.
Or, does it not really matter? Is it not a big deal
to power down, then
power up (after 5 second delay) a 5150 or 5160? I know IBM PCs were
built well, but I am unwilling to find out *how* well :)
We had a couple of short power failures some time in the eighties.
One-second dips, any kind of power disturbance was very uncommon here in
Norway, so it was a memorable event. The IBMs and a Commodore PC-20 were
the only PC-type equipment which did not even have a hiccup.
I think they still had properly designed power supplies.
--
-bv