22 Jun
2002
22 Jun
'02
3:38 p.m.
It's true, they are likely to be junk, as are Compaq, Dell, and Gateway
products, mostly made here in the U.S. However, I've had one running quite
solidly for about 5 years. I paid $10 for it at a thrift store back then,
when a 133 MHz Pentium was still worth bending over and picking up, but then,
times have changed.
My son and my eldest (sorta) stepdaughter both have PB "Force 999" boxes that
have never given cause to cuss 'em. Those are like the 5-year-old 2nd-hand (I
bought 'em all at the same time for $30). Each one has had 32 MB since I got
'em, and, as I said, they've lasted fairly well, producing homework, etc, for
the whole time without problems.
Dick
----- Original Message -----
From: "Gary Hildebrand" <ghldbrd(a)ccp.com
To: <cctalk(a)classiccmp.org
Sent: Saturday, June 22, 2002 8:18 PM
Subject: Re: [OT] Waddizzit??
It's too bad Detroit can't produce better cars than those Yugos.
<sigh> time
was, when you could actually get a good made-in-USA product.
Richard Erlacher wrote:
> I just picked up a PC at the local thrift
store. It has a board that's a
> half-height ISA card with the designation SCB5 Junior. It's got a
mini-din at
> the backpanel, though it's definitely not the
keyed sort used by a mouse
or
> keyboard. I've got to admit, I'm
puzzled.
> The PC, BTW, was a 150 MHz Packard Bell
"Platinum" with a 5 GB WD drive
and a
> 56x CDROM, along with the "usual" sound
and modem boards and the usual
> built-ins. It had no keyboard or mouse, and therefore cost only $1.99.
I've
> already established that the drives work, and the
machine, which has 48MB
of
> 72-pin DRAM, also seems to run without a hitch.
Unfortunately, the OS
will
> have to be reinstalled, since it was passworded.
> I snagged a similar one last week, with a
1.6GB HDD and an 8x CDROM, but
it
> has a TV card that I'd like to make work if
it's possible. Anybody have
any
experience
with this Packard Bell stuff?
Dick
Only thing I ever did with Packard Bells was fill the dumpster. I'd
keep from spending any money on it, and keep it around for the CD and HD
and other goodies inside. $1.99 is about all I'd pay for the computer;
the ancillary hardware is worth far more in another machine. What PB was
to computers, Yugo was to cars.