13 Aug
1998
13 Aug
'98
9:16 a.m.
Full S-100 chassis are actually pretty easy to find. I have an IMSAI,
and am planning on purchasing a Cromemco Z2-D, a Processor Tech SOL is
on the way, as is a NorthStar Horizon (an Advantage! too).
Tony
-----Original Message-----
From: Sam Ismail [mailto:dastar@ncal.verio.com]
Sent: Thursday, August 13, 1998 4:39 PM
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
Subject: Re: Altair prices
On Thu, 13 Aug 1998, D. Peschel wrote:
aspect of
computer
> I can't put my finger on exactly why,
but I find myself extremely
> depressed by this. Does anyone know (personally) the
fellow who put in
> the high bid? Will the Altair be something
of inherent
value to him,
or is it
simply an investment?
It IS depressing, isn't it? I've been thinking about this collecting for a while. Someone on
alt.folklore.computers
said that he had
verified the authenticity of an Apple I system
(complete
with original cover
letter receipt signed by Steve Jobs, etc.) just
before it
was shipped across
the country to a new buyer.
I'm just too practical, I guess. I believe in collecting
things to use
them/
have fun with them, and the rarity of the Apple I
is at
odds with this goal.
I too have to wonder at the motives of the buyer
of this Altair.
If you're interested in actually playing with one, the
schematics for the
Apple 1 are readily available with a little searching. You can just
re-create your own. In fact, I'd imagine you could make a pretty
lucrative business making and selling Apple 1 reproductions
(as well as
other early classics).
S-100 parts are readily available as well, and again there
are schematics
out there if you put a little work into searching them out.
If you want
to actually play with your own S-100 box, building the chassis, power
supply and backplane is relatively easy. You would then need
to search
out just the CPU, I/O and RAM boards, which would be
considerably easier
than finding a complete S-100 system at this point (it would seem,
although S-100 boxes can still be found if you're not simply
lusting after
an Altair or IMSAI).
People make re-creations of old cars all the time, so the parallels of
that hobby to this one should extend into that realm as well.
Sam Alternate e-mail:
dastar(a)siconic.com
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