7 Apr
2001
7 Apr
'01
10:51 a.m.
On Sat, 7 Apr 2001, Joe wrote:
FWIW I do consider the 9000 520 an odd machine.
Perhaps unusual
would be a better term. I've been collecting HP computers for a good
number of years and I've never seen one before. I found (and bought)
one a couple of weeks ago. Before that the only person that I know of
that actually had one was Frank McConnell. My research indicates that
there were a lot 520s used by the US navy and some of it's
subcontractors but few elsewhere. Even my contacts at HP tell me that
the 520 was problematic and was very late getting into production and
was a commercail failure. Despite the large number of them used by the
US Navy, very few managed to get into the surplus market. I couldn't
find a single surplus dealer that had one or that even knew what they
were.
I fell in nerd love with Frank McConnell's 9000/520 the very first time I
saw it (he brought it to VCF 1.0 to exhibit, working and all). I always
wanted one, and thanks to Jim Willing who brought one down from the hills
for me last year, I now have one :) It is truly a unique beast (and I
mean "beast" for real...the thing looks like a big hulking PC on
steroids).
Have you fired yours up yet Joe? I haven't had time to play with mine yet
:(
Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival
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International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org