16 Mar
2008
16 Mar
'08
8:45 p.m.
Steve Shumaker wrote:
A question for the list at large: I've an
opportunity to acquire a
Decmate - apparently a Decmate I - with terminal, keyboard ("missing a
couple keys") and "drives". Unit "boots, but not sure what else it
does" according to the owner. Photo shows a VT100 w/kybr on top of a
large housing that apparently houses the drives. Owner agreed to $50..
If you
decide this isn't something your into... I've been wanting a
pdp8/decmate for
some time.... just haven't run across one at the right price....
The $50 the owner wants is within my range... so let me know if you
don't get it and
give the owner my e-mail address.
If you do get it... it is PDP8 based. Most ran WPS word processing
software, but there
is an OS/8 version called OS/278 that I believe works on these.
A PDP-8 (specifically PDP-8/I) is what got me 'hooked' on computers in
1982... so
it is something I'd love to have again. (PDP-8's (mostly /e and /f) go
for big $ on
ePay... so until I have lots of disposable cash (heh... doubt that will
be anytime soon)
the decmate becomes the only thing in my price range :-)
Online info seems to indicate it's an early Dec PDP8 based word
processor but little else seems available to a cursory search
(haven't hit bitsavers yet)
Yes, that would be WPS. The first version ran on the VT78, which was a
PDP-8
inside a VT52 housing. Stinking idiot me, years ago I had no idea what
that was...
I had one that was mint. Just no software. My dad got tired of the
space it was
taking up in his garage.... and I got sick of the nagging and let him
dump it... I've
never forgiven myself since.... (and never will).
Worth saving? collectible? I've not delved
into DEC before - is
this a place to start?
Saving... sure... collectible... maybe not as much as things like an
Apple I/etc that have
a more widespread appeal... but there are people like me out there (like
me) that find
them interesting to play with.
s shumaker
-- Curt