Woohoo! Straight-8

Our user group and museum here in NJ -- the Mid-Atlantic Retro Computing Hobbyists (MARCH) -- owns a Straight-8 as of yesterday morning. This one is the desktop version (vs. the rack-mount version). Of course, "desktop" is relative -- it weighs about 250 pounds. It sat in someone's barn for a few decades, so it was VERY dirty ... but we put some effort into cleaning off the top layer. Inside we found mouse nest! But no mouse, whether furry or electronic. One of the two translucent plastic sides is broken. We plan to fix it, or rebuild it, or find a suitable replacement. We also picked up an ASR-33 and a plotter with the PDP-8. Gotta love transistors, core memory, and flip-chips. Best of all, we have the story that goes along with the computer -- see www.resistors.org -- here's an excerpt from the group alumni wiki: memory), and a model 33 ASR Teletype to the group. We went to Maynard, Mass. and picked these up from 'the mill' (the original headquarters building) and brought it back to the barn in someone's VW bus. The computer was mounted on a pallet with 4 handles so it could be carried like a sedan chair <<<< So, that's another good reason to come to VCF East 5.0, Sept. 13-14 .... you'll get to see our desktop Straight-8 with the original accessories (and manuals and paper tapes, etc.) - Evan