Bozeman MT Computer Museum [WAS: Re: cray, paper tape, collector's books, tek terminals, and WANTED]

At 10:19 AM 1/13/99 -0800, you wrote: dastar(a)siconic.com --- I'd have to disagree. Other than the oddity of being located in Montana (not exactly a hub of high-tech industry), I found the Museum well put together, with an interesting collection. It is small, though, and probably isn't worth a detour of more than 200 miles. There were < 10 "big iron" mainframes, < 20 of the usual minis, with a small collection of micros (20-30) - the latter weren't described in much detail. The exhibits are arranged more or less chronologically by technology, starting with mechanical computing devices (Hollerith Census machines, Comptometers), moving on to electro-mechanical machines, then to tubes, transistors, and microchips. Many of the machines are arranged in office environments that replicate what they might have looked like when in use, and there is some interesting supporting material (advertisements from the era, etc). The tour guides are very friendly, and knowledgeable enough to answer questions from the general public. It's a good place to introduce kids to many of the technologies and some of the people involved in the development of computers; most of the people on this list would probably find it less interesting. Much like computer collecting, computer museums are still in their infancy, so let's not judge too harshly. For the record, the place is The American Computer Museum, 234 East Babcock St., Bozeman, MT, 59715, tel (406) 587-7545, fax (406) 587-9620. No Web site or email AFAIK. And I have no affiliation, professional or personal, with the place. Cheers, Mark.