VCF Gazette Volume 2 Number 2

VCF Gazette Volume 2, Issue 2 A Newsletter for the Vintage Computer Festival February 27, 2004 After an unduly long interval, here's the latest news from the Vintage Computer Festival... Vintage Computer Festival 6.0 Wrap-Up VCF 6.0 Exhibit Awards VCF 6.0 Retro-Code Video Game Programming Challenge Wrap-Up Vintage Computer Festival East 2.0 Vintage Computer Festival Europa 5.0 Vintage Computer Marketplace Hits Milestone VCF Organization Party VCF Producer Sellam Ismail on TechTV's Screen Savers March 17 Just a quick note to point out the beginning of our VCF organization parties, with the first being held on Saturday, March 6. Read on for more information. Also, please check out our new donation page on the VCF website. The VCF is running low on funds to produce future events so any help you might be able to give right now in the form of a cash contribution would be greatly appreciated and rewarded with goodies. For more information, see: http://www.vintage.org/donate.php Vintage Computer Festival 6.0 Wrap-Up ------------------------------------- VCF 6.0 was a phenomenal success! Thanks to the help of the Computer History Museum (the sponsors of the event for a second year in a row) we were able to achieve our goal of 500 attendees...and then some! Actual attendance was almost 550, beating our peak attendance record of about 450 at VCF 4.0 in 2000. VCF 6.0 featured more speakers than at any previous event, with 19 speakers in 12 conferences across 2 tracks over 2 days. We had 28 exhibitors displaying nearly 70 computers, from micros to minis to mainframes, plus rare prototypes, early PDAs, video game systems, and more. VCF 6.0 also featured the Retro-Code Video Game Programming Challenge. Three teams had three hours to write a video game from scratch. The teams worked on three computers pre-arranged by the VCF: an Apple //e, an Atari 800, and a Commodore 64. Each team turned in fantastic efforts. More on this below. Throughout the VCF weekend, the Computer History Museum held tours of its Visible Storage exhibits which allowed VCF visitors to experience a "walk through computer history". The highlight of VCF 6.0 was the Xerox Alto panel featuring Xerox Palo Alto Research Center alumni John Ellenby, Dave Robson, Peter Deutsch, and Charles Simonyi. The panel was moderated by Bruce Damer of the DigiBarn. Each panelist took their turn recounting their personal histories at PARC during the 1970s when the Alto was being developed. After the session, everyone in attendance was invited to join the panelists in wishing the Alto a happy 30th anniversary. A yummy cake bearing a photo of the Alto was served up. We've put together a photo gallery of VCF 6.0 here: http://www.vintage.org/gallery.php?grouptag=VCF60 And Bruce Damer has a fantastic VCF 6.0 overview on the DigiBarn website, including audio and video of the Alto panel and festivities: http://www.digibarn.com/history/03-10-VCF6/index.html Overall, VCF 6.0 was probably the best VCF event of all time. We'll be back again later this year to try to top it. I hope to see you there! Of course, the VCF could not have been the success it was without the terrific help of the Computer History Museum and their tremendous bunch of volunteers that turned out to help in the shadows. I thank each of the following people who volunteered their time either conducting tours of the Visible Storage area for VCF attendees or handling various VCF tasks: Remi Arnaud Dave Babcock Lee Courtney Bob Fraley Bill Goldberg Eli Goldberg John Green Tom Halfhill Peter Hamm Peter Jennings Tracy King Gail Lampert David Laws Frank Lemmon Jim Manley Julie Neff Randy Neff Dan Orsen Ray Peck Rafael Skodlar Randy Sloan Wolfgang Schaechter Tony Sumpter Fred Ware Texx Woodworth Warren Yogi Thanks also to Liza Loop and friends for helping with the setup on Friday, and everyone else who helped out that day (I just can't remember you all but thanks all the same). Special thanks to Alex Bochannek for once again doing a splendid job organizing the VCF Exhibits and heading up the judging team, and equal thanks to Lee Felsenstein and Dag Spicer for continuing their tradition as the stalwart VCF Exhibition judges. Also thanks to Stan Sieler for filling in as an alternate judge. Super special thanks to Roger Sinasohn for providing all the yummy treats and beverages, and especially for helping me out in a pinch on so many occasions. On that note, business owners might want to check out the services Roger provides at TechSynthesis: http://www.techsynthesis.com/ Extra special thanks to Bruce Damer and Galen Brandt for organizing the Xerox Alto panel and birthday bash. Of course, thanks to all the Speakers, Exhibitors and Vendors who helped to make the VCF what it is. I would like to extend a warm thanks in particular to Pam Cleveland and Jennifer Cheng, who coordinate CHM events, and Mike Walton, who handles all the technical concerns, plus all the CHM staff. They were fantastic! And finally, a heartfelt thanks to John Toole and Dag Spicer, truly friends of the Vintage Computer Festival. VCF 6.0 Exhibit Awards ---------------------- We can proclaim with much confidence that this year's exhibit at the Vintage Computer Festival was the best ever. Dozens of vintage computer enthusiasts from all over converged in the Hahn Auditorium of the Computer History Museum to put on some amazing displays. The bar has certainly been raised for future exhibits. Exhibits are graded by our panel of judges, which comprises head judge Alex Bochannek, Computer History Museum Curator of Exhibits Dag Spicer, and legendary computer industry maven Lee Felsenstein. The judges then tabulate their results and assign 1st, 2nd and 3rd place ribbons in each of five general award classes, and additional Special Award ribbons in each of 11 special categories. Finally, the People's Choice Award is a special ribbon given to the exhibit that garners the most votes from VCF attendees. Class Awards First, Second and Third Place ribbons are awarded in each of five classes that represent major areas of effort in computer collecting and preservation. Judging is based on a set of criteria including: appearance, condition, originality, authenticity, completeness, and functionality. Additional judging takes into account the breadth of the exhibit by assessing the inclusion of documentation and software. Herewith, we are proud to present the winners of this year's Vintage Computer Festival Exhibition: Class A: Homebrew, Kit or Educational Computer - Any Vintage 1st Place: Bryan Blackburn - Mark-8 2nd Place: Erik Klein - Altair 8800 3rd Place: Larry Pezzolo - Altair 680 Class B: Manufactured Personal Computer - Pre-1981 1st Place: Bryan Blackburn - the digital group 2nd Place: Erik Klein - Commodore PET 3rd Place: Erik Klein - TRS-80 Model 1 Class C: Manufactured Personal Computer - Post-1981 1st Place: Cameron Kaiser - Tomy Tutor/Tomy Pyuuta 2nd Place: Wayne Smith - IBM System/23 3rd Place: Jordan Ruderman - Apple Lisa Class D: Mini-computer or Larger System - Any Vintage 1st Place: Stephen Jones - AT&T 3B2/500 2nd Place: Jim Battle - Wang 2200 3rd Place: Pavl Zachary - DEC PDP 11/70 Class E: Open 1st Place: Vince Briel - "Replica I" Apple-1 Replica 2nd Place: Tim Lindner - Modern Intellivision 3rd Place: Jordan Ruderman - Apple eMate 300 Special Awards Special Awards are given to exhibits based on various practical and esthetic criteria. These accolades are meant to award exhibits that advance the state of computer collecting and preservation. Herewith, we are proud to present the Special Award recipients: Best Presentation: Research Larry Anderson - Commodore 8-bit Breadboxes Best Presentation: Completeness Cameron Kaiser - Tomy Tutor/Tomy Pyuuta Best Presentation: Display Bryan Blackburn - Mark-8 Best Presentation: Creative Integration with Contemporary Technology Bill Borsari - Amiga 4000 Best Preservation: Original Condition Cameron Kaiser - Tomy Tutor/Tomy Pyuuta Best Preservation: Restoration Bryan Blackburn - Mark-8 Best Preservation: Recreation Vince Briel - "Replica I" Apple-1 Replica Best Preservation: Simulation Jim Battle - Wang 2200 Emulator Best Preservation: Obscurity Chuck McManis - DEC PDP-5 Best of Show The Best of Show award determines, based on all previous judging and awards, which exhibit deserves to be singled out for special recognition. The VCF 6.0 Best of Show award went to Bryan Blackburn for his Mark-8 exhibit. Congratulations, Bryan! People's Choice Award Finally, the People's Choice Award taps into the pulse of the VCF crowd. Attendees are encouraged to submit a ballot naming their favorite exhibit of the show. The exhibit that attracted the most votes this year was Pavl Zachary's DEC PDP 11/70. Pavl (pronounced "Paul" but just spelled with a 'v' because what the hell) spent hours putting together an exhibit worthy of the most high brow trade shows. Pavl created a DEC backdrop that stood at least 7 feet tall and spanned 20 feet. Each letter of the "digital" logo was hand crafted and meticulously placed, creating a display that was right out of the heyday of the DEC we once knew and loved. Pavl's effort will surely be difficult to rival at future VCF events. I would like to congratulate ALL VCF exhibitors this year for helping to make it the best VCF exhibition yet! To see pictures of the VCF exhibitors and their machines, check out the VCF 6.0 photo gallery: http://www.vintage.org/gallery.php?grouptag=VCF60 VCF 6.0 Retro-Code Video Game Programming Challenge --------------------------------------------------- The Retro-Code Video Game Programming Challenge is a fairly new feature of the VCF. We attempted it at VCF 5.0 with mixed results, but we managed to pull it off this year and had a lot of fun! The goal of the Challenge is to program a video game from scratch on a vintage computer within 3 hours. The computer platforms, provided by the VCF, were an Apple //e, an Atari 800, and a Commodore 64. Three teams chosen from volunteers were assembled and the coding began! (In the end we couldn't get an Atari team so we ended up with two separate Apple teams). Team Apple A, comprised of Hans Franke and Eric Smith working in tandem, designed a nice maze-based role playing game. In the beginning of the game, a player rolled virtual dice (portrayed on the screen using the Apple's low resolution graphics capabilities) to determine their game character's attributes. A maze was then randomly generated and it was the player's goal to traverse the maze, gathering treasure and riches along the way while meeting all manner of evil and strange creatures that would have to be defended against. Team Commodore, comprised of Larry Anderson, developed a fantastic effort that put the player at the helm of a shopping cart in a thrift store where vintage computers were flying off the shelves and the player was required to collect as many of these computers in their shopping cart as possible. If too many computers fell to the ground and were destroyed, the player was banished from the thrift store! Larry's game employed the Commodore 64's built-in graphics sprites to render the shopping cart and vintage computers. Team Apple B was comprised of Lawrence Wilkinson who developed a nice implementation of the strategy game Hex. Larry utilized the Apple //e's high resolution graphics screen to render the Hex playing field (in 3D no less!) and used the joystick for player piece movement. He even gave the computer a simple intelligence to allow for human vs. computer play. When the three hour programming period was up, the teams were required to put their keyboards down and the judging commenced. Each team was required to demo their game to the assembled crowd, after which a hand vote was taken from the amassed spectators and a winner was chosen. Larry Anderson took 1st Place, followed by Hans Franke and Eric Smith, with Lawrence Wilkinson bringing up the rear. It was a really fun event and we're planning to expand it for VCF 7.0. Got an idea for a game? Can you write it, from scratch, in only three hours? Then come to VCF 7.0 and show your stuff! More information to come so stay tuned. Vintage Computer Festival East 2.0 ---------------------------------- VCF East 2.0 is still in the planning stages, and much progress is being made. We had hoped to hold the event sometime in April of this year, but due to several unforeseen circumstances we've decided to move the event back to sometime in June or July. We're almost ready to announce exact dates and a location (near Boston, Massachusetts), but first we need to dot some t's and cross some i's so stay tuned for further updates. So far, confirmed speakers are: o Bob Supnik, creator of the wonderful Computer History Simulation Project featuring SIMH, a universal computer simulation engine with support for dozens of vintage computer models from the DEC PDP-1 to the PDP-15 and more o Jon Titus, creator of the legendary Mark-8, one of the earliest microcomputer kits, featured in the July 1974 issue of Radio Electronics Have you got any suggestions or recommendations for speakers? By all means, please do contact us and let us know. We are planning to have a full line-up of speakers at VCF East 2.0. This would also be a good time to visit the VCF East 2.0 web page and sign up as an exhibitor: http://www.vintage.org/2004/east/exhibit.php And we've still got plenty of room for vendors: http://www.vintage.org/2004/east/vendor.php VCF East 2.0 updates will be forthcoming throughout the following weeks so be on the lookout for further announcements. Vintage Computer Festival Europa 5.0 ------------------------------------ Hans Franke is proud to bring you version 5.0 of the Vintage Computer Festival Europa. Hans has been working hard to make this year's event the best yet. The theme for VCF Europa 5.0 is User Interfaces. Exhibits and talks will focus on the human computer interface from keypunch machines to the mouse. For more information, please visit the VCF Europa website: http://www.vcfe.org/ Vintage Computer Marketplace: Phase Two --------------------------------------- The Vintage Computer Marketplace registered its 500th user sometime in December, which was a significant milestone. Since then, new users have continued to register and the current registered user count is nearing 700. We're hard at work to roll out the next release of the Marketplace software, which will add more features and options. We'll also begin to roll out our premium features which will allow you to more efficiently and effectively find those odd old computer bits you've been seeking for a while, and help you sell or trade items in your own collection. With these new features in place, we'll also be rolling out the next phase of our marketing campaign. The beta test phase is effectively over and has demonstrated that the software can handle the load of thousands of listings, so we'll be embarking on a program over the course of the next couple months to get more and more people to use the VCM to buy, sell and trade their vintage computing items instead of other services. We'll be putting into place several different types of incentives to make it the preferred marketplace on the web for vintage computers. It has been and will remain more profitable to use the VCM to sell than with other services, and for buyers we've got much better deals with much more friendly tools and a support staff that actually addresses complaints, suggestions and issues. A separate Vintage Computer Marketplace update will be coming out soon to notify you of the initiation of the new phase. In the meantime, check out the site if you haven't visited in a while and see the great items that are currently listed: http://marketplace.vintage.org VCF Organization Party ---------------------- The VCF will begin holding volunteer weekend organizations parties to accelerate the organization and cataloguing of the Vintage Computer Festival Archives. We'll be working towards getting the VCF Archives ready for the long promised Open House. We've got shelving to assemble, documents to sort, artifacts to box, books to catalog, machines to schlep, etc. The goal is to have the Archives ready to host an after-school computer and electronics lab for the local community before school lets out into summer recess. At that time, we also plan to begin hosting monthly computer collector meetings for vintage computer collectors in the Silicon Valley to gather and share experiences and information and trade computers (we'll have more on this in the next Gazette). Volunteers will be rewarded with free passes to the VCF, VCF T-shirts, and other goodies. Your contribution to this effort will be much appreciated and will help to finally make the VCF Archives fully organized and therefore more accessible to the vintage computer community. The first volunteer party will be March 6. We'll be starting at 10:00am and going until at least 5:00pm, at which point the party begins. We'll have music, food, and fun baby! If you're interested in being part of the shindig, please RSVP by Friday, March 5, via e-mail to Sellam Ismail at <sellam(a)vintage.org>rg>. The VCF headquarters is located in Livermore, California, so obviously only those local to the Silicon Valley area will be able to participate, but we won't stop anyone from flying in to lend a helping hand :) VCF Producer Sellam Ismail on TechTV's Screen Savers March 17 ------------------------------------------------------------- The VCF's Sellam Ismail will be appearing on TechTV's "The Screen Savers" program on March 17th. Sellam will be bringing along old computer media for show and tell. This will be Sellam's third appearance on The Screen Savers. Check your local listings for air times. That wraps it up for this issue of the VCF Gazette! Until next time... Best regards, Sellam Ismail Producer Vintage Computer Festival http://www.vintage.org/ The Vintage Computer Festival is a celebration of computers and their history. The VCF Gazette goes out to anyone who subscribed to the VCF mailing list, and is intended to keep those interested in the VCF informed of the latest VCF events and happenings. The VCF Gazette is guaranteed to be published in a somewhat irregular manner, though we will try to maintain a quarterly schedule. If you would like to be removed from the VCF mailing list, and therefore not receive any more issues of the VCF Gazette, visit the following web page: http://www.vintage.org/remove.php ;) -- Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ International Man of Intrigue and Danger http://www.vintage.org [ Old computing resources for business || Buy/Sell/Trade Vintage Computers ] [ and academia at www.VintageTech.com || at http://marketplace.vintage.org ]