28 Feb
2008
28 Feb
'08
10:17 a.m.
On Thu, Feb 28, 2008 at 11:52 AM, John Floren <slawmaster at gmail.com> wrote:
That is a lot of switches, but didn't CDC (and
other companies, I just
thought of CDC first) make 60-bit and other large word-size machines,
which I can only assume also had front panels?
That's one daunting front panel, that's for sure! Of course, CDC
had larger budgets than we usually do. ;-)
Sure, it may be
annoying and impractical to have 128 switches, but it would be fun to
make and play with. I guess if it comes down to it, I could just make
one for the parallel port and figure out some way to interface it to
various simulators...
I'd dreamed of having a "Generic Front Panel", 16-bit address/8-bit
data, hooked up via RS-232 for simulator uses. I admit that your idea
controlling a PC in this way would be really, really cool. Of limited
utility outside of learning, though.
The biggest hurdle, I guess, would be figuring out
how to interface it
to the machine in a good way. The second biggest problem would be
finding where to get that many identical switches and lights without
bankrupting myself.
Buying in bulk is usually the only solution, because I wouldn't really
want to scavenge anything from a classic machine to do something like
this. Crafting a beautiful panel to install them in is the real
challenge, though.
--
"I laugh because I dare not cry. This is a crazy world
and the only way to enjoy it is to treat it as a joke."
-- Hilda "Sharpie" Burroughs,
"The Number of the Beast" by Robert A. Heinlein