3 Nov
1999
3 Nov
'99
12:33 p.m.
So I'm trying to collect the stuff I won at a recent auction, the most
unexpected deal was the PDP 11/34 for $10 with the DEC Cassette tape
transport. Its dirty and grimy but it seems complete. I could satisfy my
desire for a Unibus -11 for now (and at a cost I appreciate :-)
Anyone have any info on the DEC Cassettes? TU-?? they are standard audio
format cassettes and one of the cassetes that came with it claims to have
PAL, EDIT, and LINK on it. This will be fun to explore.
Then I bid on a rack of "junk" which was topped off by a Kennedy 9610 tape
drive. I bid on it because the tape drive had what appearred to be a 50 pin
cable going to a Q-bus card marked Emulex. In fact it was _two_ 50 pin
cables and the Emulex card is labelled QT1310401-00-REV E. On the firmware
the label reads QT1310201-02 REV K. What is it? A search of the web turned
up zilch. I was hoping it was a SCSI controller but two connectors? (one is
terminated with resistor packs) On board is the obligatory processor and
some switches.
Anyone know how to configure this? (If nothing else it gives me 9-track
capability.
Another "jewel" on the rack was a Dilog Q696-20 dual ESDI controller. I'm
going to try swapping the RQllD for this one and see if I can get NetBSD to
run stably. The MSCP implementation in the RQ has a bug that NetBSD tickles
so it makes it hard to debug things.
Then what clearly _was_ a SCSI controller was a board from Alphatronix.
This thing was connected to a dual cartridge disk unit. It looks from the
front like CD-ROM drives with CDs in carriers but until I choose to risk
power to it I can't get the media out to inspect it. The box is called an
"inspire"?
Anyway, the model number is Q/9142 or Q1.50, _any_ help here would be
greatly appreciated.
Then the other interesting card was a national instruments 179055-01 which
has an Intel 8291? on board (date code of either '84 or '91). Sort of a
weird 40 pin connector that goes to what looks like the old GPIB connectors.
Final question, how do you "de-rack" the 11/34? I can get it to rotate but
I can't get it to let go and come out of the rack. I don't want to
transport it in the rack so...
Its like christmas,
--Chuck
3 Nov
3 Nov
1:16 p.m.
----- Original Message -----
From: Chuck McManis <cmcmanis(a)freegate.com>
To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers
<classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 1999 4:33 PM
Subject: 11/34 & Cool stuff, but what is it? (Q-bus gear)
Then I bid on a rack of "junk" which was
topped off by a Kennedy 9610 tape
drive. I bid on it because the tape drive had what appearred to be a 50
pin
cable going to a Q-bus card marked Emulex. In fact it
was _two_ 50 pin
cables and the Emulex card is labelled QT1310401-00-REV E. On the firmware
the label reads QT1310201-02 REV K. What is it? A search of the web turned
up zilch. I was hoping it was a SCSI controller but two connectors? (one
is
terminated with resistor packs) On board is the
obligatory processor and
some switches.
It's a pertec/TMSCP controller, no SCSI ...
You need both cables.
If nothing else it gives me 9-track capability.
------------ ?
Don't stress your luck, you had a nice day ;-)
Another "jewel" on the rack was a Dilog
Q696-20 dual ESDI controller. I'm
going to try swapping the RQllD for this one and see if I can get NetBSD
to
run stably.
the 696, runs fien with NetBSD ...
Its like christmas,
Better ;-)
cheers,
emanuel
9:29 p.m.
New subject: HP 9144A, other stuff
A HP 9144A tape thing is sitting at one of the salvage places I go by.
There is a tape in it, but thats about all I can tell. Location is southern
Orange county.
I am pleased to report that the MassPar I told the list about has been
shipped off to British Columbia, apparently to use.
IBM 3174 was sitting in another place.
4 Nov
4 Nov
12:18 a.m.
New subject: Retrogaming
Check out
http://www.devnull.net/nethack/
(Lynxfriendly :). These Guys are a new (?) serious bunch
of Classic Users, doing a contest for Nethack belivers.
Gruss
H.
(I once got almost kicked out of a job for playing urogue :)
--
Der Kopf ist auch nur ein Auswuchs wie der kleine Zeh.
H.Achternbusch
5:44 a.m.
New subject: Retrogaming
Check out
http://www.devnull.net/nethack/
(Lynxfriendly :). These Guys are a new (?) serious bunch
of Classic Users, doing a contest for Nethack belivers.
Gruss
H.
(I once got almost kicked out of a job for playing urogue :)
The secret is to get your boss, or even better his boss hooked during
lunch, then eventually they don't care when you play as long as you give
them some hints.
4:20 a.m.
New subject: HP 9144A, other stuff
Mike,
At 12:29 AM 11/4/99 -0800, you wrote:
A HP 9144A tape thing is sitting at one of the salvage
places I go by.
There is a tape in it, but thats about all I can tell. Location is southern
Orange county.
The 9144 is a tape backup. It's HP-IB and can be used EXACTLY like a
HP-IB disk drive. You can even boot from it but it's S-L-O-W and HP doesn't
advise it except in case of emergency. It's capacity depends on which tape
you use in it. The "S" tape has a capacity of 15 Mb and the "L" tape
has a
capacity of about 65 Mb. The 9144s are common but the tapes are sort of
hard to come by. I could use the tape if you can get it without any
trouble. The 9144 uses a 16 track tape. The 9145 is similar but uses a 32
track tape. BTW the 9144 and 9145 both use preformatted tapes. You MUST
use preformatted HP tapes in them. The 9145 can read but not write 9144
tapes, I have neve been able to find 9145 tapes.
Joe
3:09 a.m.
New subject: HP 9144A, other stuff
Mike,
At 12:29 AM 11/4/99 -0800, you wrote:
I don't recall seeing 3rd-party 9145 tapes (32-track), but for the 9144
you want 3M DC600 IOTAMAT-format.
<<<John>>>
A HP 9144A tape thing is sitting at one of the
salvage places I go by.
There is a tape in it, but thats about all I can tell. Location is southern
Orange county.
The 9144 is a tape backup. It's HP-IB and can be used EXACTLY like a
HP-IB disk drive. You can even boot from it but it's S-L-O-W and HP doesn't
advise it except in case of emergency. It's capacity depends on which tape
you use in it. The "S" tape has a capacity of 15 Mb and the "L" tape
has a
capacity of about 65 Mb. The 9144s are common but the tapes are sort of
hard to come by. I could use the tape if you can get it without any
trouble. The 9144 uses a 16 track tape. The 9145 is similar but uses a 32
track tape. BTW the 9144 and 9145 both use preformatted tapes. You MUST
use preformatted HP tapes in them. The 9145 can read but not write 9144
tapes, I have neve been able to find 9145 tapes.
5:59 a.m.
New subject: HP 9144A, other stuff
Mike,
At 12:29 AM 11/4/99 -0800, you wrote:
Any hints on how the tape might come out?
BTW if it makes you feel any worse one of the guys told me while I was
looking at it that they already pitched a box of tapes for it. ;(
A HP 9144A tape thing is sitting at one of the
salvage places I go by.
There is a tape in it, but thats about all I can tell. Location is southern
Orange county.
The 9144 is a tape backup. It's HP-IB and can be used EXACTLY like a
HP-IB disk drive. You can even boot from it but it's S-L-O-W and HP doesn't
advise it except in case of emergency. It's capacity depends on which tape
you use in it. The "S" tape has a capacity of 15 Mb and the "L" tape
has a
capacity of about 65 Mb. The 9144s are common but the tapes are sort of
hard to come by. I could use the tape if you can get it without any
trouble. The 9144 uses a 16 track tape. The 9145 is similar but uses a 32
track tape. BTW the 9144 and 9145 both use preformatted tapes. You MUST
use preformatted HP tapes in them. The 9145 can read but not write 9144
tapes, I have neve been able to find 9145 tapes.
Joe 
6:25 a.m.
New subject: HP 9144A, other stuff
There's an "unload" button on the front...at least there is on mine.
Cheers,
Aaron
On Thu, 4 Nov 1999, Mike Ford wrote:
Any hints on how the tape might come out?
There's an "unload" button on the front...at least there is on mine.
BTW if it makes you feel any worse one of the guys
told me while I was
looking at it that they already pitched a box of tapes for it. ;(
Ugh...
3:39 p.m.
New subject: HP 9144A, other stuff
At 08:59 AM 11/4/99 -0800, you wrote:
Any hints on how the tape might come out?
Yes, plug it in, turn it on, press UNLOAD and wait. Then wait some
more! They take a long time to rewind. You can remove the tape when the
BUSY light goes out. Then press the big button in the middle. Probably
about ten minutes. When you take out the tape, check the drive wheel on it
and see if there is any goo on it. If there is then the drive wheel in the
9145 is shot and you might as well pass on it unless you feel like
experimenting. Most 9144s are ok but about 30% aren't.
BTW if it makes you feel any worse one of the guys told me while I was
looking at it that they already pitched a box of tapes for it. ;(
Wonderfull! You made my day. :-/
Joe
3 Nov
3 Nov
1:27 p.m.
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2:28 p.m.
At 12:27 AM 11/4/99 +0000, Tony wrote:
This is almost certainly a formatted Pertec interface,
not SCSI. That's a
standard for tape drives, and it's also 2 50 pin cables.
Argh, oh well. That leaves the Alphatronix thingy.
That Emulex card sonds Q-bus to me. I hope you're
not planning on putting
it in the 11/34...
No, no, no. It is in the weirdest uVAX III I ever saw. 19" rack mount third
party case with a 40 slot Q/Q bus (first 3 rows are Q/CD and hold the KA650
+ 2x 8MB memory.) Then there is a fold out "shelf" in the front which hides
a TK50 and space for three drives. Then on the front are the standard VAX
drive protect controls and a switch block with the baud rates and other
items labelled.
Then under _that_ was a BA23 with a Vaxstation 3200 badge, another KA650
w/16MB and some other as yet unidentified boards. (all DEC, no SCSI)
[In case it isn't clear, a SCSI Q-bus card is on my Wish list... :-)]
Besides the 11/34 is stuffed to the gills. I couldn't fit another Unibus
card in there even if I wanted too! Once I get it into my house I'll be
able to inventory the cards and back planes (I believe it has at least
three if I really did see two bus jumper pairs in there.)
So this card is almost certainly a GPIB interface of
some kind. No idea
what bus is on the other end.
That's a help. The connector looks like the same short centronics type that
plugged into the back of the HP lab measurement unit (a rack like thing
with a bunch of GPIB plug-ins)
Well, there are several designs of sliders. With the
most common one, you
pull it out all the way and then fiddle with the locking catches on the
sliders to allow it to be pulled out. Make sure you have somebody to help
you -- an 11/34 weighs about 50kg.
This was what I was trying, all the way out to the point where the thing
can rotate, then there is what appears to be a last pair of catches (which
I push) and then it doesn't want to continue out. Weird. Well at least I'll
get another shot tomorrow when I take the van.
Don't put an 11/34 down on its back -- you will
break the handles on the
circuit breaker. Don't ask....
Ouch!
--Chuck
3:15 p.m.
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3:33 p.m.
New subject: Cleaning an 11/34?
Megan, you recently recovered an 11/34. Any suggestions on cleaning one? I
think I'm going to need to get all the gunk out of the 11/34's case which
includes a completely decomposed foam pad, and what appears to be dust from
the last 20 years. This is my plan for it:
1) Pull the boards and grants (noting location)
2) Vacuuming out the case, using a damp cloth on the
front to clear up the front panel.
3) Washing the boards, (except for core mats)
4) Verify the PSU.
5) Install enough boards to get ODT to talk to me
and then work it one set at a time until I can
boot from the TU-60.
--Chuck
5:03 p.m.
New subject: Cleaning an 11/34?
Hi Chuck,
I've got an 11/34A in a H960 tall rack and your plan sounds just fine so far.
You indicate the foam pad is decomposed. Must be the front filter you mean.
It disintegrates into little itty bitty pieces that are sometimes hard to
clear out. I suggest you carefully remove that glop as much as possible
before you remove all the boards so that as little as possible of that
stuff falls into the slots. It can be quite difficult to completely clean
out a slot in which that soft stuff has been entrapped -trust me. Use a
very small good quality brush (one that doesn't shed its bristles) with
rather stiff bristles and vacuum the slots carefully. Inspect with a bright
flashlight or some other bright light which will let you see clearly into
the slots just in case something has dropped in over the recent years.
Pain-in-the-neck intermittents can be brought about with crud in the slots
which somehow gets up onto edge connector fingers. One o' them Murphy's
Laws I think.
Also the cable retaining clamp bar on top of the PSU area at the back of
the box has a foam pad that turned into the most gooey goo on mine. I just
cleaned it off with mineral spirits after doing a preliminary scrape. Bits
of that garbage are _especially_ unwelcome to drop into a slot.
I just vacuumed my boards using a natural bristle brush to dislodge dust.
Note I said natural instead of plastic/nylon bristle. Less static
electricity is generated using the natural bristle on the CMOS type boards
(like the MS-11L). It was during summertime when I did this too -more
humidity in the air to help dissipate static. Looked rather fine after that.
Upon the date 06:33 PM 11/3/99 -0800, Chuck McManis said something like:
Megan, you recently recovered an 11/34. Any suggestions
on cleaning one? I
think I'm going to need to get all the gunk out of the 11/34's case which
includes a completely decomposed foam pad, and what appears to be dust from
the last 20 years. This is my plan for it:
1) Pull the boards and grants (noting location)
2) Vacuuming out the case, using a damp cloth on the
front to clear up the front panel.
3) Washing the boards, (except for core mats)
4) Verify the PSU.
5) Install enough boards to get ODT to talk to me
and then work it one set at a time until I can
boot from the TU-60.
I can't yet get ODT to say much to me on my machine. I've got to resurrect
this project yet again in the next week or so. Probably something simple
and dumb on my part. I've got to carefully smoke out the problem and try to
get it solved.
--Chuck
Nice find for yourself Chuck! Good luck.
Regards, Chris
-- --
Christian Fandt, Electronic/Electrical Historian
Jamestown, NY USA cfandt(a)netsync.net
Member of Antique Wireless Association
URL: http://www.antiquewireless.org/
4 Nov
4 Nov
8:31 a.m.
New subject: Cleaning an 11/34?
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3 Nov
3 Nov
2:09 p.m.
On Wed, 03 Nov 1999, Chuck McManis wrote:
Then the other interesting card was a national
instruments 179055-01 which
has an Intel 8291? on board (date code of either '84 or '91). Sort of a
weird 40 pin connector that goes to what looks like the old GPIB connectors.
...or the current GPIB connectors, for that matter. ;) Is this Unibus or
Qbus? Interested in parting with it?
-Dave McGuire
9:36 p.m.
Anyone have any info on the DEC Cassettes? TU-?? they
are standard audio
IIRC, it is a TU60, and is used with a TA11 interface. Unfortunately
they are not block-addressable like DECtape.
has an Intel 8291? on board (date code of either
'84 or '91). Sort of a
weird 40 pin connector that goes to what looks like the old GPIB connectors.
An Intel 8291 is a GPIB interface.
Final question, how do you "de-rack" the
11/34? I can get it to rotate but
I can't get it to let go and come out of the rack. I don't want to
transport it in the rack so...
I've got a similar problem with a a BA11 that slid out on the rails fine,
and will rotate, but I can't get it to slide back into the rack. The
right rail is catching on something, but I can't find an obvious release.
9099
days inactive
9100
days old
17 comments
12 participants
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af-list＠is1.wfi-inc.com -
ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk -
cfandt＠netsync.net -
cmcmanis＠freegate.com -
cmcmanis＠mcmanis.com -
emu＠ecubics.com -
eric＠brouhaha.com -
Hans.Franke＠mch20.sbs.de -
jruschme＠hiway1.exit109.com -
mcguire＠neurotica.com -
mikeford＠socal.rr.com -
rigdonj＠intellistar.net