Homebrew projects wanted for exhibit at VCF 3.0 - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

3 Oct 1998

How about building an 'information appliance' toaster, like Microsoft
wants you to? For purely parody purposes, of course. Maybe I'll do
something like that.
Maybe it will have a network card, and I'll demonstrate toaster
operation with CGI scripting. And put up a toastercam. I'm not
kidding, this seems interesting...

...

I don't count 'Insert VGA card tab 'A' into slot 'B'' as being
 'building 
...
 a computer'. When I talk about building a machine I
mean from chips and 
wire and hand-etched (or wire-wrapped) boards. 

> If its a computer or controller (or something, haven't gotten around  to
...
   laying out the
ground rules yet) and you built it from the chip,
 transistor or sand level, its admissable. 
I personally think that you should remember that when homebrewing was a 
lot more common (or was at least a larger part of home computing), a  lot 
...
 of the projects were expansion cards for the Apple ][
etc. And that  there 
...
 certainly should be a category for homebrewed cards in
commerical 
machines. 

> > Does it have to be a complete machine, or will an add-on/interface  for a

...
 > > commercial computer count?
> 
> Probably, but it would have to do something really cool!  Like allow  you
...
 > to choose the speed on your blender from a
radio-button on your  computer 
...
   or something.

You mean a calculator with a colour video display and a robot arm  doesn't 
...
 count? No I didn't homebrew the calculator, but
everything else is 
mine.... Details available from HPCC if you're mad enough to want to 
build one...

Seriously, I wasn't thinking of having the expansion cards in the same 
group as totally homebrewed machines (including the CPU). But as a lot  of 
...
 'classic' homebrewing was interfacing, then it
should be included  somehow.
...

Perhaps have several categories. The ones off the top of my head are :

Homebrew CPU - Anything where the CPU is not a standard commercial 
chip/machine. Homebuilt CPUs from relays, transistors, TTL, FPGAs, etc

Homebrew microcomputer - Using a standard CPU chip (any), make a  computer 
...
 not using standard PCBs. A general purpose machine
which can run user 
programs, I think, though.

Controller - a homebrew embedded control system using just about  anything...
...

Interface - a homebrew expansion card/interface module for a (classic?) 
computer.

Homebrew == built from chips/transistors/relays/valves. Not plugged 
together from standard boards...

-tony

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