LSSM is chasing this, was Re: General Data? Computer Equipment Auction - GSA

[Dave McGuire]

On 3/18/22 04:19, Joshua Rice wrote:
> These are all valid concerns, especially since some collectors generally 
> have eyes bigger then their belly, wanting more machines than they have 
> the appropriate storage for. I fear i have been just as guilty (though i 
> generally keep anything of value outside of the rat infested shed)

   Yes, that seems common.  I myself have been guilty of that in the 
past.  It's a slippery slope.

> However, there are a great many people who do try and keep their 
> collections indoors and on display. Obviously, this is much easier with 
> machines like the 80's micros than it is with 60's and 70's big iron and 
> minicomputers, which is likely the reason (plus larger production 
> volumes) that so many machines of the 80's and beyond survive and are 
> relatively plentiful.

   Agreed 100%.

> It's also rather unfair to defame private collectors. A lot of them 
> (especially the ones that come out of barns, leaky sheds, garages and 
> basements) were the ones who saved the equipment from the scrappers in 
> the first place. Much of this large system equipment survives (maybe in 
> poor condition) purely because of the private collector. I believe that 
> whilst climate controlled museums are ultimately the best place for 
> functional equipment (where knowledge and skills can easily be pooled), 
> the private collector has an important role in the preservation of 
> equipment as well.

   My comments are borne of frustration.  It is very hard to do what 
we're doing at LSSM, a lot harder than most people realize.  A lot 
harder than I thought it'd be, for that matter.  It's being made even 
harder by a lot of collectors that aren't conscientious about how they 
store things and how there usually aren't any estate disposition plans.

   You suggest that sitting in a leaky rodent-infested barn is better 
than the machine just being sent to a scrapper, and I agree.  But as 
someone who has cleaned up far more of those "barn find" machines than 
just about anyone else here, it does get frustrating after awhile.  Is 
it really so hard to arrange for appropriate storage?

   Surely you understand my position.  I've been doing this at great 
personal expense, financial and otherwise, not for myself, but for the 
technology and for the public...including everyone here.  But a lot of 
things, like this situation, make it pretty hard to maintain that 
motivation.

               -Dave

-- 
Dave McGuire, AK4HZ
New Kensington, PA