- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

Museum/workshop report
by Evan Koblentz 11 Feb '19

11 Feb '19

I was tour guide in the museum for two or three hours today. There was only two sets of two visitors each, but they were GOOD visitors! First a man and woman in their 20s who wanted a full tour, and then two guys in their 40s/50s who said they work in IT and also wanted a full tour + stuck around for a discussion with Drom about the UNIVAC. Best part: all four of them said they visited IA specifically to see our part. The 20-somethings said they're from Philly and found us by Googling for where to see old computers. Brace and I spent about 30 minutes practicing PDP-8 front panel entry. We each got chase-the-lights working on our own (no tech support calls to Gesswein or anyone else this time) ... first time for that! Felt good to reach that milestone. Next time we'll try to load a program from paper tape, per DG's instructions. Personal comment: if you'd told me a year ago that I would ever feel totally comfortable using the front panel on HP and DEC minicomputers, demoing memory diagnostics on the UNIVAC, and (as of yesterday) starting to feel some kind of comprehension in 6502 assembly ... I might not have believed you. Thank you Mike L, DG, Drom, Adam, etc. for encouraging this former English major that I too could learn such things. Thinking in octal and understanding about opcodes!? What's happening to me??

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Hackfest Tomorrow
by Bob Aviles 11 Feb '19

11 Feb '19

Hi, I got the message but not in time, maybe next time. ThanksBobby On Saturday, February 9, 2019, 9:43:48 PM EST, Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: Andy Before I left I forgot to get from you the USB to ethernet adapter. is there anyway you could possibly get it to me at all tomorrow? Do you live in north jersey? Maybe you could give it to someone who lives near me I'm in Edison . Mike Rosen Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > On Feb 8, 2019, at 10:19 PM, Sentrytv <sentrytv(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > Could use an apple > And c64 > > Sent from: > My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > >> On Feb 8, 2019, at 8:37 PM, andy diller via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: >> >> I'll see everyone there early tomorrow. >> >> I'll have with me: >> >> - Mac w/ Booterizer project to install various flavors of IRIX on any SGIs loitering around without an OS >> - Amiga 2000 to copy some disks >> - Some repairs- A pismo trying to get to boot, busted SGI PSU >> >> Some stuff for sale or trade: working C64, 1702 monitor, Atari 600xl, Atari 800, Apple IIe, Mac SE analog boards, plus any other junk I can gather up and sell for super cheap or trade - i"m looking for some oldish (non-digital) Small 13" sized color TVs. >> >>

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WTB: Looking for several Intel manuals
by systems_glitch 11 Feb '19

11 Feb '19

All, I'm looking for hardcopy of: * Intel MCS-80 System Design Kit User's Guide * Intel MCS-8 Manual (8008) * Intel PROMPT-48 Microcomputer User's Manual I've got PDFs of these, but I like original dead tree format when I can find it. Thanks, Jonathan

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286 troubleshooting BIOS?
by Ethan O'Toole 10 Feb '19

10 Feb '19

For the Amiga, there is a troubleshooting Kickstart replacement that uses the serial port to spit out diagnostic information. RAM tests and other functions. Does anyone know if something like that exists for PC 286 era computers? Still troubleshooting a Yamaha C1 and there are issues and it's kicking my butt. Seems like the CPU might not be reading the keyboard controller properly or something. The amiga chip will do ram tests and other things and just spit it out serial. - Ethan

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Turbo Pascal 1.5 for windows
by Bob Flanders 10 Feb '19

10 Feb '19

Is anyone interested in this. About to be trashed. Bob

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Sunday breakfast Americana Diner 9AM
by Jeffrey Brace 10 Feb '19

10 Feb '19

We, the VCF Repair workshop gatherers will be eating breakfast at 9AM Sunday Morning at The Americana Diner. Let me know if if thou shalt be coming. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Hackfest Tomorrow
by dillera＠gmail.com 10 Feb '19

10 Feb '19

I'll see everyone there early tomorrow. I'll have with me: - Mac w/ Booterizer project to install various flavors of IRIX on any SGIs loitering around without an OS - Amiga 2000 to copy some disks - Some repairs- A pismo trying to get to boot, busted SGI PSU Some stuff for sale or trade: working C64, 1702 monitor, Atari 600xl, Atari 800, Apple IIe, Mac SE analog boards, plus any other junk I can gather up and sell for super cheap or trade - i"m looking for some oldish (non-digital) Small 13" sized color TVs.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Hackfest Tomorrow
by Jeffrey Brace 10 Feb '19

10 Feb '19

I believe he is referring to the VCF Repair Workshop happening this weekend Feb 9 & 10 at Infoage in Wall Township. On Sat, Feb 9, 2019 at 12:04 PM Bob Aviles via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Hi Tony, > I have a Sony 13" TV working, interest in the C64 or Atari 800.Where is > the Hackfest locate at? > Bobby > > On Friday, February 8, 2019, 10:20:10 PM EST, Sentrytv via > vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > Could use an apple > And c64 > > Sent from: > My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > > > On Feb 8, 2019, at 8:37 PM, andy diller via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > I'll see everyone there early tomorrow. > > > > I'll have with me: > > > > - Mac w/ Booterizer project to install various flavors of IRIX on any > SGIs loitering around without an OS > > - Amiga 2000 to copy some disks > > - Some repairs- A pismo trying to get to boot, busted SGI PSU > > > > Some stuff for sale or trade: working C64, 1702 monitor, Atari 600xl, > Atari 800, Apple IIe, Mac SE analog boards, plus any other junk I can > gather up and sell for super cheap or trade - i"m looking for some oldish > (non-digital) Small 13" sized color TVs. > > > > > > > -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Hackfest Tomorrow
by Bob Aviles 09 Feb '19

09 Feb '19

Hi Tony, I have a Sony 13" TV working, interest in the C64 or Atari 800.Where is the Hackfest locate at? Bobby On Friday, February 8, 2019, 10:20:10 PM EST, Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: Could use an apple And c64 Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > On Feb 8, 2019, at 8:37 PM, andy diller via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > I'll see everyone there early tomorrow. > > I'll have with me: > > - Mac w/ Booterizer project to install various flavors of IRIX on any SGIs loitering around without an OS > - Amiga 2000 to copy some disks > - Some repairs- A pismo trying to get to boot, busted SGI PSU > > Some stuff for sale or trade: working C64, 1702 monitor, Atari 600xl, Atari 800, Apple IIe, Mac SE analog boards, plus any other junk I can gather up and sell for super cheap or trade - i"m looking for some oldish (non-digital) Small 13" sized color TVs. > >

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oldest spreadsheet
by Herb Johnson 07 Feb '19

07 Feb '19

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3692283/The-diary-pyramid-b… Long link, but it amounts to the Cairo Museum's July 2016 display of papyrus found in 2013 which are associated with building the Great Pyramid, during the 4th Dynasty of King Khufu. Look hard, and you'll find an image of what's clearly a table of entries inscribed in rectangular blocks. This came to my attention on a recent cable TV history show on the Great Pyramid, where the narrator/archeologist referred to these as a "Excel spreadsheet" of the supplies logistics at the port of entry for pyramid goods and supplies. Hieroglyphics for numeric values are not overly complicated, so with patience one may be able to read off some of the notations. In the cited description, it even says "Revenue was written in red, while what was paid to workers would be written in black." It's not quite a computer spreadsheet. But to see credit/debt paper ledgers from 45 centuries ago is informative, and exciting. And among the first business use of computers was for bookkeeping of this class. so it has some meaning to vintage computing. I don't know if the Babylonians used clay tablets in this fashion. Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net preserve, recover, restore 1970's computing email: hjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT com or try later herbjohnson AT retrotechnology DOT info

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NE-PA - SGI Indy for sale
by Evan Koblentz 07 Feb '19

07 Feb '19

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VintageComputersForSale/permalink/277060219… DO NOT REPLY TO ME OR THE LIST about this. Merely "seen on Facebook".

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More facets of hard disk recovery (SA1000, RD53) and emulation
by Herb Johnson 06 Feb '19

06 Feb '19

David Gesswein: Dealing with stuck head problem with Quantum Q2040 drives http://www.pdp8online.com/q2040/q2040.shtml ---------------- I've heard a suggestion to replace or overlay a gooey rubber-bumper in a drive, with a dab of DAP or similar silicon sealant. Replacing the bumper is ideal, but presumably overlaying the bumper with new material may restore some hardners and firm-up the residue. I'd worry about fumes from the fresh sealant contaminating the platters or heads, perhaps some airflow would reduce that problem. But this is all about recovery so there's already risks, some risks are less than others. Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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Signup Repair Workshop February 2019 VCF
by Jeffrey Brace 06 Feb '19

06 Feb '19

You can still sign-up for the February 9 & 10 workshop here: < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11Iy1jqPJqVzY1gnGRrHfLfIcx5IQ82QkkaB… > Also I added two columns for InfoAge purposes: e-mail address and zip code. InfoAge now requires an after event form with a list of attendees and uses the e-mail addresses and zip codes for grant purposes. - IA thrives on grants and grassroots marketing - Granters want such demographic info from grantees - IA knows it must do better at marketing - Compliance is optional - As far as VCF knows, the info won't be used for any other purposes, but this is out of our control - However what's good for IA is generally good for VCF If you have any questions about this, please let me know. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Possible visits to the area in February
by Ethan Dicks 06 Feb '19

06 Feb '19

Hi, All, I'm still waiting for the GO to book travel, but as of today, it appears I might be on an assignment in Jersey City from 18-21 Feb and 25-28 Feb. This would be an "in on Monday AM, out Thursday PM" sort of cycle so any adventures would have to be on Monday through Wednesday evenings. I do not have word that I'll get a rental covered, so I might be limited to the area around the hotel and/or out-of-pocket Ubers or public transportation. Also, it seems likely to expect our team will have one or more evenings planned together. Checking maps, the "recommended" (read: mandatory per customer instructions) hotel is right by the Newport PATH station, making it easy to catch trains. Given those narrow time constraints, I could be up for going out to dinner at some point across those two weeks. It's probably best to nail down exact evenings after I arrive and find out when the team is going out, but I wanted to mention my likely arrival with enough lead-time to plan. There may be further trips down the line, but we are only scheduling out to the end of March for now. Cheers, -ethan

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Feb Repair Workshop - 2019
by Jeffrey Brace 05 Feb '19

05 Feb '19

It seems that the permissions on the signup spreadsheet weren't set correctly. I kept getting requests to get access. The permissions should be fixed now. Please signup for the February 2019 VCF Repair Workshop which will be February 9 & 10. < https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11Iy1jqPJqVzY1gnGRrHfLfIcx5IQ82QkkaB… > -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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OT: Coloring the Universe: NASA Visualization Lead at InfoAge Mar 9, 2019
by Jeffrey Brace 03 Feb '19

03 Feb '19

As I came into be docent today I saw a flyer for an InfoAge event that I thought others in this group might be interested in. Kimberly Kowal Arcand will be a guest speaker at InfoAge on Mar. 9, 2019. Ms. Arcand is the Visualization Lead for NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge Massachusetts. Cost is $15 per person. Seating limited. For more information and to signup: http://infoage.org/arcand/ -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Museum report (for yesterday)
by Evan Koblentz 03 Feb '19

03 Feb '19

Two groups of visitors yesterday. An older couple who used minicomputers in the 1970s, and then another couple who visited last month but came back with their 20-something son who's a software developer. Bill I. also visited and we talked about plans for the EAI TR-20 analog computer. His goal is to get it running by VCF East.

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Apple III
by Randall Kindig 03 Feb '19

03 Feb '19

If anyone is interested in hearing from David Fradin, who was one of the product managers at Apple for the Apple III and other hardware, I’ve just published Floppy Days episode 89 at: http://floppydays.libsyn.com/floppy-days-89-the-apple-iii-part-3-with-david… <http://floppydays.libsyn.com/floppy-days-89-the-apple-iii-part-3-with-david…> This is the third and last in the series on Floppy Days about the Apple III. Randy Kindig

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one less $JOB (JCL joke)
by Jeffrey Jonas 03 Feb '19

03 Feb '19

My dad's funeral is on Sunday Feb 3, in Boca Raton Florida. I brought ipods to record conversations with him about all the hacks, insights and details of the vintage hardware and systems he used, but the stage 4 lung cancer and chemo stole his voice only a week after I arrived :-( At 90, dad could not tolerate the chemo required to fight the lung cancer. James T Kirk might not believe in the "no win scenario" but I could not cheat like he did with the Kobayashi Maru :-( Carl Claunch summarized it best: He was a great person, someone I was fortunate to have known and worked with. A master of the mainframe who just quietly did his job.

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Minor little East keynote ;)
by Evan Koblentz 02 Feb '19

02 Feb '19

KEN THOMPSON!!! Who shall be interviewed on stage by another dude some of you may know, a Mister Brian Kernighan. Aaaaaaaand, I am working on arranging a couple of other minor little surprises. But they're not yet ready to be announced.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Friday classes @ VCF East
by Evan Koblentz 02 Feb '19

02 Feb '19

"Ask the expert" panel is a great idea! Definitely will do that. Having people bring in their own systems is a no-go. Insurance liability. On Sat, Jan 19, 2019, 4:23 PM Jeffrey Golas via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org wrote: > Rather than a restoration class on a particular model or brand, how about > an “ask the expert” panel with a panel of peeps who specialize in a > particular brand/era of machine? Perhaps even two, one for 8-biters and > another for different era machines or big iron. > > My other idea is along the same line, but almost like a mini workshop with > tables set up with experts on various machines, people can bring in their > machines to ask questions, etc. Not a full blown soldering/repair thing, > but perhaps basic troubleshooting and cosmetic stuff. > > Jeff (aka Bags)

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More facets of hard disk recovery (SA1000, RD53) and emulation
by David Gesswein 02 Feb '19

02 Feb '19

I have made a SA1000 adapter board for my MFM reader emulator. I did a small run which seems to work so if you are interested email me to get in on the next order. Prices may get a little better if I get enough orders. http://www.pdp8online.com/mfm/ http://www.pdp8online.com/mfm/sa1000/sa1000_usage.shtml I have used it for reading Shugart SA1004 and Quantum Q2040 drives. Another has used it to replace drive in a TRS-80 Model II 8 Meg drive unit. Some other items that may be of interest: Dealing with stuck head problem with Quantum Q2040 drives http://www.pdp8online.com/q2040/q2040.shtml Using a DAC to pull the head servo to recover otherwise unreadable data from DEC RD53 drive. Also procedure tried for Q2040 but data had been erased so not successful. http://www.pdp8online.com/mfm/head_servo/

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Broken PET free to good home
by Evan Koblentz 01 Feb '19

01 Feb '19

Says our friend BernieS of 2600 fame: >> Hi Evan, Does VCF or anyone you know want a reportedly unused Commodore CBM 8032? It was dropped and the CRT broke (see photo) and it reportedly sat unused for 38 years. Someone just gave it to my friend Bob who designed those Apple II I/O cards I brought to Festivus and gave to Dimitry and Ian. Let me know if you really want it. I can pick it up next time I visit my mother 200 miles north of Philly, and bring it to VCF East. Or not, if you don't want it. << I declined: we have enough. Anyone who wants it should contact him directly at bernies(a)panix.com.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Broken PET free to good home
by Evan Koblentz 01 Feb '19

01 Feb '19

All I know is what's in the message. Bernie is not on this list. Email him directly. On Thu, Jan 31, 2019, 9:29 PM Brian Marstella via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org wrote: > I'd be interested, depending on location... Brian > > On Thu, Jan 31, 2019 at 9:27 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > Says our friend BernieS of 2600 fame: > > > > >> Hi Evan, Does VCF or anyone you know want a reportedly unused > Commodore > > CBM 8032? It was dropped and the CRT broke (see photo) and it reportedly > > sat unused for 38 years. Someone just gave it to my friend Bob who > > designed those Apple II I/O cards I brought to Festivus and gave to > Dimitry > > and Ian. Let me know if you really want it. I can pick it up next time > I > > visit my mother 200 miles north of Philly, and bring it to VCF East. Or > > not, if you don't want it. << > > > > I declined: we have enough. Anyone who wants it should contact him > directly > > at bernies(a)panix.com. > > >

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AppleSauce
by Evan Koblentz 01 Feb '19

01 Feb '19

John Morris donated the deluxe version of his new-ish "AppleSauce" disk imaging hardware to us (it should arrive in a week or so.) We (Ian, Alex J., etc.) can build it at the next workshop. It requires a Mac with OS version 10.11 or newer. John said that's pretty much any Mac from mid-2009 or newer. So everyone is welcome to bring uncracked Apple II disks to the next workshop, and this thing should be able to make exact working copies. Wish I had that in 7th grade! Got in trouble for trying to copy Newsroom. :) Copy II+ wasn't up to the task.

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Museum report
by Evan Koblentz 30 Jan '19

30 Jan '19

A bunch of 20-somethings are staying at IA this week for volunteer programs. Several of them passed through our museum today, so it was nice to have visitors despite the bad weather. IA management then decided to close at 4pm when it started snowing. -- Evan Koblentz, executive director Vintage Computer Federation www.vcfed.org evan(a)vcfed.org (646) 546-9999 VCF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Hello Introduction
by Bob Flanders 30 Jan '19

30 Jan '19

Hi Bryan. Welcome to VCF. I live in NoVA -- Fairfax, actually. Great to have you. Best Regards, Bob On Tue, Jan 29, 2019 at 1:32 PM W. Bryan Caudle via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > As a new member to the list, I am looking forward to meeting some other > vintage computer enthusiasts and collectors and hopefully contribute to the > conversation in the future. > > My whole work life has in some way involved technology, and my interest in > computers goes back to elementary school with the TRS-80 model I and Apple > II. I grew up with Commodore machines at home, followed by TRS-80's and PC > Clones later on. I worked for Compuadd Corp in the 90's, then a local PC > shop, then started my consulting business in 1994. Most recently my full > time gig has been in infrastructure and architecture for a couple of global > non-profit organizations. When I am not at work or spending time with > family, my time is split between the computer collection and aviation. > > I have been intentionally collecting and restoring vintage hardware since > 2006 with the future aspiration of having them on public display in some > form either connected with an existing museum or starting something new. I > am located in central Virginia, and we currently have around 100 machines > in the collection, with the majority dating from the mid '70s through 90's, > and cover a broad range of home computers, business computers, portables, > and gaming consoles. I am happy to say that approximately 90% of them are > functional. In addition to the usual suspects, some of our less common > items include an IBM System/32, Basic Four Minicomputer, Acorn Electron, > NeXT workstation, Xerox 1108 Lisp Machines, and the Commodore PC-10 IBM > clone. > > I enjoyed my first visit to the VCF East last year and am looking forward > to returning this year. I am considering participating in some sort of > exhibition at the festival, either on my own or in cooperation with others > and Evan suggested that I join this list to see where my ideas might fit in > with what others are doing. > > Much of our collection is documented here if anyone is interested: > > http://www.vacomputermuseum.org<http://www.vacomputermuseum.org/> > > Thanks for your time! >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Hello Introduction
by Peter Cetinski 30 Jan '19

30 Jan '19

> On Jan 29, 2019, at 1:01 PM, W. Bryan Caudle via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > As a new member to the list, I am looking forward to meeting some other vintage computer enthusiasts and collectors and hopefully contribute to the conversation in the future. > Hi Bryan, it's nice to hear from you again and that you found this group. I’m glad to see your museum is still in progress, especially with that Tandy 12/6000 running XENIX main exhibit! ;) Looking forward to meeting you at VCFE! Pete

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Re: Hello Introduction
by Tony Bogan 29 Jan '19

29 Jan '19

> On Jan 29, 2019, at 1:01 PM, W. Bryan Caudle <bcaudle(a)ctsi.net> wrote: > > As a new member to the list, I am looking forward to meeting some other vintage computer enthusiasts and collectors and hopefully contribute to the conversation in the future. > > My whole work life has in some way involved technology, and my interest in computers goes back to elementary school with the TRS-80 model I and Apple II. I grew up with Commodore machines at home, followed by TRS-80's and PC Clones later on. I worked for Compuadd Corp in the 90's, then a local PC shop, then started my consulting business in 1994. Most recently my full time gig has been in infrastructure and architecture for a couple of global non-profit organizations. When I am not at work or spending time with family, my time is split between the computer collection and aviation. > > I have been intentionally collecting and restoring vintage hardware since 2006 with the future aspiration of having them on public display in some form either connected with an existing museum or starting something new. I am located in central Virginia, and we currently have around 100 machines in the collection, with the majority dating from the mid '70s through 90's, and cover a broad range of home computers, business computers, portables, and gaming consoles. I am happy to say that approximately 90% of them are functional. In addition to the usual suspects, some of our less common items include an IBM System/32, Basic Four Minicomputer, Acorn Electron, NeXT workstation, Xerox 1108 Lisp Machines, and the Commodore PC-10 IBM clone. > > I enjoyed my first visit to the VCF East last year and am looking forward to returning this year. I am considering participating in some sort of exhibition at the festival, either on my own or in cooperation with others and Evan suggested that I join this list to see where my ideas might fit in with what others are doing. > > Much of our collection is documented here if anyone is interested: > > http://www.vacomputermuseum.org<http://www.vacomputermuseum.org/> > > Thanks for your time! Welcome Bryan! Love the pictures of the systems and software etc. We will have to talk about getting some Apple II love for your 1970s group. Original Apple IIs are pricey but a nice II+ from 1979 will fit the bill. I have many (as does VCF, so I’m not slighting VCF by offering one) and would be happy to move one your way. Perhaps if you attend a workshop or come to VCF East you can pick it up to save the hassle of shipping. I have a large selection of software and manuals so I will add something to round out the display based on your wishes. It’s my hope sometime down the road as the VCF museum expands to see displays of multiple machines from different vendors, and have some stuff put aside for that should it ever happen. Meantime the machine is yours if you want it. You’ve got some of the most knowledgeable and helpful people here in this group for all things micro and mini and mainframe, with some true experts to help you with your collection. Apple II series and compact Macs are my personal obsession so anything I can do to help in that area just ask. So many Commodore and Tandy and Mac guys and.....you get the idea! Lots of info to be had from this list! Tony

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Hello Introduction
by Bob Aviles 29 Jan '19

29 Jan '19

Hi, Just want to say hello. Bobby On Tuesday, January 29, 2019, 1:31:59 PM EST, W. Bryan Caudle via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: As a new member to the list, I am looking forward to meeting some other vintage computer enthusiasts and collectors and hopefully contribute to the conversation in the future. My whole work life has in some way involved technology, and my interest in computers goes back to elementary school with the TRS-80 model I and Apple II. I grew up with Commodore machines at home, followed by TRS-80's and PC Clones later on. I worked for Compuadd Corp in the 90's, then a local PC shop, then started my consulting business in 1994. Most recently my full time gig has been in infrastructure and architecture for a couple of global non-profit organizations. When I am not at work or spending time with family, my time is split between the computer collection and aviation. I have been intentionally collecting and restoring vintage hardware since 2006 with the future aspiration of having them on public display in some form either connected with an existing museum or starting something new. I am located in central Virginia, and we currently have around 100 machines in the collection, with the majority dating from the mid '70s through 90's, and cover a broad range of home computers, business computers, portables, and gaming consoles. I am happy to say that approximately 90% of them are functional. In addition to the usual suspects, some of our less common items include an IBM System/32, Basic Four Minicomputer, Acorn Electron, NeXT workstation, Xerox 1108 Lisp Machines, and the Commodore PC-10 IBM clone. I enjoyed my first visit to the VCF East last year and am looking forward to returning this year. I am considering participating in some sort of exhibition at the festival, either on my own or in cooperation with others and Evan suggested that I join this list to see where my ideas might fit in with what others are doing. Much of our collection is documented here if anyone is interested: http://www.vacomputermuseum.org<http://www.vacomputermuseum.org/> Thanks for your time!

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Museum warehouse tomorrow?
by Evan Koblentz 29 Jan '19

29 Jan '19

There's less than 1" of snow forecast for Monmouth County. Anybody want to do a warehouse day with me?

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Hello Introduction
by W. Bryan Caudle 29 Jan '19

29 Jan '19

As a new member to the list, I am looking forward to meeting some other vintage computer enthusiasts and collectors and hopefully contribute to the conversation in the future. My whole work life has in some way involved technology, and my interest in computers goes back to elementary school with the TRS-80 model I and Apple II. I grew up with Commodore machines at home, followed by TRS-80's and PC Clones later on. I worked for Compuadd Corp in the 90's, then a local PC shop, then started my consulting business in 1994. Most recently my full time gig has been in infrastructure and architecture for a couple of global non-profit organizations. When I am not at work or spending time with family, my time is split between the computer collection and aviation. I have been intentionally collecting and restoring vintage hardware since 2006 with the future aspiration of having them on public display in some form either connected with an existing museum or starting something new. I am located in central Virginia, and we currently have around 100 machines in the collection, with the majority dating from the mid '70s through 90's, and cover a broad range of home computers, business computers, portables, and gaming consoles. I am happy to say that approximately 90% of them are functional. In addition to the usual suspects, some of our less common items include an IBM System/32, Basic Four Minicomputer, Acorn Electron, NeXT workstation, Xerox 1108 Lisp Machines, and the Commodore PC-10 IBM clone. I enjoyed my first visit to the VCF East last year and am looking forward to returning this year. I am considering participating in some sort of exhibition at the festival, either on my own or in cooperation with others and Evan suggested that I join this list to see where my ideas might fit in with what others are doing. Much of our collection is documented here if anyone is interested: http://www.vacomputermuseum.org<http://www.vacomputermuseum.org/> Thanks for your time!

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OT? Color Clock project idea
by Duane Craps 28 Jan '19

28 Jan '19

ALL, I've have a project idea that I probably won't ever get around to. It would be nice to have a clock that displayed the time as EIA color code colors (resistor color code) Four tri-color LEDs driven by PWM should be able to display the time with each digit being a color . Would be a good training aid to learn the resistor color It could even be one LED that sequenced through the colors. It is too far the project queue for me Active mind - lazy butt - DuaneCraps sdɐɹɔ ǝuɐnp

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Re: vcf-midatlantic Digest, Vol 8, Issue 26
by mwillega 28 Jan '19

28 Jan '19

I bought a Mac 128K when they first came out and used it extensively. However over the years, I had forgotten much of what that experience was about. A few years ago, I resurrected a MAC128K with the first version of the Mac OS and the associated apps. When I got it going, I was somewhat startled to notice how much it had in common with modern smart phone apps. You basically have one app at a time running and “owning” the platform. Now smart phones can transition between apps much easier that the early Macintosh ever could and there is much that they can do in the background, but there certainly is a bit more commonality going on, when dealing with the basic user interface, than one would expect to see after 30 years of user interface evolution. Regards, Mike Willegal > On Jan 28, 2019, at 12:00 PM, vcf-midatlantic-request(a)lists.vcfed.org wrote: > > Send vcf-midatlantic mailing list submissions to > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://lists.vcfed.org/mailman/listinfo/vcf-midatlantic > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > vcf-midatlantic-request(a)lists.vcfed.org > > You can reach the person managing the list at > vcf-midatlantic-owner(a)lists.vcfed.org > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of vcf-midatlantic digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Museum Report 2019-01-27 (Jeffrey Brace) > 2. Macintosh HD 20 (Jason Perkins) > 3. Re: Macintosh HD 20 (Tony Bogan) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Sun, 27 Jan 2019 17:00:23 -0500 > From: Jeffrey Brace <jeffrey(a)vcfed.org> > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Museum Report 2019-01-27 > Message-ID: > <CALWfZAJPOS4RaXJ8TAic2v2kaGjvfRgaw2n+8RS3buBT+sE8qw(a)mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > A busier than normal Sunday with three groups totaling about a dozen people > coming through with a moderate to high level of interest. They really liked > and appreciated the tours. Two groups were families with young kids. It's > always interesting to have the children guess what the different artifacts > are in the "Everything on this wall is now in your pocket" exhibit. I also > like to see if kids can figure out how to open up MacPaint on the Macintosh > and Paint on the Windows 3.1 machine. The basic functionality of the GUI > hasn't changed since the Macintosh, so it's fun to show how kids who have > never used the computer can still operate it due to user-friendly design. > > I also continued to work on VCF East planning and administration. > > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > Vice President > Vintage Computer Federation > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2019 11:42:38 -0500 > From: Jason Perkins <perkins.jason(a)gmail.com> > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Macintosh HD 20 > Message-ID: > <CA+8Y7qLKP7YOLDAb+YBoS=PcCFgxky2LwaJ23hf3EU7DP1t5bQ(a)mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" > > Does anyone know if the original Mac Hard Disk 20 - Model M0135 - ever > shipped with the Apple designed Nisha disk mechanism, or were they all > Rodime drives? > > Thanks! > > -- > Jason Perkins > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2019 11:51:32 -0500 > From: Tony Bogan <thebogans(a)mac.com> > To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> > Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Macintosh HD 20 > Message-ID: <032446A7-2F1B-4B06-A5D8-360C270E1A06(a)mac.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > > I have had over a dozen, 4 still in my possession, all were the rodime drive. > Tony > > Sent from my iPhone > >> On Jan 28, 2019, at 11:42 AM, Jason Perkins via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: >> >> Does anyone know if the original Mac Hard Disk 20 - Model M0135 - ever >> shipped with the Apple designed Nisha disk mechanism, or were they all >> Rodime drives? >> >> Thanks! >> >> -- >> Jason Perkins > > > > End of vcf-midatlantic Digest, Vol 8, Issue 26 > **********************************************

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Macintosh HD 20
by Jason Perkins 28 Jan '19

28 Jan '19

Does anyone know if the original Mac Hard Disk 20 - Model M0135 - ever shipped with the Apple designed Nisha disk mechanism, or were they all Rodime drives? Thanks! -- Jason Perkins

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Museum Report 2019-01-27
by Jeffrey Brace 27 Jan '19

27 Jan '19

A busier than normal Sunday with three groups totaling about a dozen people coming through with a moderate to high level of interest. They really liked and appreciated the tours. Two groups were families with young kids. It's always interesting to have the children guess what the different artifacts are in the "Everything on this wall is now in your pocket" exhibit. I also like to see if kids can figure out how to open up MacPaint on the Macintosh and Paint on the Windows 3.1 machine. The basic functionality of the GUI hasn't changed since the Macintosh, so it's fun to show how kids who have never used the computer can still operate it due to user-friendly design. I also continued to work on VCF East planning and administration. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Apple IIe Duodisk Disk Drive
by Michael Pohl 26 Jan '19

26 Jan '19

My son and I have an Apple IIe with a Duodisk 5.25 floppy drive. The floppy drive drive suddenly stopped loading programs but still lights up and make the same loud turning noise when a disk is inserted. I did some research and see that we can't load programs from drive B on the Duodisk, but that we can open it up and swap the B drive to the A location. Of course, that won't solve the problem if the problem is with the controller card or circuit board in the Duodisk. Any opinions on whether we should (a) assume there's a mechanical issue move froward with the swap or (b) do additional diagnostic work with the control card and Duodisk circuitry? If (b), what should we try? Thx, Mike Pohl

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SCSI device replacement using Raspberry Pi Zero
by Christopher Gioconda 25 Jan '19

25 Jan '19

Hey everyone, I came across this article about using a Raspberry Pi Zero to replace failing SCSI devices, thought it was an interesting idea: https://www.techrepublic.com/article/using-a-raspberry-pi-zero-scsi-adapter… Chris Gioconda

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White Ceramic 6502 for sale with questions
by Jeff G 25 Jan '19

25 Jan '19

Hi All, I have come to ask for some opinions bout a white 6502 processor that I have acquired. I has a date code 0f 4576 which I believe means the the 45th week of 1976. The problem is that it has 7 broken pins. I have no idea how that happened as this is how it came to me. It looks like it came from an Atari Sprint video game as it had "sprint" written on it in pencil which has been erased. You can still make out a faint outline of the pencil markings if you look closely. I installed it in a machined pin socket to protect the pins so I could attempt to test it with my 6502 tester. I used a CPU tester that a fellow name Molka from Hungary developed as it quickly establishes whether the CPU is dead or alive. Please see here < http://www.cpushack.com/mc680xmcs650x-test-boards-for-sale/> if you want more info. Anyway, by contacting the stubs of the missing pins to the machined pin socket, the device passes the tests so it is a functional unit. So here lies the dilemma, since I want to sell it, do I repair it or sell it as is? I have similar gold IC legs from other bad vintage chips so my repair would consist of leaving the chip in the machined pin socket and tack soldering spare gold legs on the stubs and touching up with gold plating solution if desired. So I guess the question is in preparation for sale, your opinions on whether to repair it or leave it as-is and let the buyer repair it? Here is a link to some pics of the CPU < https://1drv.ms/f/s!AoxC-mzikoIghU-LUkQUKebT0Vdm> BTW, I would like to keep the sale local/face to face as I know these are pretty rare and would hate to lose it in the mail. I am in Northern NJ. So if anyone is interested please let me know as I am accepting offers. I am reluctant to set a price because know how rare the are fully intact but don't know with the broken pins. Regards, Jeff

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Happy owner fo a Tandy MC-10
by Neil Cherry 23 Jan '19

23 Jan '19

On 1/19/19 9:06 AM, Duane Craps via vcf-midatlantic wrote: I haven't gotten the MC-10 yet (won the bid last night). Before I start buying parts for it I'll check that it works. I found some documentation on the MC-10. I already have the 68xx asm books. Really need to find that Moto 6808 CoCo board. I think that's what the MC-10 is abased on. 6800 family, binary compatible 6800 - microprocessor 6802 - 128B of RAM, (microprocessor) 6808 - No ROM, No RAM (microprocessor) 6801 - ROM, RAM, IO (microcontroller) 6803 - RAM, IO, No ROM (microcontroller) 6809 - different microprocessor, mnemonic super set (not binary compatible) I haven't checked the circuit but it might be possible to feed it 9v AC as long as you have the correct current rating (I think it's 1.5A). The DC is okay for now as long as you don't need the RS232 and the cassette (ouch). I have found the various French Alice and Alice 90 stuff. Not sure how compatible it is but it's based on the MC-10. I'm sure there is something interesting there. I have a CoCo 1/2/3, a few Grant Searle's FPGA emulation boards, I'll let you know how that goes. I also have my Sardis ST2900 which I should be working on as I know they need a few chips and then documenting how we used to get them from ROM monitor to full OS9. BTW, love the 6809. :-) -- Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry ncherry(a)linuxha.com http://www.linuxha.com/ Main site http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog Author of: Linux Smart Homes For Dummies

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mYSTERY KEYBOARD
by Neil Cherry 23 Jan '19

23 Jan '19

I have a mystery keyboard from around 1985. I know the following: - Keytronics model unknown - CPU (?) markings 30293-e 20-04592-054 GI 8215 CDA 19-4148-01 REV 1 PCB 01 A65-02395 -201A Images: https://ushomeautomation.com/images/mystery-kb-back.jpg https://ushomeautomation.com/images/mystery-kb-front.jpg What I haven't done so far is to power it up. And I'm not sure if the EPROM is actually original to the keyboard. -- Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry ncherry(a)linuxha.com http://www.linuxha.com/ Main site http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog Author of: Linux Smart Homes For Dummies

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] VCF East 2019 keynote suggestions?
by Dave McGuire 22 Jan '19

22 Jan '19

On 1/22/19 3:09 PM, Ben Greenfield via vcf-midatlantic wrote: >> Here's my annual request for suggestions of people who could keynote >> at VCF East. >> >> - The person must have general appeal to our audience. It can't be >> someone who did something very narrow. > > I’m going to throw the name Walt Jung who I have recently stumbled > across and seems quite lucid on the topic of op-amp. I can’t tell if > what he did was narrow (focusing on op-amps) or general op-amps are > fundamental argument. > > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walt_Jung > > I find his writing quite comprehensible. Walt Jung is one of the world's foremost analog EEs. He's amazing and he writes damn good books. I don't see how he'd be relevant to a VCF, though, unless he wanted to give a talk about analog computers...being a known opamp expert, and analog computers consisting primarily of opamps, but still. And he's someone who is typically paid beau-coup bucks to speak at conferences, so.. -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA

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OT: help the makerspace @ InfoAge
by Evan Koblentz 22 Jan '19

22 Jan '19

From the "Many of you may already know this, but some may not" department: For the past few years there's been a makerspace located at InfoAge. It was called the Institute for Exploratory Research, or "IXR". Adjacent to the IXR's space on the InfoAge campus was the Computer Deconstruction Lab, where people can learn about modern computers. It also has a podcast studio. Neither group was an independent entity, unlike VCF, NJARC, NJHDA, etc. -- IXR and CDL were simply part of InfoAge. Now, with InfoAge's blessing, the two groups are both closing and reforming as an independent entity (just like VCF, etc.) under the CDL name. That is already underway. The new group will be branded as "Computer Deconstruction Lab -- the Jersey Shore Makerspace". CDL needs to raise $1,084 for all the business/non-profit filing fees. So far they raised $710. IXR/CDL separately have been helpful resources to VCF and to InfoAge, so let's return the favor! Perhaps VCF/Mid-Atlantic members can help CDL raise the remaining funds. (Any funds beyond that amount will be used as seed money.) The new group doesn't yet have its own bank account. As I understand it, their treasurer will be Martin Flynn, who of course is a trusted VCF member too. Their other officers will be secretary Neil Cherry (also one of us!); president Dan Jacobs (a good friend to us); and VP Joe Wilkes. I will be one of the board members, but I won't be involved in day-to-day management. VCF keeps me plenty busy. :) Until they get a bank account (and thus a PayPal account), Martin is handling the funds directly. Please contact him at maflynn(a)theflynn.org to inquire about helping them get started. (FYI: they said these donations are NOT tax-deductible, because they're ahead of the status being obtained.) The group's website is www.compdecon.org.

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VCFe 2019 - Atari 40th
by dillera＠gmail.com 21 Jan '19

21 Jan '19

We are also missing that 2019 is the 40th anniversary of the Atari 8bits. - the Atari 400 and 800 were announced 40 years ago on Dec. 14th, 1978 - first presented at the Winter CES in January 1979 as the 400 and 800 - The computers shipped in November 1979 One of the earliest media coverages, at CES: https://archive.org/details/creativecomputing-1979-04/page/n19 <https://archive.org/details/creativecomputing-1979-04/page/n19> I will bring my Atari 10888xel to the show for fun, but I'll be focusing on the Unix exhibition, and I'm sure there are some people working on some great Atari exhibits for the show- I just had seen it mentioned on the list, and we should perhaps note this in promotional materials, or perhaps try to attract some Atari-related guest keynote speaker. -andy footnote: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari_8-bit_family

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Museum Report 2019-01-20
by Jeffrey Brace 21 Jan '19

21 Jan '19

Low number of visitors due to the cold, windy weather. I worked on VCF admin stuff during my time there. Tony stopped by and we talked about improvements to the exhibits and making guides for docents. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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VCF SouthEast speakers?
by Mike Shaw 20 Jan '19

20 Jan '19

Does anyone know if the speakers that are going to VCF East will be at VCF SouthEast also? I can't make it to VCF East so was planning to go to VCF SouthEast in April.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Friday classes @ VCF East
by Evan Koblentz 20 Jan '19

20 Jan '19

Here's what I have in mind for Friday. We can extend the day by one slot (one hour per slot), so there are 18 classes instead of 15. 1. Apple II (Tony) 2. Mac (Tony) 3. Atari 800 4. C-64 5. Amiga 6. IBM PC 7. TI-99/4A (because it never gets any love) 8. TRS-80 9. CoCo 10. S-100 11. Land of CRTs (we all know who!) 12. "So you are curious about big iron" 13. Schleptops! 14. Power supplies 15. Electronics 101 (Fala) 16. Unix networking (Diller) 17. Unix weirdness (Jacocks) 18. Terminals? Keyboards? Disk imaging? Or anything else

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Friday classes @ VCF East
by Jeffrey Golas 19 Jan '19

19 Jan '19

Rather than a restoration class on a particular model or brand, how about an “ask the expert” panel with a panel of peeps who specialize in a particular brand/era of machine? Perhaps even two, one for 8-biters and another for different era machines or big iron. My other idea is along the same line, but almost like a mini workshop with tables set up with experts on various machines, people can bring in their machines to ask questions, etc. Not a full blown soldering/repair thing, but perhaps basic troubleshooting and cosmetic stuff. Jeff (aka Bags)

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Apple ii GS at estate sale in Manalapan New Jersey
by Sentrytv 19 Jan '19

19 Jan '19

Just a heads up to those who may want an apple IIgs there's one for sale in Manalapan at an estate sale on estatesales.net Sent from: My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > On Jan 15, 2019, at 8:41 PM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > So the next workshop will be February 9 & 10, 2019. > Same place, same time. > Here is the signup sheet: < > https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11Iy1jqPJqVzY1gnGRrHfLfIcx5IQ82QkkaB… >> > > We tried Patrick's Pub for Saturday dinner and it was a bust. I take the > blame for this one. It had great potential, and came highly recommended. I > didn't call ahead and didn't anticipate the large crowd due to football > playoffs. The waitress was cranky, the service slow, etc. I think that this > place is probably hit or miss. When it's busy, then terrible, when not busy > then fine. I will check out the next place in person to make sure. > > I think that we will try Asbury Festhalle & Biergarten.This one is highly > recommended and Yelp rates it as a 3.5 out of 5. > > I also have a great idea for a different diner for Sunday breakfast. The > Americana Diner which is only 2 minutes further away than the Blue Swan > Diner. It's the best diner in the area. > > > > -- > ========================================= > Jeff Brace > Vice President > Vintage Computer Federation

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Happy owner fo a Tandy MC-10
by Neil Cherry 19 Jan '19

19 Jan '19

Yup, Ebay but it wasn't expensive. Not in great condition but I can most likely repair it. I like my 6502/68xx chips so this will go along with the rest of my collection. Any other MC-10 owners out there? Atari 800/600xl/800xl TRS-80 CoCo 1/2/3 Sardis ST2900 Grant Searle Multicomp board (6809 - x3) -- Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry ncherry(a)linuxha.com http://www.linuxha.com/ Main site http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog Author of: Linux Smart Homes For Dummies

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