- vcf-midatlantic - lists.vcfed.org

Commodore Monitor needed to borrow Oct. 6 in San Francisco Area
by Jeffrey Brace 26 Sep '18

26 Sep '18

Friend of VCF Leif Bloomquist needs to borrow a monitor to show off his 6502 assembly Networking code. He has been invited to give a talk at GitHub HQ in San Francisco about coding network games for the Commodore 64! If you have a Commodore 1702 monitor that would be great, but any model would do. Send me a private message if you or someone you know can accommodate him. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Small rescue needed in DC area (Fairfax / Tysons Corner)
by Evan Koblentz 26 Sep '18

26 Sep '18

Need someone to do a microcomputer-sized rescue for the museum in the next week or two. Contact me off-list.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Anyone have a spare PCjr TV adapter?
by corey cohen 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

> On Sep 25, 2018, at 12:38 PM, Jeffrey Golas <jeffg(a)junknet.net> wrote: > > I had a new in box one somewhere. > > Jeff Awesome if you can find it. corey cohen uǝɥoɔ ʎǝɹoɔ Mobile: +1 917 747 1408 Sent from my iPhone

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Anyone have a spare PCjr TV adapter?
by corey cohen 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

And no chuckles keyboard jokes please.... Thanks, Corey corey cohen uǝɥoɔ ʎǝɹoɔ Mobile: +1 917 747 1408 Sent from my iPhone

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Anyone have a spare PCjr TV adapter?
by Jeffrey Golas 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

I had a new in box one somewhere. Jeff

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Maker Faire
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> writes: > >>> What was the dry ice for? > >It goes in the cooler under regular ice. We brought a case of water and >some soda. OK. I usually get dry ice when I transport homemade ice cream to events. I can uaually get away with simple ice for keeping drinks cold.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Maker Faire
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> writes: > >World Maker Faire was as awesome as it is every year. > >Corey, Jeff B., me, and Corey's son/sister all helped at the VCF booth. > >Here's a video and some pictures taken by Jeff: > >https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K6YqRYdXWyYUCetOZNhtzAJwoy0BtLmv/view?usp=… > >As always, we saw other members of this group; many friends-of-VCF; >Brian from Hackaday; people who remembered us from other events; tons of >people who were astonished to see the machines of their childhood >up-and-running; and a few offers of potentially interesting donations. > >Our booth was filled with visitors almost the entire time. I really wanted to get there again this year. I wanted to see the VCF display and to speak with the guys at Magnitude.IO too, but I couldn't due to a family gathering. >Everything was great until 10 minutes before closing time Sunday night, >when I DROPPED MY LEGO ROBOT ON THE PAVEMENT .... "disassemble". Good >thing it happened at the end of day two, not the start of day one! Now I >get to make a new one. > >Special thanks to Jeff for driving and Dean for providing a cooler + dry >ice. What was the dry ice for?

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Maker Faire
by Evan Koblentz 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

World Maker Faire was as awesome as it is every year. Corey, Jeff B., me, and Corey's son/sister all helped at the VCF booth. Here's a video and some pictures taken by Jeff: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K6YqRYdXWyYUCetOZNhtzAJwoy0BtLmv/view?usp=… As always, we saw other members of this group; many friends-of-VCF; Brian from Hackaday; people who remembered us from other events; tons of people who were astonished to see the machines of their childhood up-and-running; and a few offers of potentially interesting donations. Our booth was filled with visitors almost the entire time. Everything was great until 10 minutes before closing time Sunday night, when I DROPPED MY LEGO ROBOT ON THE PAVEMENT .... "disassemble". Good thing it happened at the end of day two, not the start of day one! Now I get to make a new one. Special thanks to Jeff for driving and Dean for providing a cooler + dry ice. ________________________________ Evan Koblentz, executive director Vintage Computer Federation a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit evan(a)vcfed.org (646) 546-9999 www.vcfed.org facebook.com/vcfederation twitter.com/vcfederation instagram.com/vcfederation

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VCF Repair Workshops 2019
by Jeffrey Brace 25 Sep '18

25 Sep '18

Going to start reserving dates for the repair workshops. Anyonw know od any conflicts with these dates? January 5 February 2 March 2 April 6 -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Hello! and a Commodore 64 Question
by Michael Pohl 24 Sep '18

24 Sep '18

Hi- I'm new to the group after meeting Evan at Infoage recently. My 12 year old son is a vintage computer/vintage video game fan. We picked up a non-working Commodore 64 as our first project. We watched a few YouTube videos and ran the suggested basic diagnostics and found that the power supply produces the correct voltages, the fuse is good, and there is the correct voltage at several key locations on the board. Connecting the RF modulator to a TV doesn't change the picture (still only snow) and connecting via the 8 pin jack to a Commodore monitor produces nothing. The computer is an cosmetically good shape and does not appear to have ever been opened up as the RF shield was intact. I note that only three of the large chips are on sockets. Any suggestions for next steps? Thx, Mike

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Oh boy (Maker Faire)
by Evan Koblentz 22 Sep '18

22 Sep '18

3:15am: Finished robot, finished code, finished packing for Maker Faire. 4:15am: Wake up to go to Queens. Yay, I get to sleep for a whole hour! Looking forward to seeing many of you this weekend.

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Fwd: Floating point math in FORTRAN IV on PDP-8
by Kyle Owen 22 Sep '18

22 Sep '18

I sent this over to cctalk and haven't found a taker to try out my FORTRAN code on another PDP-8 yet. Might any of you be able to try this out? At VCF MW this past weekend, I was playing around with an FPP8/A stuffed into a PDP-8/M with a fan removed. This hex-wide two-board set will happily work in a quad-wide backplane, as it needs no signals that an 8/A would otherwise provide. I wanted to benchmark the FPP8/A with the software emulation that FORTRAN IV supposedly does. Mind you, I also don't have an EAE in mine, so software emulation for integer multiplication/division would also be used. I tried running a simple program to print some natural logs and square roots, which ran quite well with the FPP8/A in place. Without the FPP8/A...all of the results were wrong. Significantly. Negative numbers in many cases. No clear pattern as to what it's doing. Would anyone be able to try my program on some other real hardware (or another emulator) to verify? With and without EAE would also be desirable. I'm not sure how to disable the EAE in SIMH, else I'd try that too. Here's what SIMH looks like with my program: PDP-8 simulator V4.0-0 Current git commit id: d35b8725 sim> at rk0 disk2.fortran.rk05 sim> b rk .TYPE FLOAT.FT DO 50 I=1,100 F = FLOAT(I) G = SQRT(F) H = ALOG(F) WRITE(4,100) F,G,H 50 CONTINUE 100 FORMAT(' ',F12.6,F12.6,F12.6) END .R F4 *FLOAT/G$ 1.000002 1.000002 0.000000 2.000002 1.414215 0.693147 3.000002 1.732053 1.098614 4.000002 2.000002 1.386296 5.000002 2.236070 1.609439 [snip] 98.000001 9.899495 4.584968 99.000000 9.949874 4.595121 100.000023 10.000008 4.605171 . Much appreciated, Kyle

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Reminder - Museum closed this weekend
by Jeffrey Brace 21 Sep '18

21 Sep '18

Yeah, I noticed the dead moths in there ;) On Fri, Sep 21, 2018 at 6:14 PM Tony Bogan via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > On Sep 21, 2018, at 6:12 PM, Evan Koblentz <evan(a)vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > > >>> VCF museum is closed this weekend so me, Jeff B., Corey, etc. can go > to Maker Faire. > >> I might be able to be docent Sunday afternoon. If I can I will go from > around 2 till 5 so we have a presence there. > >> > >> Tony > > > > Cool. If you go, then be sure to tell whomever's at the front desk. > > Roger that. I still need to close the door on the MOBIDIC so those > freeloaders stop coming in and dying in the case!! > Tony -- ======================================================= Jeff Brace =======================================================

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Reminder - Museum closed this weekend
by Evan Koblentz 21 Sep '18

21 Sep '18

VCF museum is closed this weekend so me, Jeff B., Corey, etc. can go to Maker Faire.

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Converting C64 from NTSC to PAL was: PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Herb Johnson 20 Sep '18

20 Sep '18

> I had asked many times how to convert a NSTC C64 to PAL and got many > different answers. I feel like I was sent down the wrong path. Jeff, I'm not continuing this discussion to annoy you, but to make a more general point in public. Also, maybe you'll be less frustrated if you see larger purpose in your process of resolving this conversion - you suggested one yourself, you learned the details of NTSC vs PAL and analog video. As I posted previously, solving problems isn't always about "a path" to a single solution. Not all problems are solved by doing one thing, but by doing many things. It's part of problem-solving to attempt many things. Each thing, either solves part of the problem, or aids your understanding toward a solution. And in the end, you don't just solve "a problem", you expand your knowledge and experiences. So Jeff, I think the path you followed, was mostly normal, not an effort to mislead you. In the larger discussion: some people work with vintage computers, because they enjoy "fixing things" or "getting things back into use". Sometimes repairs are a matter of necessity. And repair can be a learning opportunity. And it's fun to share repair experiences, which is what happened in this email discussion. When I start talking about "building character", that's when I've said too much. ;) Jeff, glad you've got PAL operation of your C64. Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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Wanted: Mac IIci, IIcx
by Herb Johnson 20 Sep '18

20 Sep '18

I got an offer after my request for a IIci. Thanks. - Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Herb Johnson 20 Sep '18

20 Sep '18

Some of the discussion on this topic, suggests a lack of understanding of the differences between PAL and NTSC. A fundamental difference is: PAL uses 50Hz frame rates (vertical) and NTSC uses 60Hz. Why? It's AC power line frequency: the US uses 60Hz and the UK uses 50Hz. That has consequences. "Old" TV's in each country have analog circuits which produce vertical scan rates based on AC line frequency. The CRT video display, may see crawling horizontal "hum bars" from magnetically picking up AC line signals at one frequency while displaying another frequency. VCR's run motors and pull tapes, assuming one vertical frequency and not another. And some devices which claim PAL/NTSC compatibility, may more simply run PAL on 50Hz power and NTSC on 60Hz power. A video device that actually turns PAL signals and PAL frequencies, into NTSC signals and frequencies, would be a somewhat busy design. On the other hand, an LCD TV or monitor - which has no "hum bars" as it doesn't "scan" with a yoke coil, has little analog circuity, doesn't need to depend on the AC line for a frequency reference - can be set for PAL or NTSC and it's done. Also: if an old PAL computer is run from 60Hz AC power, it may use the AC line as a frequency source (to avoid those hum bars). It's then possible the "PAL" computer will try to produce 60Hz vertical video; but not necessarily PAL horizontal rates - depends on the design. I don't track these PAL/NTSC issues, or C-64's, but I'm aware of these consequences. That sets my expectations about fixing the problem - I don't expect "a cable" (wires only, not a dongle with a buried processor in it) to solve it. It will be interesting to read about the results on specific equipment. - Herb -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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Converting C64 from NTSC to PAL was: PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Herb Johnson 20 Sep '18

20 Sep '18

Jeffrey Brace wrote: >>From looking at the discussion it was apparent that it follows the old > story of the 6 blind men and the elephant. I was going to argue about this conclusion, but Bill Degnan posted first, and it's enough that he made the point. Jeff, if you had stated the problem clearly - and stated the work you did - someone might have suggested you recheck your work. Eventually that occurred to you, and you resolved the C-64 side of your problem. And, now that you identified your "monitor" - the Googles tells me it's a modern LED monitor, and therefore digital, and (as discussed) will likely display PAL or NTSC. So it wasn't the problem. Sometimes, Jeff, in solving a problem, one has to wander around it. Solutions don't always fall out from the obvious. And don't grouse if your friends can't read your mind or see what's on your workbench - by email. Meanwhile - today I was chatting "here" about AC power and frequency. Oddly enough, at the same time, I fried a couple of SCSI hard drives in testing and copying. Oddly relevant, because the apparent problem was **an intermittent connection on my AC power cord's neutral!!!** I don't know that - yet - but replacing the AC power cord will hopefully end these woes. I may have to replace my Mac computer, I'm not sure, I have to verify it wasn't the problem. And even more strange: while repairing a Mac Plus, the AC safety capacitor (that paper thingy) started to smoke! That's normal failure for them. Same thing happens in Apple II power supplies. Replaced it, and the supply is good again. Now I'm gonna kiss my AC power meter and apologize for talking behind its back. Herb "sparks" Johnson -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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Converting C64 from NTSC to PAL was: PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Jeffrey Brace 20 Sep '18

20 Sep '18

Changing the subject line to more accurately reflect the discussion. I solved my problem. It was a lot simpler than what the discussion indicated. I reason my C64 didn't work after my changes was that I had put the VIC-II chip in wrong. Two pins were sticking out. >From looking at the discussion it was apparent that it follows the old story of the 6 blind men and the elephant. Every was looking at a different part and was right, but didn't see the big picture and never really had any specific experience doing what I wanted to do (i.e. no one had actually done it!). For the last few years I asked different people questions, and didn't get anywhere. I realized that none of them had actually converted a C64 and were guessing. So I decided to look up the information myself and just do it. I thought that the simplest way was to just buy a PAL C64 and ship it here, but I ended up getting NTSC C64 because the guy had no idea what he was selling. I shipped it back and found an easier way by ordering the parts. I knew that there was an article from years ago that described what to do, but I had lost it. So I looked up a YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq2tlEr6_Ns&t=609s And looked at this article: http://biosrhythm.com/?p=1420 So I bought the proper PAL VIC-II chip, the proper crystal, and a piece of wire. I replaced the VIC-II chip: 6567 (NTSC) with 6569 (PAL), then the crystal 14 Mhz Crystal (NTSC) with the 17 Mhz (PAL), then found the part on the motherboard where I put a piece of wire to create a short. DONE! There was no need for step down converters, different power supplies or special monitors. The Samsung SyncMaster XL2370HD worked fine. I just had made a mistake when I inserted the VIC-II chip. Noticed it today, fixed it, and ran the demo. Now it seems that the demos want to run from a 1541 and not a 1571 or uIEC SD card unfortunately, so I have to go vintage. Also I used this video to VGA converter to send the signal from the C64 to the monitor: https://www.real.de/product/314543066/ If anyone wants help to convert it, I can help you. You need to match the proper VIC-II equivalent, there are three major versions of VIC-II chips, so that has to match because of the motherboard configuration. Now I have to find a particular type of audio cable RCA to headphone jack to get the audio working. Still have some other stuff to get ready for Maker Faire. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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Wanted: Mac IIci, IIcx
by Herb Johnson 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

Need immediately, Apple Macintosh IIci motherboard. Must be known working solid, well-tested. Available right now, to be shipped to me now in New Jersey. I'll consider a IIcx. Don't care or need other IIci/cx stuff like case RAM drives, might consider buying a system but why not just ship the mobo? Contact me directly if you have a IIci or IIcx. Thank you. hjohnson(a)retrotechnology.com Herb Johnson -- 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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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Neil Cherry 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

On 09/19/2018 03:30 PM, Bill Dromgoole via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > A step down transformer only changes the voltage. > It does not affect the frequency. > You are still running at 60 Hz. To add to this, the computer hardware expects the TV to match the standard it's outputting. PAL - 625 scan lines, 25 Frames/s (50Hz) NTSC - 525 scan lines, 30 Frames/s (60Hz) Many computers send data to the TV while the scan line it written, while it goes to the next line, it's doing something else. The custom video chips are hard coded to these setings. While modern TVs may be able to handle this (some flatscreen TVs can handle PAL or NTSC) as it's just software. Older TVs were tuned for for the spec. If the PAL TV/Monitor were to get 60Hz it's 25 frames would be out of spec with the 60Hz. Grr, I'm afraid my explanation is a bit weak. But the 25 Frames/s and the 30 Frames/s rate would be out of sync with the change in frequency. The complexity of this has to do with the genius of goning from Black and White and handling color, in addition to the 50 and 60 Hz differences. A trip to the Sarnoff museum might be in order. At the moment I can't recall where I learned this but I'm pretty sure was related to my Atari 8 bit and Don Lancaster and his books. -- 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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Commodore 802 printer
by Herb Johnson 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

Someone contacted me with the following Commodore problem: > I have a 802 printer that stopped working. I use my C64 system a lot and wondered if you repair these, sell printers for the C64 or know of someone who repairs printers. The printer just stopped working ( the print head doesn’t move when you turn it on and the paper feed button is lit but does not advance the paper) I hope you can help. [I'm in] Pensacola, Fl. If someone wants to tackle this, I'll refer this person to you. I could suggest he join the VCFed-Mid list, but Florida is another physical locality, a local connection may be more practical if someone can suggest a Florida venue. 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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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] VCFMW
by Bill Degnan 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

https://www.vintagecomputer.net/browse_thread.cfm?id=729 (video at the end) On Wed, Sep 19, 2018 at 10:50 AM Alexander Pierson via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > It was an enjoyable weekend to say the least. Glad I got a chance to make > the trip again this year. > > -Alexander 'Z' Pierson > > > On Wednesday, September 19, 2018, 10:21:00 AM EDT, systems_glitch via > vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > My first visit to Midwest, it was a great time! > > Thanks, > Jonathan > > On Wed, Sep 19, 2018 at 10:18 AM Mike Loewen via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > > VCF Midwest was the biggest so far, both in exhibits and attendees. > > If you > > haven't been to this show, you should plan on it for next year. Many > > familiar > > faces, including Bill Degnan, Alexander Pierson, Alex Bodnar, Ian Primus, > > Connor Krukosky, Mouse, Kyle Owen, Josh Bensadon, Mike Willegal, Jay > West, > > Mike Lee, Jason Timmons, Will Donzelli, Jim Brain, Lee Hart. Mostly > > micros, > > but also some phone equipment, PDP-8, VAX 11/780, and my HP 3000 Series > 37 > > running MPE-V. > > > > > > Mike Loewen mloewen(a)cpumagic.scol.pa.us > > Old Technology http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/ > > > >

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CBM 2001-32B (Hey Z)
by Bill Degnan 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

Did you see this? https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Commodore-CBM-model-8032-32B-Personal-Comp… I don't know the seller but remembering we talked about this model on the bus to the airport. Bill

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VCFMW
by Mike Loewen 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

VCF Midwest was the biggest so far, both in exhibits and attendees. If you haven't been to this show, you should plan on it for next year. Many familiar faces, including Bill Degnan, Alexander Pierson, Alex Bodnar, Ian Primus, Connor Krukosky, Mouse, Kyle Owen, Josh Bensadon, Mike Willegal, Jay West, Mike Lee, Jason Timmons, Will Donzelli, Jim Brain, Lee Hart. Mostly micros, but also some phone equipment, PDP-8, VAX 11/780, and my HP 3000 Series 37 running MPE-V. Mike Loewen mloewen(a)cpumagic.scol.pa.us Old Technology http://q7.neurotica.com/Oldtech/

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PalmOS software?
by Joseph Oprysko 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

Would anyone happen to have a CD of old PalmOS software? Preferably sorted, even better if a backed up website of many different publishers apps. There’s very little easily found on the web anymore, I used to have several different websites backed up on a hard drive that crashed. I’m attempting to restore my library and move it to more stable media, but having to reinvent the wheel is a lot of work that doesn’t need to be done, since many of the sites were already sorted and had information on each product listed with them already. I could always find a way to export the data and import it into the system I’m going to be using. Actually, it doesn’t need to be a CD, as I have a gigabit Internet connection, just FTP access to the directory would be sufficient. The more apps, and more information in the existing sorting (HTML file) the better. It’s a very forgotten operating system since the webOS days which never really made it onto handheld devices anyway. If required, I can reward the top two people helping, with either a Palm Tungsten E2 or a Palm Tungsten TX. The E2 has the traditional sized color screen, the TX is a Full color screen, with the writing pad a pop-up component of the screen. Thank you, Joe -- Normal Person: Hey, it seems that you know a lot. Geek: To be honest, it's due to all the surfing I do. Normal Person: So you go surfing? Normal Person: But I don't think that has anything to do with knowing a lot... Geek: I think that's wrong on a fundamental level. Normal Person: Huh? Huh? What?

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pdp 8e on ebay getting expensive
by Bill Degnan 19 Sep '18

19 Sep '18

Check out this auction, getting pricey https://www.ebay.com/itm/DEC-PDP-8-E-Rare-Vintage-MiniComputer-Working-Comp… RX01/02 drive controller, 8K. Not the most powerful system, probably a newer / high serial number Bill

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Dean Notarnicola 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

I have a few low cost LCDs that accept PAL signal, as I discovered by hooking up a new to me Amiga to the composite in. On Tue, Sep 18, 2018 at 1:14 PM Sentrytv via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > If you have access to one, > You could run the video output signal of C64 though a multi-system or > multi-standard VCR. > Samsung had a really nice one back then. > It may allow you to select NTSC out and PAL input. > I don't have one to try, but I remember using them back in the late 90s - > 2k. > Also online there has to be converters that can do this. > > Mike > > Sent from: > My extremely complicated, hand held electronic device. > > > On Sep 18, 2018, at 12:36 PM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > >> On Tue, Sep 18, 2018 at 8:35 AM Chris Fala <chrisjpf33(a)gmail.com> > wrote: > >> > >> Not if it is a US version. > > > > > > So what can I do to display a PAL C64? > > > > > > > >> > >> > >> > >> > >> On Sep 18, 2018, at 1:03 AM, Jeffrey Brace via vcf-midatlantic < > >> vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > >> > >> Can anyone confirm that I can use a Commodore 1084S monitor to display a > >> Pal C64? I finally got around to converting my C64 to PAL, but my LED > >> monitor doesn't seem to work with PAL. > >> > >> -- > >> ========================================= > >> Jeff Brace > >> Vice President > >> Vintage Computer Federation > >> > > -- > > ========================================= > > Jeff Brace > > Vice President > > Vintage Computer Federation > >

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PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Jeffrey Brace 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

Can anyone confirm that I can use a Commodore 1084S monitor to display a Pal C64? I finally got around to converting my C64 to PAL, but my LED monitor doesn't seem to work with PAL. -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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VCF helpers @ InfoAge Halloween event
by Evan Koblentz 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

Everyone, CEBOT -- "Camp Evans Base Of Terror" -- is InfoAge's annual Halloween scare-fest. It is the largest fundraiser of the year for InfoAge, so all of the member organizations are helping as event volunteers. The event schedule is 7pm-11pm, every Friday and Saturday, starting the weekend of September 28-29 and ending the weekend of October 26-27. InfoAge management needs to know exactly which volunteers to expect on which nights. This is a "firm commitment" situation. You all know how I feel about "sorry, wish I could but" or "I'll try to make it" or "I'll see if I am a free that night" or "I can only be there for 90 minutes" -- that won't fly. They need to know exactly who they can count on and when. Let me know ASAP (off-list, please) if you can help for any of the nights. FYI, most of the volunteer roles are outdoors and involve a lot of standing, such as parking lot duty, security, directing people for which way to walk, collecting tickets, and so on. This is very much a situation where what's good for InfoAge is good for VCF. Thank you, -Evan

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] PAL C-64 on 1084-S?
by Thomas Fuchs 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

Forgot to say, you likely need to have custom cables that work for this, either make them yourself (plenty of instructions online) or order one of eBay. (The C64 to S-Video is common and should be readily available.) Best, Thomas > On Sep 18, 2018, at 12:58 PM, Thomas Fuchs via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > <mime-attachment>

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Insanely OT: anyone got a cheap car for sale?
by Herb Johnson 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

I'm also looking for a small used car, for my wife. As she is five foot zero, the challenge is to find a car "sized" for her. But that's not why I'm posting (although if you have a small car in good shape near NJ, contact me). The problem I'm having, is that Craigslist posts "by owner", most of the time are actually from small (or tiny) dealers. They simply don't know the history of the cars they offer. In the NJ/PA/NY area, lots of cars have water damage from floods or sea-salt; less from road salt. It's not apparent after the car is cleaned (there's "tells" I can mention if anyone's interested). And a title for "flood damaged" can be "laundered" by changing states ot titling (NJ-PA-NJ for instance). CarFax tracks some of that stuff but not all. This is good info to know - hence the post. My point is, there's lots of value in finding a REAL owner of a used car, who honestly describes its history. So one reason this kind of post is not so "insanely off-topic" is that this list offers "real" owners and buyers; it's a social purpose and of short duration. Herb Johnson email address on my Web site (and in the header) -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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Z80/6502/68000 on a Microcontroller (J. Alexander Jacocks)
by Herb Johnson 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

The proposed product is simply yet another thing that *can* be done, so someone is offering to do it. And there's plenty of soft-core hobby projects; pour in any processor you want. I myself as an old person, would not call a programmable-logic CPU a "real" classic microprocessor. But other people just want to run the software, never mind how; emulators, soft-core processors, whatever. And there's other reasons. There's actually vintage-computing history, about multiple processor systems. Generally they were not well-produced, because you can't optimize a computer with two or three very different processors; you don't get enough resources for either as a result. What worked were things like the Tandy that used a Z80 for peripherals and a 68K to run some Unix-flavor OS; or processor-per-use schemes like TurboDOS/S-100 systems. Or, a Z80 on an Apple II to run CP/M and Z80 compatible programs (from Microsoft). Funny to talk about "modern microcontrollers fast enough to emulate Z80's". When IBM-AT class computers could run emulated CP/M-80 in real time at say 2-4MHz - suddenly the market for used CP/M-80 computers DROPPED. Go figure. So history may not repeat, but it certainly rhymes. Herb Johnson -- Herbert R. Johnson, New Jersey in the USA http://www.retrotechnology.com OR .net

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Interest in a Workshop at System Source, in Hunt Valley, MD?
by Herb Johnson 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

> OK, so after talking to Bob @ System Source, we're going to go for the > November 10th/11th date. Which day works better for everyone? Bob > would like to do a single day workshop. You may want to reserve both, one for a snow date; choose a week or so before. > If someone else wants to host for the September date, I'm up for that. Or, > we could try to find a cheap fire hall or similar to split the rental on? - Alex Kinda late to reserve a Sept 29/30 location on the 18th, ten days out. I'm interested in these sort of events but I don't like driving in any difficult weather. But it's a good idea, and half a dozen people is still a good repair event. 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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Dan
by Evan Koblentz 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

I realized what's missing from my Lego site -- a proper tribute to Dan -- without whom I never could have learned how to use the 1980s kit. So I added a link to a tribute page in the site header. Have a look.... http://www.mindsbeforethestorm.com

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Vote for InfoAge!
by Evan Koblentz 18 Sep '18

18 Sep '18

A local public radio station is having a contest for charity organizations from now through October 15, where the winner will be mentioned on the air every day for a month. That is some pretty good free advertising. InfoAge got on the list. Please vote now, don't put it aside and forget about it! https://wbjb.formstack.com/forms/voteforagoodcause ________________________________ Evan Koblentz, executive director Vintage Computer Federation a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit evan(a)vcfed.org (646) 546-9999 www.vcfed.org facebook.com/vcfederation twitter.com/vcfederation instagram.com/vcfederation

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CHIP / Pocket CHIP maker is no more :-(
by Jeffrey Jonas 16 Sep '18

16 Sep '18

I do not recall seeing this reported here before. Several of us have the CHIP and Pocket CHIP. The company is defunct :-( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CHIP_(computer) CHIP is a single-board computer crowdfunded by now-defunct Next Thing Co. (NTC), https://hackaday.com/2018/04/03/is-this-the-end-for-the-c-h-i-p/ Is This The End For The C.H.I.P.? We ought to share all the documentation and updates we archived. -- jeff jonas

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Cool interview in progress...
by Evan Koblentz 16 Sep '18

16 Sep '18

I tracked down the guy in Denmark who was product manager for the Lego robotics kit in the mid-1980s. Got his name from one of the manuals, reached out to him on LinkedIn, and now we're corresponding by email. He already sent me some fascinating information. Tomorrow we are speaking by Skype at 1pm. Can't wait! I have so many questions. If any of you have questions, then let me know by tomorrow morning. For some of the technical questions, I'm thinking to myself: "What would Dan ask?"

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] CHIP / Pocket CHIP maker is no more :-(
by Brian L. Stuart 16 Sep '18

16 Sep '18

On Sun, 9/16/18, Dave McGuire via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > On 09/16/2018 06:46 AM, Jeffrey Jonas via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > > Several of us have the CHIP and Pocket CHIP. > > The company is defunct :-( > > I hadn't heard either. I saw the astonishingly and obviously poor > decisions come, one after another, and expected this to happen > eventually, but somehow I had missed the news when it happened. I first heard something at VCF East this year. A visitor to my table was looking at one I was running the ENIAC simulator on. When I said something about having your own pocket ENIAC, he said "if you can find one now." At home, I did a little searching and came across the Hackaday article on it. > > We ought to share all the documentation and updates we archived. > > I agree. I have several of their boards in daily use here, and I want > to keep them running. I've got a couple here, but never did get around to porting Plan 9 like I had intended. About the only other thing I ever did with mine was run simh for a pocket 11. Alas it joins my Nanonote and Agenda in my collection of promising open designs that didn't make it. BLS

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Ideas for "analog" icon?
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 16 Sep '18

16 Sep '18

Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> writes: > >There is an under-construction page on my Lego robotics website about >analog computing. I need a simple image to represent the idea of analog. >Any suggestions? I'm not looking for a picture of hardware, I'm looking >for something more like an icon even if I have to make it myself... but >an icon of what? It needs to be something recognizable to regular >people. Perhaps... https://openclipart.org/image/2400px/svg_to_png/200637/primary-oscilloscope… Looks like a terminal with analog waveform.

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fire, all ok
by Dave McGuire 15 Sep '18

15 Sep '18

By now some of you have heard about the massive fire that just took out an entire block here in New Kensington. I'm sending this out because are phones are dead from having blown up all day over this. We are fine. There was no damage to the museum, which is on the adjacent block. Building 2 is right across the alley from the block that burned. (that's where Autumn and I live and work) That building filled up with smoke and was without power for much of the afternoon and evening. Power is back on and we are getting it cleared now; if it's cleared enough by later tonight we'll be able to sleep at home. We evacuated our cats (nine of 'em) to the museum for the time being. Suboptimal but it's the best we can do. -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA

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Ideas for "analog" icon?
by Evan Koblentz 15 Sep '18

15 Sep '18

There is an under-construction page on my Lego robotics website about analog computing. I need a simple image to represent the idea of analog. Any suggestions? I'm not looking for a picture of hardware, I'm looking for something more like an icon even if I have to make it myself... but an icon of what? It needs to be something recognizable to regular people.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] fire, all ok
by VAXman＠tmesis.org 14 Sep '18

14 Sep '18

Dave McGuire via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> writes: > > > By now some of you have heard about the massive fire that just took >out an entire block here in New Kensington. I'm sending this out >because are phones are dead from having blown up all day over this. > > We are fine. There was no damage to the museum, which is on the >adjacent block. Building 2 is right across the alley from the block >that burned. (that's where Autumn and I live and work) That building >filled up with smoke and was without power for much of the afternoon and >evening. Power is back on and we are getting it cleared now; if it's >cleared enough by later tonight we'll be able to sleep at home. We >evacuated our cats (nine of 'em) to the museum for the time being. >Suboptimal but it's the best we can do. Shhhh...tuff happens. Happy to hear you, Autumn, kitties and computers are all well.

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Cool interview in progress...
by Thomas Fuchs 14 Sep '18

14 Sep '18

I think all the FT packaging showed the same mock-up computer, they just changed the label. I’ll double check later as I have one minty-fresh in box and it’s for IBM PC... Best, Thomas > On Sep 14, 2018, at 5:56 AM, Thomas Fuchs via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > <mime-attachment>

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System Source, in Hunt Valley, MD?
by Duane Craps 14 Sep '18

14 Sep '18

I would be interested in either date Duane Craps Hope it works this time. I keep forgetting what email address of mine that goes though On 9/13/2018 9:34 AM, J. Alexander Jacocks via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > Here are the current numbers: > > *September 29th/30th:* 4-6 (Dromgoole, Hendrickson, Loewen, O'Toole, > Perkins, Jacocks) > *November 10th/11th:* 7 (Degnan, Dromgoole, Gesswein, Koblentz, Lou, > O'Toole, Sturges, Jacocks) > > Anyone else interested in the 29th or 30th, please let me know ASAP. I'm > going to talk to Bob Roswell, to confirm his availability. > > Thanks! > - Alex > > On Wed, Sep 12, 2018 at 3:33 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > >> November >> >> >> On 09/12/2018 03:27 PM, Bill Dromgoole via vcf-midatlantic wrote: >>> I am interested in either date . Maybe both. >>> >>> Bill Dromgoole >>> >>> >>> From: J. Alexander Jacocks via vcf-midatlantic >>> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2018 9:22 AM >>> To: vcf-midatlantic >>> Cc: J. Alexander Jacocks >>> Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System >> Source,in Hunt Valley, MD? >>> Any other interest? So far, I don't think that we have enough folks for >>> either the 29th/30th or the 10th/11th. >>> >>> Here are the current numbers: >>> >>> *September 29th/30th:* 2-4 (Loewen, Hendrickson, Perkins, Jacocks) >>> *November 10th/11th:* 4 (Degnan, Lou, Gesswein, Jacocks) >> -- DuaneCraps sdɐɹɔ ǝuɐnp

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System Source, in Hunt Valley, MD?
by Duane Craps 14 Sep '18

14 Sep '18

I would be interested in either date Duane Craps On 9/13/2018 9:34 AM, J. Alexander Jacocks via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > Here are the current numbers: > > *September 29th/30th:* 4-6 (Dromgoole, Hendrickson, Loewen, O'Toole, > Perkins, Jacocks) > *November 10th/11th:* 7 (Degnan, Dromgoole, Gesswein, Koblentz, Lou, > O'Toole, Sturges, Jacocks) > > Anyone else interested in the 29th or 30th, please let me know ASAP. I'm > going to talk to Bob Roswell, to confirm his availability. > > Thanks! > - Alex > > On Wed, Sep 12, 2018 at 3:33 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > >> November >> >> >> On 09/12/2018 03:27 PM, Bill Dromgoole via vcf-midatlantic wrote: >>> I am interested in either date . Maybe both. >>> >>> Bill Dromgoole >>> >>> >>> From: J. Alexander Jacocks via vcf-midatlantic >>> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2018 9:22 AM >>> To: vcf-midatlantic >>> Cc: J. Alexander Jacocks >>> Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System >> Source,in Hunt Valley, MD? >>> Any other interest? So far, I don't think that we have enough folks for >>> either the 29th/30th or the 10th/11th. >>> >>> Here are the current numbers: >>> >>> *September 29th/30th:* 2-4 (Loewen, Hendrickson, Perkins, Jacocks) >>> *November 10th/11th:* 4 (Degnan, Lou, Gesswein, Jacocks) >> -- DuaneCraps sdɐɹɔ ǝuɐnp

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IEEE article needed
by Evan Koblentz 13 Sep '18

13 Sep '18

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/5344892/ Someone with an IEEE account, please get me this article....

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Z80/6502/68000 on a Microcontroller (J. Alexander Jacocks)
by J. Alexander Jacocks 13 Sep '18

13 Sep '18

Mike, I am curious exactly what the folks behind the campaign are thinking. I thought that it was an interesting project, but I definitely wasn't sure why it was necessary. - Alex On Wed, Sep 12, 2018 at 12:59 PM mike willegal via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > I would take a different approach. I think a number of modern > micro-controllers should be fast enough to run Z80/6502/68000 code at real > time speed in emulation and will cost less than $10 from places like > digikey. In addition, you will be able to easily upgrade capabilities as > micro-controller chip suppliers upgrade their chips and make use of their > development tool suite. > > Tricky part would be to implement an emulator that runs at an accurate > speed. > > regards, > Mike Willegal > >

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System Source, in Hunt Valley, MD?
by Evan Koblentz 13 Sep '18

13 Sep '18

November On 09/12/2018 03:27 PM, Bill Dromgoole via vcf-midatlantic wrote: > I am interested in either date . Maybe both. > > Bill Dromgoole > > > From: J. Alexander Jacocks via vcf-midatlantic > Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2018 9:22 AM > To: vcf-midatlantic > Cc: J. Alexander Jacocks > Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System Source,in Hunt Valley, MD? > > Any other interest? So far, I don't think that we have enough folks for > either the 29th/30th or the 10th/11th. > > Here are the current numbers: > > *September 29th/30th:* 2-4 (Loewen, Hendrickson, Perkins, Jacocks) > *November 10th/11th:* 4 (Degnan, Lou, Gesswein, Jacocks)

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Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System Source, in Hunt Valley, MD?
by Jeffrey Brace 12 Sep '18

12 Sep '18

Bill Dromgoole, I think that you may be misunderstanding something. The workshop that Alex is talking about is in Hunt Valley, Maryland, NOT at the VCF museum, NOT at InfoAge. Jeff On Sun, Aug 26, 2018 at 4:56 PM Bill Dromgoole via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > Yes, I am interested In both days at the museum. > I want to survey Bob’s Univac 1218 and Univac 490 to see what is needed to > get them lit off. > I am pretty sure that Duane is also interested in powering up the Univacs. > > Do we have any firm dates or a signup list yet? > I have both suggested dates marked on my calendar. > > Bill Dromgoole > > From: Bill Degnan via vcf-midatlantic > Sent: Monday, August 20, 2018 9:05 AM > To: vcf-midatlantic > Cc: Bill Degnan > Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Interest in a Workshop at System Source,in > Hunt Valley, MD? > > certainly if possible to have one on both weekends so everyone interested > can attend at least one. I can help more with the November workshop but > I'd probably go to both at least one day each. > > For those of you who don't know, Bob has a private museum with a ton of > computer exhibits ranging the entire spectrum of machines. the official > web site > https://museum.syssrc.com/ > > I helped Bob organize a workshop in 2014: > http://vintagecomputer.net/browse_thread.cfm?id=537 > It has been too long since we had a workshop there, I am glad someone is > taking the initiative. > > Bill > > On Mon, Aug 20, 2018 at 7:45 AM Jason Perkins via vcf-midatlantic < > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > I'd definitely want to come. I'd think the September dates would be > better > > for me, I'm checking to be sure. > > > > On Sun, Aug 19, 2018 at 10:06 PM, J. Alexander Jacocks via > vcf-midatlantic > > < > > vcf-midatlantic(a)lists.vcfed.org> wrote: > > > > > All, > > > > > > Since we can't have a workshop at InfoAge, this fall, I propose (along > > with > > > Bob Roswell) that we have a workshop at Bob's System Source Computer > > > Museum, in Hunt Valley, MD. > > > > > > I talked to Bob, and he and I are both available on the following > dates: > > > September 29th/30th > > > November 10th/11th > > > > > > We're not yet sure if this will be a 1-day or a 2-day workshop. Please > > let > > > me know if you are available on either of the dates, and I'll tally the > > > results. > > > > > > Thanks! > > > - Alex > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > Jason Perkins > > 313 355 0085 > > > > -- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation

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